Hays County Historical Commission

The Cemetery Records Committee of Hays County Historical Commission spent over two years (from 1988 to 1990) searching for cemeteries and copying tombstone inscriptions as well as information of funeral home markers (FHM) after which time two volumes of cemetery inscriptions were published.  We tried to record as accurately as possible all information from those stones and markers that was humanly possible.

Prior to the publication of our first printing we publicized out efforts in all the newspapers within the county and several in surrounding counties hoping people might call to our attention a burial site we may have missed in some remote area.

As life would have it we made mistakes. We have endeavored in this revised volume to correct mistakes we found as well as those which were called to our attention.

Because of all the publicity regarding our efforts many people erected stones to honor their loved ones when there had been none previously, many too late to have them included in our first printing.  If these new stones were called to our attention we entered them in this printing.

After our first printing several people called to give us additional information regarding a cemetery or someone buried within a certain cemetery.  We took the information, checked it out and have recorded several burials in this printing that were not included in the first printing as well as additional information in our introductory stories in Section I -Histories of Cemeteries.  We received information regarding one burial that was unknown to us previously -an infant of the Round tree family.  This grave is unmarked and known to be in an area east of the well on the old Sorrell's place in northern Hays County.  (See story "Round tree Grave").  We are grateful to the late Mozzell Sorrell Joy and her daughter, Lorraine, for this information.

Mrs. Joy also related to us additional information about the McKellar Cemetery which we had not located prior to our printing.  We did visit the cemetery in 1992, and were surprised to find that not one stone remained. (See McKellar Cemetery story).

Each inscription we found - whether it was from a stone, funeral home marker, or a handmade marker of some type - is listed in alphabetical order which ~ eliminates the need for an index.  The name of the deceased is listed by surname, followed by the given name(s) or initials and in some instances nicknames.  They were copied exactly as they appeared on the marker.  Following the name is the town or location of the cemetery and then the name of the cemetery.  Immediately after the cemetery's name is the date of birth followed by the date of death if shown on marker.   If the cemetery was very large, we divided it into sections.   When the date of death is followed by a letter of the alphabet or number this is the section in which the deceased is buried.

Section II which follows the Cemetery Histories contains plats - as we have drawn them of the larger cemeteries divided into sections.  Our sections differ in most instances with plats used by caretakers of the different cemeteries; therefore, you need to refer to OUR plat if you are using a section letter or number from OUR book.