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ARLINGTON CEMETERY
HOW TO FIND A GRAVE
Please be aware that the grave blocks in each grave block chart
are not in alphabetical order.
To find a grave:
- refer to the alphabetized List of Graves
below
- use that list to determine which block the grave is in
- and then consult the block chart below to see where the
grave is located.
THE HISTORICAL MARKER
On May 22, 1994, as a result of efforts by J.W. Dunlop and the Optimist
Club of Arlington, the Tarrant County Historical Commission dedicated a Texas Historical
Marker at Arlington Cemetery. Susan Pritchett, chair of the Tarrant County Historical
Commission, gave the opening remarks, followed by then-Mayor Richard Greene, and Tarrant
County Judge and former Mayor Tom Vandergriff. J.W. Dunlop gave a presentation on
the history of Arlington Cemetery before the marker dedication and unveiling.
Following is the text of the marker:
ARLINGTON CEMETERY
Encompassing more than ten acres of land,
Arlington Cemetery includes within its borders several small historical graveyards,
including the original Old Cemetery of Arlington, the W.W. McNatt Cemetery Addition, the
Masonic Cemetery, and the Old City Cemetery. William W. McNatt, who brought his family
here from Arkansas in 1872, was a retail merchant and large-scale farmer in this area. He
sold the cemetery property to the Arlington Cemetery Society in 1899. Another group, the
Arlington Cemetery Association, was chartered in 1923 and maintained the graveyard for
many years until the city of Arlington assumed ownership and maintenance.
The oldest documented burial here is that of
one-year-old Mattie Luna Cooper (1874-75), daughter of pioneer Arlington settlers J.D. and
Luna A. Cooper. Numerous other early settlers also are buried here, as are veterans of
conflicts from the Civil War to World War II. Local officials interred in the graveyard
include seven former postmasters and the following former mayors: M.J. Brinson, George M.
Finger, Emmett E. Rankin, William C. Weeks, Thomas B. Collins, T.G. Bailey, W.H. Davis,
Preston F. McKee, William H. Rose, and Will G. Hiett. |
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AN OVERVIEW OF THE
CEMETERY
by James W. Dunlop
Arlington Cemetery is located on Mary Street at the
intersection of East Mitchell Street near downtown Arlington, Tarrant County, Texas, on a
10.09-acre tract in the John Huitt Survey (Abstract No. 703). The cemetery has been in use
for almost 120 years and contains graves of many of the early settlers who migrated to
Texas during the 1800s.
The present boundaries of the cemetery encompass several
old cemeteries: the original "Old Cemetery" of Arlington (1),
the W.W. McNatt Cemetery Addition (2) (later purchased by the Arlington
Cemetery Society (3)), the original Masonic Cemetery (4),
and intervening portions of the "City Cemetery".(5)
All these cemeteries, as well as the adjacent Parkdale
Cemetery, are located in the south part of the former William W. McNatt farm.(6) The
earliest one – the Old Cemetery – has marked graves dating back to 1875 and
numerous graves in the 1870s and 1880s.(7)
The W.W. McNatt Cemetery Addition, platted in 1896 by
William W. McNatt for the purpose of selling "lots for burial," was Block 10 of
W.W. McNatt’s Third Addition to Arlington, also platted in 1896 by W.W. McNatt and
his wife. Both additions are based on an 1895 survey by J.J. Goodfellow which shows the
location of the Old Cemetery as well as the Swann Family Cemetery which is incorporated
into the W.W. McNatt Cemetery Addition.(8)
William W. McNatt, along with his wife Dianna and eight
children, moved to Tarrant County from Arkansas in 1872 and purchased a farm near the
community of Hayterville, a predecessor community to Arlington. In Hayterville, he built a
mercantile store (located a mile east of present downtown Arlington) and the first saloon.
By 1890, he was a prosperous businessman and large landowner.(9) The 1895
survey shows his residence to be located at the northwest corner of the McNatt farm and
two existing cemeteries (Old Cemetery and the Swann Family Cemetery) in the southeast
corner.
In 1899, the W.W. McNatt Cemetery Addition was purchased
for $100 by the Arlington Cemetery Society, whose Executive Committee at that time was
composed of Mrs. Mattie Gill, chairman, Mrs. W.H. McKinley, and Mrs. George Lampee.(10)
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The Arlington Cemetery Association was incorporated on
April 19, 1923 and received a fifty-year charter. Incorporators were Thomas Spruance, N.L.
