Historic Cemetery

Byfield-Taylor Cemetery

a.k.a. Byfield Church, Byfield Community, Taylor, Woolwine

Dotson, Texas
Location: Ca. 1.6 miles NW of the Panola-Shelby-Rusk County Line and ca. 0.7 miles S-SE of Dotson (as the crow flies). At the intersection of FM 1971 S. and FM 999, directly west of the intersection.
Graves: 5 gravestones but likely many unmarked and possibly slave graves (1851-1885)

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