Rice Cemetery
Rice, Navarro County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The Rice community was settled during the late 1860s and was named for William Marsh Rice, who donated land for the town's railroad station and later founded Rice University. In 1868, the citizens of the community were granted land for a cemetery by the trustees of the William M. Rice interests. Originally located about one and one-half miles south, the Rice Cemetery was removed to this site during the 1870s. The three original cemetery trustees, William D. Haynie, John A. Clopton, and Isaac B. Sessions, are buried in the oldest, or northern, section of the graveyard. That section also contains many burial sites that are marked only with small rock fragments or similar material. Rice Cemetery contains marked graves of numerous war veterans, including that of Joseph Calloway Bartlett, a veteran of the Texas War for Independence. In addition, four participants in the Civil War, two Spanish-American War veterans, and numerous World War I and II veterans also are interred here. Tombstones reflect the high infant mortality rate of the 1880s and the early 20th-century flu epidemic. A good example of a pioneer graveyard, the Rice Cemetery is an important part of Navarro County's recorded history.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
The Rice community grew up in the late 1860s, named for William Marsh Rice, the merchant who donated land for its railroad station and later endowed Rice University. The citizens received land for this cemetery in 1868, and it was moved to its present site in the 1870s. Its graves span Texas history — a veteran of the Texas War for Independence lies here alongside Civil War, Spanish-American War, and two World Wars' veterans, while rows of small stones testify to high infant mortality and the early-20th-century flu epidemic.
Why it matters
A pioneer graveyard like this is an open ledger of a community's whole past, recording in stone the wars its people fought and the epidemics and hardships they endured.
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Related people
- · William Marsh Rice
- · Joseph Calloway Bartlett
Themes & tags
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