Davis and Tom Cravens.(11) Annual dues were paid to provide funds for
operational costs.(12)
Mrs. Carrie Ditto was president for over thirty years.
After her death in 1946, the organization became inactive and attempts to reorganize and
revive it failed.(13)
By 1952, the cemetery had assumed its present boundaries
and was known as "City Cemetery" of Arlington, according to a survey made by
J.E. Pike.
The Arlington Cemetery Association’s charter expired
in 1973, and the cemetery’s ownership was unclear until 1992 when the Arlington City
Council assumed ownership, authorized a new survey, and replatted the cemetery as
Arlington Cemetery Lot 1.(14)
In 1992, the cemetery had 1830 graves, most with readable
markers. Many of the stones are tall, typical of styles used prior to 1900.
The three oldest marked graves in the cemetery have bois
d’arc (wooden) markers (family unknown).
The oldest legible grave marker (see at left) is in the
Cooper plot at the grave of baby M.L. (Mattie Luna) Cooper (1-28-1874 to 6-3-1875).
The earliest birth dates on grave markers are Herman R.
Lowe who was born in 1802; Clarence J. Archer, 1803; and Mary Pilant, 1807.(15)
The Masonic portion (referred to as "the original
Masonic Cemetery" in the 1952 survey) contains 43 graves, with death dates ranging
from 1912 to 1919. All the grave markers – including those for women – have
Masonic emblems.
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Early settlers from Arlington and surrounding areas are
buried in the cemetery. They include merchants, farmers, homemakers, ranchers, doctors,
preachers, elected officials and other necessary community occupations, as well as several
Confederate soldiers.
Arlington public servants buried in the cemetery include
seven former postmasters and ten former mayors. The mayors are M.J. Brinson, 1881-1884;
George M. Finger, 1884-1885; Emmet E. Rankin, 1885; William C. Weeks, 1900-1902; Thomas B.
Collins, 1902-1904; T.G. Bailey, 1904-1906; W.H. Davis, 1909-1910; Preston F. McKee,
1914-1915; William H. Rose, 1919-1923; and Will. G. Hiett, 1923-1925, 1927-1931.(16)
The cemetery has no perpetual care arrangement. The
Arlington Cemetery Society and the Arlington Cemetery Association, which succeeded it,
performed maintenance from 1896 until the late 1940s. Thereafter, cemetery care was
provided by concerned citizens and family members. In recent years, the City of Arlington
Parks and Recreation Department has assumed responsibility for grass mowing and trash
removal. The Optimist Club of Arlington sponsors Heritage Day at the cemetery annually on
December 7, at which time they set up markers, pick up leaves and repair the roads.
The cemetery is bounded by Mary Street on the west, a
six-foot wooden fence on the south, and a six-foot cyclone fence on the east. On the
north, a road separates it from the Parkdale Cemetery.
The historic Arlington Cemetery has been in use for about
120 years and is the burial site for citizens who, through the years, contributed to the
development of Arlington. From its oldest marked grave in 1875 to its latest in 1992 (17),
it continues to serve the community and fulfill the purpose for which it was established.
- Tarrant County Deed Records, Vol. 106, p. 7
- Tarrant County Deed Records, Vol. 106, p. 8
- Tarrant County Deed Records, Vol. 116, p. 441
- Survey by J.E. Pike, February 13, 1952
- Ibid
- Tarrant County Deed Records, Vol. 106, p. 7
- Inventory of graves in the Arlington Cemetery by J.W. and
Mary Dunlop, January 1992
- Tarrant County Deed Records, Vol. 106, pp. 7 – 8
- Oral interviews with Evelyn M. Spears (granddaughter of
W.W. McNatt) and Jeane Smith (great granddaughter of W.W. McNatt); Arista Joyner, Arlington,
Texas; Birthplace of the Metroplex, Arlington Bicentennial/Centennial Celebration
Committee, 1976.
- Tarrant County Deed Records, Vol. 116, p. 441
- Arlington Cemetery Association Charter; letter from Pete
Dickerson, July 30, 1949
- Arlington News, May 1, 1949
- Ibid; Dickerson letter
- Arlington Property Plats, Cabinet B, Slide 707, November
19, 1992
- Inventory of graves
- Ibid.; Arlington City Records
- Bertha L. Ward, died April 13, 1992
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