Baker Cemetery
Kemp, Kaufman County, Texas
Marker Inscription
John Baker, his wife Eliza, and their family migrated to Texas from Illinois in 1835, settling on land granted to him. Baker Cemetery began as a family burial site with the death of their infant son William in 1848. Gradually this site became a three-acre community burial ground, serving other pioneer families and their descendants. Among the more than 800 graves contained here are those of veterans of the Republic of Texas Army, the Civil War, World War II, and the Korean War. The cemetery is maintained by an association established in 1984 and continues to serve the area.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
When the Baker family's infant son William was buried in 1848, this Illinois-emigrant family plot was born. Over the decades it grew into a three-acre community cemetery of more than 800 graves. Among the dead are veterans of the Republic of Texas Army, the Civil War, World War II, and the Korean War.
Why it matters
It is a single patch of ground where more than a century of Texas military service, from the Republic through the Cold War, is gathered.
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Related people
- ยท John Baker
- ยท Eliza Baker
Themes & tags
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