Location: Gassiott Cemetery Polk Co Tx Cem/website listing, no descript.” L. Moore: “From Leggett Hwy 942 E, left on old road 5.2 miles, in pasture on left.” Gassiott Cemetery Submitted by Cannon Pritchard Salathiel E. Gassiott was a farmer who was born in Louisiana. He came to Polk County in 1849 with his brothers Nicholas E. Gassiott and Williford R. Gassiott. He settled on land on Sandy Creek, East of Leggett, Texas. On September 18, 1859 he married Celicia Perry and had a large family. Apparently, several of their children died young and were buried on their property. Today, only the sandstone bases of two cemetery markers are all that are left. Area residents stated their were more markers many years ago that have disappeared over the years. Mr. & Mrs. Gassiott are both buried with cemetery markers in the Gassiott family lot at the Center Grove Cemetery. Many of their children/descendants are buried there. (See Center Grove Cemetery listing for the names and vital statistics of the Gassiott family.) Location: At the intersection of U. S. Highway 59 and FM 942 in Leggett, Texas, go East on FM 942. At the Jones Prairie Cemetery continue for .2 miles. Turn Left on the old FM 942 dirt road for four miles. Cemetery on Left in the woods near the road. THC site visit MB 7-19-05 w/ C Pritchard: US 59, E on FM 942 to Upper Leggett Rd, total of 5.2 miles from US 59, just W of driveway to residence at 3725 Upper Leggett Rd. Area to left side of orad. Timber freegrowth, no markers remain. Reportedly small cemetery, estimated GPS boundaries. GPS PENDING3094-332 or 331Destroyed, highly endangered.
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.