Herrington Cemetery
Harker Heights, Bell County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Herrington Cemetery John Granberry Herrington and his wife Elvira Jane (Collins) left Mississippi forTexas in 1873. Although other members of their wagon train stopped in Nacogdoches, the Herringtons chose to continue on to the wilderness of Bell county. Soon after their arrival the Herringtons purchased land, built a cabin, and constructed barns and fences for their livestock. Twelve children were eventually born to the Herringtons. Upon the death of John Herrington in 1903, his family buried him just a few hundred yards from his home, thus establishing Herrington Cemetery. The burial ground remains active today, and an association established in 1997 maintains the site, a tribute to an early pioneering Bell county family.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
John Granberry Herrington and his wife Elvira Jane left Mississippi for Texas in 1873, pressing on past Nacogdoches—where fellow travelers stopped—to settle the wilderness of Bell County. There they bought land, built a cabin and barns, and raised twelve children. When John died in 1903, his family buried him just yards from his home, founding the cemetery that a family association still tends today.
Why it matters
It honors the post–Civil War migration of Southern families into the Texas interior and the pioneer homesteads that became the seedbeds of new communities.
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Related people
- · John Granberry Herrington
- · Elvira Jane Collins Herrington
Themes & tags
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