Burlington Cemetery
Burlington, Milam County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Members of the German Evangelical Lutheran Church of Burlington established this cemetery in 1917. Land for the cemetery once belonged to Michael and John Jones, founders of the town of Burlington. The church purchased the cemetery property from John Helpert, who acquired it from the Jones family. Neighboring St. Michael’s Cemetery had already been established for use by Catholic residents, and there was need for a burial ground to serve Lutherans and other non-Catholic residents. The earliest recorded interment here dates to 1917. The Burlington Church merged with the Vogelsang Lutheran Church in 1953, forming the United Evangelical and Reformed Church of Ben Arnold, which became overseer of the Burlington Cemetery. In 1957, following another merger, the United Church of Christ became the property administrator. The Burlington Cemetery Association now cares for and maintains the cemetery, which continues to serve as a burial ground for Burlington area residents, as well as for descendants of former residents of the community. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2004
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Members of the German Evangelical Lutheran Church of Burlington established this cemetery in 1917 on land once owned by town founders Michael and John Jones. With the Catholic St. Michael's Cemetery already nearby, the Lutherans and other non-Catholics needed a burial place of their own. Passed through a series of church mergers to the United Church of Christ and now cared for by a local association, it still serves the Burlington community and the descendants of those who left it.
Why it matters
The cemetery reflects the German Lutheran settlement of Central Texas and how immigrant faith communities organized their religious and civic life—right down to who could be buried where.
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Related people
- · Michael Jones
- · John Jones
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
St. Michael's Cemetery
Burlington, TX
St. Michael's Cemetery grew from the Irish Catholic families who settled the Milam County community once called Waterford. In 1876 brothers John and Michael Jones bought the land; Michael died two years later and was buried there, and in 1897 his heirs deeded the plot to the Catholic Diocese of Galveston. The headstones—German, Czech, Irish, Hispanic, and more—record the mingling of cultures that built Burlington, including veterans reaching back to the Civil War.
Church of the Visitation
Westphalia, TX
German Catholic families who had first settled in Colorado County came here in 1879 seeking better farmland and immediately bought 100 acres for a church and school, naming the settlement Westphalia after their homeland province. An early church was destroyed by a storm in 1884 and rebuilt within months; the present building, completed in 1895 of stone hauled by wagon from the railhead, is one of the largest wooden church buildings in Texas. Its Latin-cross plan, storm-braced bell towers, and rare original stained glass reflect the ambition of a thriving immigrant congregation.
St. Mary's Cemetery
Westphalia, TX
German families who named their new home "Westphalia" after their old province founded St. Mary's Cemetery in 1883, pooling money to buy 100 acres for a school, church, and burial ground. The oldest grave is that of five-year-old Heinrich Bernard Lenz, and many early stones are inscribed in German, a testament to a community that carried its language and faith across the Atlantic. Veterans of every American war from the Civil War through the Persian Gulf rest here, and the cemetery still serves the Church of the Visitation's parishioners.
Zabcikville
Temple, TX
In 1856, Jan Zabcik Sr. brought his family from Moravia to Galveston, part of the wave of Czech immigrants who settled first around Cat Springs before moving on to Bell County. There the family bought land—a marker of status in the Czech community—and a small settlement grew, changing names from Kocenda to Lugoville to Marekville as different storekeepers took over. In 1923 Frank Zabcik bought the store and land and renamed it Zabcikville, and much of that original family acreage remains with descendants who still farm it.