HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

Magnolia Cemetery

Beaumont, Jefferson County, Texas

Marker Inscription

The Magnolia Cemetery Company was granted a charter by the State of Texas on August 3, 1887. The following month the company's five trustees purchased thirteen acres of land on which to locate the graveyard, and burials were soon taking place in the cemetery. Land acquisitions and expansions over the years have surrounded the Hebrew Rest Cemetery just north of the original thirteen acres, as well as two other burial grounds -- the I.O.O.F (Odd Fellows) Cemetery and a plot deeded in 1876 to "white citizens of Beaumont" (later known as the Public Grounds.) Adjacent to Magnolia Cemetery, but separately held, are the Knights of Pythias and St. Michael's Orthodox cemeteries. Many early settlers and residents of Beaumont are interred here, including two veterans of the Texas Revolution. The oldest grave markers pre-date the official founding of Magnolia Cemetery and are representative of burials which were moved here from private family cemeteries. a variety of grave markers can be seen here, from simple stones to elaborately sculpted angels and family mausoleums. (Texas Sesquicentennial 1836 - 1986)

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Chartered by the State of Texas in 1887, the Magnolia Cemetery Company bought thirteen acres in Beaumont, and burials began almost at once. Over the years the grounds grew to surround several older burial plots, including Hebrew Rest, an Odd Fellows cemetery, and a plot deeded in 1876, while neighboring Knights of Pythias and St. Michael's Orthodox cemeteries stand apart. Many of Beaumont's early settlers rest here, among them two veterans of the Texas Revolution, beneath markers ranging from simple stones to sculpted angels and family mausoleums.

Why it matters

A cemetery gathering Jewish, fraternal, Orthodox, and pioneer burial grounds side by side reflects the diverse community that grew up around Beaumont on the eve of its great oil boom.

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Related events

  • ยท Texas Revolution

Themes & tags

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