Ryan Cemetery
Cleveland, Liberty County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Also known as Ryan's Graveyard, this historic burial ground served the rural community of Tarkington since at least the 1860s. Named for early pioneer settler Burton B. Tarkington, the farming and ranching community also known as Tarkington Prairie thrived after the Civil War. Many veterans and pioneers are buried in Ryan Cemetery, with the first marked grave dating from 1863 for 10-year-old William E. West. The cemetery was named for early settler John Jacob Ryan, who owned land surrounding the cemetery. Ryan arrived in Liberty County from Ireland between 1850 and 1860 and became a prosperous businessman with a store on his property. In August 1873, Ryan was found shot to death on the public road near the cemetery. Although three men were indicted for his murder, they were eventually acquitted. Ryan's burial site is unknown. In 1908, the property was conveyed to the Rural Shade Baptist Church, who maintained the cemetery until 1989 when the Ryan Cemetery Association assumed management. Many early church members are buried here, along with other pioneer settlers, leaders of the community and veterans dating to the Texas Revolution. Notable Civil War veterans include Charles Matthew Rice and Jessie Burton Gillen. The Tarkington Prairie Masonic Lodge No. 798 has also been historically associated with the Ryan Cemetery, with many charter members buried here since its founding in 1878. An annual memorial service attracts descendants and citizens to the Ryan Cemetery to celebrate the rich heritage of the community. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2018
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Also called Ryan's Graveyard, this burial ground has served the ranching and farming community of Tarkington Prairie since at least the 1860s, its earliest marked grave belonging to a ten-year-old boy in 1863. It takes its name from Irish immigrant John Jacob Ryan, a prosperous storekeeper found shot dead on the nearby road in 1873 in a murder whose accused killers were acquitted. Veterans reaching back to the Texas Revolution and the Civil War, early Baptist church members, and Masonic lodge founders all rest here, drawing descendants to an annual memorial service.
Why it matters
The cemetery preserves the layered story of a post-Civil War Texas community — immigration, frontier violence, fraternal and church life, and generations of pioneer and veteran families in one place.
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Related people
- · John Jacob Ryan
- · Burton B. Tarkington
Themes & tags
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