Historic Cemetery

Wimberly Cemetery

a.k.a. Rayburn Cemetery

Shelbyville, Texas
Location: 1640 FM 3172. From Center take Hwy 87 S to Shelbyville, turn left onto FM 417 go about 11.3 miles or until 417 dead ends into FM 139. Turn right onto FM 139 to FM 3172, turn left and proceed for about 1.5 miles and the cemetery is on the right side of the road.
Graves: 519 (1870 to present)
Size: 5.9494 acres

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