Mt. Zion Cemetery
Burton, Washington County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This 5-acre cemetery is located on the league of land granted to Robert Clokey, of Stephen F. Austin's Second Colony, in 1831. First grave here was that of an infant, E. A. Metcalfe, who died Sept. 15, 1852. Some unmarked graves may date from a yellow fever epidemic that struck this area in 1867. The cemetery was probably named for the Mt. Zion Baptist Church, located here from 1857 to 1882. Deeded to cemetery trustees in 1881 by owner J. R. Hines, the site contains 132 marked graves, which represent 55 families. The Burton Heritage Society now maintains the property. (1975)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
This five-acre burial ground lies on land granted in 1831 to Robert Clokey, a colonist in one of Stephen F. Austin's colonies. Its first grave, an infant's, dates to 1852, and some unmarked graves may hold victims of the yellow fever epidemic that swept the area in 1867. Named for the Mt. Zion Baptist Church that stood here from 1857 to 1882, the cemetery holds 132 marked graves representing 55 pioneer families.
Why it matters
Cemeteries like this one preserve the names and losses of the settler families who put down roots in Austin's colonies during Texas's earliest Anglo-American settlement.
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Related people
- · Robert Clokey
Themes & tags
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