Historic Cemetery

Tom Hart Cemetery

Texas
Location: Tom Hart Cem. USGS as ProvidenceRootsweb: “Kountze, North, map—GNIS.” M. Wright (1976), map 6: “Hwy 69 corridor, central. About 2 acres in size, fenced, well kept, many unmarked graves, moss-covered. Earliest 1884. Index.” THC Site visit MB 10/21/03—Sign lists as Tom Hart Cemetery. Local source says it is near the old town of Providence, thus the akas. Fenced site, formal markers, diversity over time, some fieldstones. Cedar marker trees. Cape Jasmine, Crape Myrtle shrubs. Lillies. Adjacent wooded area, rural residential. Approx 1.02 acres. GPS 30.26.27.82421N –94.21.08.27112W Quad 3094-134.

To address the problem of cemetery destruction and to record as many cemeteries as possible, the Texas Historical Commission offers the Historic Texas Cemetery designation.

The Historic Texas Cemetery designation was developed in 1998 to help protect historic cemeteries by recording cemetery boundaries in county deed records to alert present and future owners of land adjacent to the cemetery of its existence. Every county in Texas has at least one cemetery designated as a Historic Texas Cemetery through this program. The HTC designation is the first step toward preservation of a historic cemetery.

A cemetery is eligible for designation if it is at least 50 years old and is deemed worthy of recognition for its historical associations. The very nature of a cemetery being a landmark of a family’s or community’s presence is considered to validate the criteria of historical associations. Any individual, organization, or agency may submit a request for designation.

gravesites