Payne Cemetery
Athens, Henderson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Surrounded by a forest of trees, Payne Cemetery is the final resting place for many of the area’s pioneer settlers and their descendants. In the 1870s, early pioneers moved to this area of Henderson County hoping to improve their lives. One early pioneer to the area, William K. Payne (1821-1877), served as a delegate from Henderson County to the Texas Secession Convention, signed the Texas Ordinance of Secession from the Union in 1861 and is the namesake of the town of Payne Springs. He served during the Civil War and was later elected justice of the peace in Henderson County. He and his wife, Martha (Woodward) Payne (1835-1876), are buried here. The first burial is that of Benjamin R. Cook (1869-1874), the young child of Francis Marion Cook (1832-1910) and his wife, Susan (Starr) Cook (1838-1925). One of the couple’s children, George J. Cook (1867-1938), built one of the first brick buildings in Eustace in 1907 and was the vice president of the Eustace Bank for twenty-eight years. He and his wife, Lillie (Melton) Cook (1886-1954), are buried here. Among the hundreds of burials at Payne Cemetery, a large number are attributed to the Ballard, Dixon, Hughes, Jones and Keeton families. Veterans of the Civil War, Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War are also buried here. This cemetery features a variety of headstones including granite, marble, sandstone, wood, fieldstone and concrete. Situated among oaks, pines and crepe myrtles, this historic cemetery is a reminder of the area’s nineteenth century settlers who developed this portion of Henderson County. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2012
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Shaded by pines and oaks, Payne Cemetery holds the pioneers who came to Henderson County in the 1870s seeking better lives. Among them was William K. Payne, a delegate who signed the 1861 Texas Ordinance of Secession, served in the Civil War, and gave his name to nearby Payne Springs. The first burial, in 1874, was a small child of the Cook family, and generations of the area's founding families lie here alongside veterans from the Civil War through Vietnam.
Why it matters
A single country cemetery links the divisive politics of secession to the everyday settlers whose families shaped rural Texas for a century after.
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Related people
- · William K. Payne
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Goodgame Cemetery
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