Pleasant Mound "Public" Cemetery
Dallas, Dallas County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In 1640-acre survey of James Jackson Beeman (1816-88), uncle by marriage of John Neely Bryan, first settler in Dallas. Beeman came here from Illinois in 1840, helped cut first road in Trinity bottoms; name Turtle Creek, 1841; and plat city of Dallas, 1842. On March 8, 1848, he buried his wife Sarah Crawford Beeman on northeast corner of his land, and later allowed neighbors to bury their dead here. Cemetery's first (1887) trustees were J. W. Miller, James Pruitt, and J. H. Shannon. Pioneers buried here set the course for greatness of Dallas. Marker Donated By: Mildred Boone (Mrs. Joel) Haden, great- granddaughter of Sarah Crawford Beeman, first person buried in this cemetery, and by the Ada Bruton Garden Club of Dallas.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
This burial ground lies within the 1,640-acre survey of James Jackson Beeman, who came from Illinois in 1840 and, as uncle by marriage to Dallas founder John Neely Bryan, helped cut the first road through the Trinity bottoms, named Turtle Creek, and plat the city of Dallas in 1842. In March 1848 Beeman buried his wife Sarah Crawford Beeman at the northeast corner of his land and later opened the plot to his neighbors. Formally organized under trustees in 1887, it remains a resting place of the region's earliest pioneers.
Why it matters
The cemetery holds the founding generation of Dallas, tying the graves of ordinary settlers directly to the beginnings of one of America's major cities.
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Related people
- · James Jackson Beeman
- · John Neely Bryan
- · Sarah Crawford Beeman
Related events
- · Platting of Dallas (1842)
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Pleasant Mound Cemetery
Dallas, TX
Set where two well-traveled pioneer roads crossed, this cemetery saw its first burials as early as 1869, with the earliest marked grave dating to 1881. That year Newton and Catherine (Beeman) Hustead deeded the land to the Pleasant Mound Methodist Church for use as a cemetery. A cemetery association has cared for the grounds since 1906.
Pleasant Mound Methodist Church
Dallas, TX
This congregation grew from a shared frontier meeting house in the farming hamlet of Scyene, a two-story building that doubled as store, Masonic lodge, and school where several denominations worshiped side by side. The Methodists built a log sanctuary in 1876 and relocated to the Pleasant Mound community in 1878, replacing their buildings repeatedly as membership grew. The tradition of shared worship gave way to separate congregations after 1900, but neighbors still gathered for annual homecomings for decades.
Scyene Road, Old
Dallas, TX
Beginning as a buffalo trail, Scyene Road became one of the earliest roads in Dallas County, linking the town of Scyene with Dallas — a full day's wagon journey west — and reaching east toward Jefferson and Shreveport. Settled in the 1840s and 1850s and named for a town in ancient Egypt, Scyene reportedly sheltered outlaws such as Belle Starr and Jesse James along this route in the 1870s. Once a thriving town with a post office, stores, school, and churches, Scyene declined after the Texas & Pacific Railroad bypassed it in 1872.
Site of Scyene Meeting Place
Dallas, TX
Settlers in 1840s Dallas County first gathered under a tree at this spot, and by the 1850s a succession of two-story frame buildings hosted a Masonic lodge, church services, elections, and one of the county's earliest public schools. Among its pupils was the young Myra Maybelle Shirley, later infamous as the outlaw Belle Starr. When the Texas & Pacific Railroad bypassed Scyene in 1872 the town dwindled, yet the community hall kept hosting fraternal groups and classes until 1927.