For the next few weeks we will explore the intricacies of the Blanco County Cemetery, including who is buried where. The intent is to assist families in locating their ancestors, compiling family histories and cemetery preservation.

The cemetery is organized by sections, each one approximately 50 feet by 50 feet. Each gravesite generally measures 10 feet by 5 feet. I say generally, because burials in the oldest part were laid out haphazardly at best. But for the most part, the sections contain 10 graves across and 5 deep. The Blanco Cemetery is bordered by three roads: Loop 163 runs in front of the cemetery; Callahan Street is the border on the northwest side, and Jones Avenue delineates the back side of the cemetery.

The old part of the cemetery is divided into strips which are labelled A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Strips H and I are to the southeast of the old historic part of the cemetery. Strip A is bordered by Callahan Street. The sections are labelled by numbers. There are 14 sections in strip A. Section A1 is the corner of the cemetery that is bordered by Jones Ave and Callahan Street.

One of the most charming facets of the old cemetery is that it is not laid out uniformly. Some of the rows curve and there are many graves of unknown dimensions that are simply marked with a single rock. Sometimes the certificates provide information as to those buried in the unmarked graves but often the identities remain a mystery. There are many old, old tombstones—they are beautiful! Some of them have eroded to the extent that they are not easily discernable, but there are tricks to reading them. The certificates also help to solve the mystery of what they may say. So, who is buried where? Here is the information we have to date:

Beginning in Section A1, the first row (along Jones Ave.) has the following graves (beginning on the inside and going toward Callahan Street): Victor Weirich (1925-2006), Ida Weirich (nee Oliver, 1937-1999), Robert J. Oliver (WWI, 1900-1980), Mary Bell Oliver (1912-1994), Frank Crow (1908-1987), Ida Crow (1914-2009).

The second row of Section A1: Nimrod Smith, (Air Force, 1924-1994), John E. Barbee (1916-1976), Isabell M. Barbee (1929-1987), Ray H. Patterson (1908-1986), Inez K. Patterson (1903-1983).

Buried in the third row of Section A1: Mervin B. Hendrix (1907-1981), Mildred P. Hendrix (1909-2005), Ruthur Ray Steffens (1925-1981), Robert S. Cravatt (1902-1975), Eula May Cravatt (1905-1989).

Buried in the fourth row of Section A1: Vula Forbes Marcrum (1911-1989), Herbert H. Marcrum (1922-1993), Mary Marcrum (1881-1961), C.H. Marcrum (1880-1932), James A. Marcrum (1903-1903), E.T. Marcrum (1884-1912), Susie S. Marcrum (1889-1967), Ivy C. Marcrum (WWII, 1916-1975).

Buried in the fifth row of Section A1: Anita Bowen (nee Hohenberger, 1913-2000).

This completes the the list of those interred in Section A1. For the sake of space, other sections will be listed in the future. Cemetery records are undergoing an internal audit by Cemetery Committee President, Tina Gourley. As soon as the certificates are accessible again and are back in the Cemetery Office, the process of double checking and verifying graves will continue.

If you have any questions or corrections, please call me at 830-833-4229. Also, if you have any stories about any of these people or their families, please send them to gail_mcclellan@yahoo.com. For the sake of genealogical research, we have people who are willing to volunteer to get your stories on a website that can be easily accessed. We will also create hard copies to be stored in the Cemetery Office and in the Blanco County Library.

The Blanco County Heritage book, which was recently republished through the efforts of Dennis Moore and Charles Moore, has family histories and personal biographies of many Blanco County residents both past and present. However, if you have additional stories or family connections that you would like to place in a public file, please send them to me: Gail Moore McClellan, Vice President, Cemetery Committee, P.O. Box 640, Blanco, TX 78606 or gail_mcclellan@yahoo.com.