County

 

 

COUNTY FARM CEMETERY


Transcribed by Barbara Jarvis
© 2003


The need to provide a home for indigent citizens of Cooke County was first discussed by the Commissioners Court in 1876 and 100 acres for the County Farm was purchased in 1880.  In 1915, the farm was moved to another location and the former location, 94 1/4 acres, which excluded the cemetery, was sold.  Few people today are aware of the cemetery's existance or its location.  It is very overgrown, the only strip mowed was along the highway.  My thanks to Jody Shotwell for his help in finding the cemetery as well as some names of persons buried there.  It will be necessary to do a lot of research through old records to uncover the identities of those at County Farm Cemetery, which is located 1 1/2 mi. west of I35 on Hwy 82, within the Gainesville city limits.  All graves are unmarked but since the cemetery was recently mowed, sunken places can now be seen, indicating some graves.  The goal of everyone interested, is to encourage Cooke County officials to place a fitting marker at this site as well as maintain the final resting place of all who lie here.  Below are the only names known to date.

CHAMBERS, Andy   -died 27 Jan 1910 - age 6 yrs.
Cause: Pneumonia; src. Geo. J. Carroll F.H. records

CLAYTON, Mattie   -died 3 Dec 1910; age 25 yrs.
Found "Rucks Row", married, Cause: Murdered by Houston
Haywood Clayton.

DOYLE, John   - died 29 Sept 1909 - age abt. 58 yrs.
Cause: General debility

HALEY, Thomas   - died 30 Dec 1910 - funeral 24 Jan 1911
Cause: Murdered

HAY, Mabel Bell - died 30 Sept 1909 - age 1 yr.
Accidental drowning near Garnett St. Bridge
Funeral 1 Oct 1909, County farm.

VALENTINE, Iva   - died 31 July 1909; age 5 mo.
Place, N. Morris, 1st Alley West house. Cause: dysentery

BAKER, Wilford   - died 1 Oct 1903 - aged 21 yrs.

The following possible burials were abstracted from the Hesperian newspaper of Gainesville by Cass Reasor.

15 July 1893 - Suicide of a 35 year-old man at the Petty Bldg. on N. Commerce.  He was taken to the poor farm and buried.  A slip of paper in his pocket with the name, W. VARBEL, Justin, Texas, was probably some party he was hunting.

1 Oct 1889 - Antonio VUANNI, an Italian, 65 yrs of age, who has been employed formerly as a cook at Lindsay House, but recently was cooking at St. Elmo restaurant.  Died Monday night.  Buried in Potter's field.

19 Oct 1889 - Will COLLINS, young man, died at Pyrtles' Boarding House on Commerce Street.  Said to have come from Chickasaw Nation a few weeks ago.  Buried Potter's field.