Ever since I can remember, I’ve been around cemeteries in one way or another. I suppose I can add that to my résumé, right alongside working around cows and waterways. Since 2014, I’ve managed to juggle all three. I’ll save the cows and maritime shenanigans for another day.

At my first meeting of the Jefferson County Historical Commission (JCHC) in December 2012, the Cemetery Chair spoke about an abandoned, overgrown cemetery off Labelle Road. She described trying to access it from the north, on an adjacent property, but being thwarted by what she delicately called “mad cows.”

Later, I decided to give it a try myself—but I took the direct approach, entering from the front and leaving the heifers safely behind a barbed-wire fence. I parked along the road and stepped onto hallowed ground armed with a line trimmer and a hedge trimmer. Two hours later, I reached the first broken crypt.

That was my introduction to what we initially called the Broussard Cemetery. Here’s the article I wrote at the time:
https://www.rediscoveringsetx.com/2012/11/29/215/

Lincoln Rest Cemetery

For me, Lincoln Rest (Burial Park) has been an on-again, off-again project for more than thirteen years, though its history stretches back to 1930. I want to provide some context for those who may never have heard of it.

That first day, I noticed several broken crypts. I later learned they were vandalized in 1967 by a group of teenagers from Beaumont. As research progressed, the JCHC determined the cemetery’s proper name was Lincoln Rest Cemetery, a burial ground used between 1930 and 1950 for low-income individuals. It has been abandoned ever since.

While the county has cleaned it up sporadically over the decades, there has never been a permanent overseer—so the cycle of neglect continues.

Over the years, multiple JCHC members sent letters expressing concern. Mildred Wright—arguably the greatest Cemetery Chair Jefferson County ever had—was especially vocal about the county’s lapse in responsibility. The most recent letter I’ve seen dates to 2008, though she and others raised concerns well before that.

The last major cleanup occurred in 2015. Credit where it’s due: three acres were cleared beautifully. But Lincoln Rest spans eleven acres, and the work stopped there.

At one point, Precinct 4 considered using the site for indigent burials to save money. After the initial cleanup, that idea quietly disappeared. Emails went unanswered. COVID became the excuse—until communication stopped altogether. This isn’t political; it’s observational. Call it what you want.

What frustrates me most is this: in 2015, Cleveland Dyer, then 97 years old, tried to access the cemetery with his 77-year-old son. His father, who died in 1932, is buried there. We recorded an oral history with Mr. Dyer. All he wanted was for the grounds to be maintained and for his father to have a headstone.

Nothing ever came of it.

In April 2024, a small group of rebels—led by yours truly—entered Lincoln Rest and mowed around the twelve crypts within the three acres cleared back in 2015. Every bit of it was volunteer labor. It was the first mowing there in nine years. Here’s a link to the photos.

I’m thinking about going back in 2026 to do it again. If you’re interested, contact me at rediscoveringsext@gmail.com.

In 2013, I became Cemetery Chair. What does that mean? I’m the person you contact when you have questions about a cemetery—or when you find a headstone on your newly purchased property. (Nine times out of ten, it’s a discarded marker. No, you do not have a body buried in your backyard.)

The role also involves working with the Texas Historical Commission. They’re understaffed and underfunded, so local commissions do much of the legwork. I don’t mind. This is my county.

And I should say this plainly: Mildred Wright was the GOAT. Her work documenting Jefferson County cemeteries remains invaluable. Her books are free and available here:
https://jeffersoncountytx.gov/Historical_Commission/Jeffco_History_Cemeteries.html

Also in 2013, the Liberty County Historical Commission launched a fundraiser called Whispers from the Past. It ran for two years and inspired me, along with Judy Linsley, to create the Magnolia Cemetery Tour—minus the cosplay. Liberty County did a phenomenal job.

Photos from both years:
2013: https://flic.kr/s/aHsjLufFaP
2014: https://flic.kr/s/aHsk5BkJk1

The Magnolia Cemetery Tour began in October 2014 as a docent-only history tour for the McFaddin-Ward House, the Beaumont Heritage Society, and JCHC members. In 2015 and 2016, it expanded to public tours—complete with a happy hour in the cemetery. Shockingly, that went very well.

The 2017 tour was canceled due to Hurricane Harvey, and the program remained on hiatus until 2021. More on that soon.

As Cemetery Chair, I visit cemeteries when time allows. I’m especially fond of visiting Kate Dorman in Sabine Pass. I leave her pink bows and streamers yearly—I have no interest in getting on her bad side.

W.T. Block called her a firecracker, and rightly so. She once tried to take on the U.S. Navy with 25 men. The men didn’t show up. Kate did anyway.

She also stayed during Yellow Fever outbreaks to care for the sick, alongside Sarah Ann King Courts and Sarah Vosburg. More on them next week.

Sabine Pass includes several cemeteries, including McGaffey Cemetery, which volunteers and I helped survey. It’s more than 150 years old and has endured hurricanes, flooding, mosquitoes, and horse flies—you are never alone out there.

One unresolved mystery remains: the mass grave of Yellow Fever victims. Ground-penetrating radar hasn’t helped—heavy clay soil, roots, and fill material all interfere. If we ever bring in Gary Drayton and that other guy from Curse of Oak Island, I’ll let you know.

Another haunt I frequent is Greenlawn Cemetery in Groves, where most of my family—and some friends—are buried. One friend in particular was Jerry Burnett. He was my insurance agent, but we rarely talked insurance. Instead, we spent hours discussing the Interurban and his love of trains. I’ll get into the Interurban, the Stringbean, and the last train out of Sabine Pass in the coming weeks.

Jerry is buried not far from the Veterans of Foreign Wars section, where Rudolph Lambert, the second person from this area to die in France during the Great War, is interred. The first was George Smart of Beaumont, who lies in Magnolia Cemetery.

This same section is where I discovered Gene Rowley, Rex Rowley, and a small memorial stone to Hugo DeBretagne, who gave his life at Tarawa in 1943 and was buried at sea. Like Magnolia Cemetery, Greenlawn holds thousands of stories. Unfortunately, it’s not very history-friendly. As Laurence from Twister (1996) would say, they’re “corporate kiss-butts,” doing as little as possible to help with research.

It looks like I’ll be writing multiple cemetery blogs in 2026, because I’ve only scratched the surface.

And finally—

Respect for the dead matters. So does respect for the living—especially a 97-year-old man who just wanted his father’s grave kept up.

I understand counties are busy. Manpower is limited. But accountability still matters.

And before I close: thank you to whoever handles maintenance in Sabine Pass. The cemeteries are always mowed.

Until next week.