HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

Cemetery Chapel

San Marcos, Hays County, Texas

Marker Inscription

This cemetery is located on a ten-acre tract of land sold by Judy and Shadrach Dixon to the San Marcos Cemetery Association in 1876. Built about 1890, this carpenter Gothic chapel has been the scene of many funerals and memorial services over the years, including those of Civil War, Spanish American War, and world War I veterans. Of board and batten construction, it features a cruciform plan and Gothic arched openings. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1973

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Built around 1890 on land the Dixon family sold to the San Marcos Cemetery Association in 1876, this carpenter Gothic chapel has hosted funerals and memorial services for generations. Its cruciform plan, board-and-batten walls, and Gothic-arched openings make it a fine example of vernacular church architecture. Among those remembered here are veterans of the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, and World War I.

Why it matters

The little chapel stands as a place where a Texas community gathered to mourn and honor its dead across more than a century of American life and war.

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Related people

  • Β· Judy Dixon
  • Β· Shadrach Dixon

Themes & tags

Nearby & related markers

William W. Moon

San Marcos, TX

William W. Moon, orphaned in infancy in Alabama, came to Texas in 1838 and rode with the Texas Rangers, first seeing the San Marcos Springs during a running Indian fight in 1843. Enchanted by the country, he brought his family to build a cabin here in 1845, making the Moons the first permanent Anglo-American settlers of what became Hays County. His cabin hosted the county's first sermon and first school, and he later served in both the Mexican War and the Civil War while running a hotel, stage stop, blacksmith shop, and freight line.

Post San Marcos

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In December 1838 the Republic of Texas Congress ordered a chain of military roads and forts from the Red River to the Nueces, and a road from Austin joining the old Camino Real near St. Mark's Springs was meant to speed communication between San Antonio and the capital. Adjutant General Hugh McLeod laid out Post San Marcos to guard the route, and Captain Joseph Wiehl's company completed both road and fort in 1840. When the Republic disbanded its army in 1841 for lack of funds, the post closed.

Burleson Home

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This restored log house honors Gen. Edward Burleson (1793–1851), an officer in the Texas War for Independence, a leader in frontier defense, vice president of the Republic of Texas, and a state legislator. The original dwelling, built in 1848 of hewn elm and oak with a rock chimney, had fallen into ruin by 1917 before being rebuilt in 1964 using the old chimney stones and period logs. It stands for the generation that fought to establish and defend the young Republic.

Kyle Cemetery

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Colonel Claiborne Kyle, one of Hays County's first settlers, buried his adopted son here in 1849 β€” the earliest recorded interment, though local lore claims a man hanged from a live oak on the grounds came first, giving rise to 'the hanging tree.' Kyle is said to have set aside land for a community burial ground, formalized when his son Polk deeded five acres in 1877 and further parcels were added into the next century. Among the pioneers and family members resting here are veterans of the Civil War and every major conflict through Vietnam.