Family cemetery in Bosque County gets state recognition

A Dallas man pursued the historical marker in honor of his wife's family

A plan to honor the past meant something good to the relatives of a man whose connection to Texas stretches back to the 1800s.

A Texas Historical Marker was unveiled this month, proving the significance of a private family cemetery in Bosque County, 60 miles south of Dallas-Fort Worth.

The cemetery is the final resting place for members of the Cole family.

They trace their ancestry to James Pope Cole. He was born in South Carolina and later became one of the earliest settlers of Galveston.

Cole taught school, became a lawyer and a judge, and bought land in Bosque County near Morgan in the 1850s.

A nephew settled there and a spot by the trees later became the family cemetery.

Descendants of the Cole family now include a woman from Dallas. Her husband spent almost a decade pursuing a state designation to honor the private cemetery as an important part of history.

I'm not a Cole. I'm married into the family, but I love family history and I love genealogy and that was really one of the driving points to get this done," said Chris Garcia. "I think this is a great moment for the state of Texas. More of these cemeteries exist out there on private land that need to probably have upkeep and care and are deserving of a historical marker as well."

Garcia started the project back in 2015, got the historical cemetery declaration in 2018, and finally got members of the Cole family from across the country to Texas for this month's official dedication.