Wheeler Cemetery
Wheeler, Wheeler County, Texas
Marker Inscription
THE SITE OF WHEELER CEMETERY WAS CONVEYED TO J.E. STANLEY, TRUSTEE FOR THE WHEELER COMMUNITY GRAVEYARD, BY R.M. STONE AND NELLIE J. STONE, ORIGINAL OWNERS OF THE PROPERTY, IN 1907. THERE ARE MORE THAN 2,700 RECOGNIZED GRAVES WITH THE FIRST TOMBSTONE DATING BACK TO 1904. THE CEMETERY IS THE BURIAL SITE OF MANY VETERANS INCLUDING AT LEAST ONE FROM THE CIVIL WAR, 31 FROM WWI, 81 FROM WWII, 10 FROM THE KOREAN WAR, SIX FROM VIETNAM AND ONE FROM IRAQ. OTHER NOTABLE BURIALS INCLUDE ABRAHAM FINSTERWALD, A SOLDIER STATIONED AT FORT ELLIOTT IN 1887-88; A BANK ROBBER; AND A CAT. MANY CIVIC LEADERS WHO BUILT THE COMMUNITY OF WHEELER HAVE THEIR FINAL RESTING PLACE AT THIS CEMETERY.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Deeded to the community in 1907, Wheeler Cemetery holds more than 2,700 graves, the earliest stone dating to 1904. Its rows include veterans of every American war from the Civil War to Iraq, a Fort Elliott soldier of the 1880s, civic founders, and even local characters remembered by legend.
Why it matters
A single burying ground gathers the whole span of a Panhandle community's history and its service in America's wars.
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Related people
- · J. E. Stanley
- · Abraham Finsterwald
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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