San Geronimo Cemetery
Seguin, Guadalupe County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Located on the banks of the San Geronimo Creek, this cemetery was originally known as Beard’s Burial Ground when William and Margaret (Bridges) Beard were buried on their family farm in 1846. William Beard first came to Texas as part of the Stephen F. Austin Colony in 1831. After the death of his first wife, Martha (Harris), William married Margaret Bridges and together they moved to this area in 1838 to help start the community of Walnut Springs, later renamed Seguin in 1839. Their farm was part of 50 acres deeded to William by the Republic of Texas in 1845. Both William and Margaret Beard died just one day apart in 1846, though they were not the first burials in the cemetery. The oldest known grave in the cemetery is thought to be for 10-year-old Stephen A. Johnson who died in 1839. The first five trustees to care for the cemetery beginning in 1883 were: A.L. Baker, I.B. Dibrell, Jr., I.E. Legette, A.T. Woods, and W.M. Lay, grandson of William and Martha Beard. In 1897, the cemetery was renamed San Geronimo Cemetery. The cemetery holds many markers commemorating individuals and their service to the state: Henry Eustace McCulloch, Elijah Valentine Dale, George Washington Lonis, Robert D. McAnelly, John H. Sowell, Andrew Jackson Sowell and Lucinda Turner Sowell. Many of the early founders and settlers of the area and of Guadalupe County such as Weinert, Blumberg, Dibrell, Erskine and Woods, as well as several veterans dating from the Texas Revolution period through the Gulf War era, are buried here. One of the oldest cemeteries in Guadalupe County and predating the existence of the surrounding community, San Geronimo Cemetery remains a source of pride to the Seguin community today. HISTORIC TEXAS CEMETERY – 2016
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Known first as Beard's Burial Ground, this cemetery on San Geronimo Creek began with the graves of William and Margaret Beard, who died a day apart in 1846 on their Republic of Texas land grant. William had come to Texas with Stephen F. Austin's colony in 1831 and helped found Walnut Springs, renamed Seguin in 1839; the oldest grave may be that of ten-year-old Stephen A. Johnson, dead in 1839. Renamed San Geronimo in 1897, it holds early county founders and veterans spanning from the Texas Revolution to the Gulf War.
Why it matters
Predating the town it serves, the cemetery ties Seguin's origins directly to Austin's colonists and the founding generation of the Republic of Texas.
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Related people
- · William Beard
- · Margaret Bridges Beard
- · Stephen F. Austin
- · Henry Eustace McCulloch
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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