Letot Cemetery
Dallas, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
A native of France and a veteran of the Crimean War, Clement LeTot (b. 1836) settled in northwest Dallas County in 1874. He was the founder and leading citizen of the town of Letot, which was established in 1881 along the rail line. As was the custom of early Texas pioneers, Letot set aside a plot of his land for the burial of family members. The first burials here were for his sons Theodore (d. 1884) and Paul (d. 1885). Letot was buried beside his sons in 1907. Now a part of the City of Dallas, the Letot Cemetery represents an important part of Dallas County's ethnic heritage.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Clement LeTot, a Frenchman and Crimean War veteran, put down roots in northwest Dallas County in 1874 and by 1881 had founded the little rail-line town that bore his name. Following the frontier custom of the day, he set aside part of his land as a family burial ground, first for two young sons in the mid-1880s and eventually for himself in 1907. Long since absorbed into the sprawl of Dallas, the cemetery is one of the last tangible traces of an immigrant-founded community.
Why it matters
The cemetery preserves the story of European immigrants who helped build out the rail-side towns of late-19th-century Texas, a thread of ethnic heritage in a now-urbanized landscape.
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Related people
- · Clement LeTot
Themes & tags
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