Burns Station Cemetery
Cuero, DeWitt County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Reminder of De Witt County's earliest settlement, Irish Creek, begun in 1826 when Arthur Burns (1780-1856) migrated from Missouri and Iowa to Texas. He joined colony of Green DeWitt and built a 2-story log home near here. Used as a refuge during Indian raids, the house was also visited by General Sam Houston, 1836. On Dec. 19, 1837, President Houston appointed Burns to board of land commissioners, Victoria County (which then encompassed this portion of DeWitt County). Area's first grist mill (operated 1856-69 by Moses Rankin) was established by Burns. Near it clustered the Sherman and Thomas General Store, Charlie White's Blacksmith Shop, and Warn Hardware. The Irish Creek settlement became known as Burns Station, as it was a stage stop on the Victoria - Gonzales Road. Cemetery site, donated 1853 by Ardelia Burns Cook, daughter of Arthur Burns, adjoined the Irish Creek Methodist Church. In oldest marked grave lies Joseph Allen (1812-53), born in Ireland. Here also is buried Sarah, Arthur Burns' widow. (Burns is buried in Iowa). In 1870s, Burns Station lost business to Thomaston and Cuero, but was a stop on the Gulf, West Texas and Pacific Railroad until the name was changed in 1902 to "Verhelle," honoring a railroad official. Incise on back: Cemetery restored 1969 by work of relatives and the Southwest Texas Methodist conference
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
When Arthur Burns reached DeWitt's colony in 1826 and built a two-story log home, he planted the seed of Irish Creek, one of the county's earliest settlements—a house that sheltered families during raids and once hosted Sam Houston in 1836. A grist mill, store, blacksmith, and stage stop clustered nearby along the Victoria–Gonzales road, and the settlement came to be called Burns Station. The cemetery, its land donated in 1853, holds an Ireland-born pioneer among its oldest graves.
Why it matters
The site traces the full life cycle of a Texas crossroads community—from empresario colony to stage stop to railroad depot to fading name on the map—as commerce shifted to rival towns.
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Related people
- · Arthur Burns
- · Sam Houston
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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