Hudson Cemetery
Kennedale, Tarrant County, Texas
Marker Inscription
When John Dickinson and Winnie (Traylor) Hudson's daughter Ary Mae died in 1878, she was the first person to be buried on the family land. Her twin, Ara Bell, who had been buried in Montague County earlier that year, was later reinterred beside Ary Mae. In 1892 the Hudsons deeded three acres to the trustees of the Hudson Cemetery for use by the surrounding community. Most of the Hudson Cemetery burials date from the early 20th century. From 1954 to 1965 a cemetery fund was organized; it was resurrected in 1974 as the Hudson Cemetery. More than 500 graves were counted in 1996. Hudson Cemetery continues to serve as a record of Tarrant County pioneers. (1998)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
When John and Winnie Hudson's young daughter Ary Mae died in 1878, her grave became the first on the family's Tarrant County land, soon joined by her twin sister, reinterred from a distant county to rest beside her. In 1892 the Hudsons deeded three acres for a community cemetery, and by 1996 more than five hundred graves recorded the pioneers of the surrounding countryside. Community funds organized across the 20th century have kept the ground tended.
Why it matters
The cemetery is a durable ledger of a Texas pioneer community, where a single family's grief grew into a shared resting place for the settlers who built the county.
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Related people
- ยท John Dickinson Hudson
- ยท Winnie Traylor Hudson
Themes & tags
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