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Pine Springs Cemetery Path
TE photo, January 2010 |
History in a Pecan
Shell
A town
without much of chance, Oso preceded the railroad
and once the railroad arrived
the town was bypassed in favor of Flatonia.
Like many communities in Fayette County, the original Anglo land grantees were
eager to sell to immigrants, thinking they’d be able to by more acreage “out west.”
No
one is sure of how it acquired a Spanish name (Oso is Spanish for Bear), but the
fledgling town managed to squeak by – producing small crops of cotton
and cutting firewood for the railroad. Even if it had not been bypassed, the closeness
to Flatonia would’ve made growth
unlikely, if not impossible.
Nevertheless, Oso once had three stores and
a post office (in operation from 1858 to 1874). The railroad was the Galveston,
Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway and after its arrival, Oso’s residents
and businesses moved to Flatonia.
Only the Pine Springs cemetery and school were left to mark the town. |
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| On
one stone a young mother cradles her two children in her arms.
TE photo, January
2010 |
The
Pine Springs CemeteryDirections:
Just N of I-10 and off of FM 906 on Pine Springs Road.
The cemetery of
Pine Springs served the community of Oso. It appears to have been well cared-for
at one time. A row of cedars lines the path and two small stone bridges were built
over wet weather streams. A lych gate is barely standing due to rot. Visitation
is made difficult by a thick undergrowth of privet.
Most tombstones are
broken and there is evidence that the area is “in use” as a rendezvous for teenagers.
The tombstones vary in craftsmanship – from simple uncut slabs of river rock to
hand-carved stones reminiscent of New England graveyards.
A
few mollusk shells were present but no graves were found to be totally encrusted
with them – a common tradition in 19th and early 20th century Texas
cemeteries.
The oldest graves date to the late 1860s and the most
famous person to have been buried here was William Menefee, a signer of the Texas
Declaration of Independence. In 1936 the graves of Menefee and his wife were exhumed
and re-interred in the State
Cemetery at Austin.
UPDATE
Subject:
Oso Texas Graveyard I
enjoyed your listing for Oso Texas and went out to visit myself. I got some additional
photos of the graveyard which may be of interest.
You may want to
update the listing to incorporate the info that this graveyard is a known hangout
for rowdy teens and as such law enforcement keep an eye on visitors. - Brian
Milliron, October 20, 2010 |
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A
Broken Tombstone
TE photo, January 2010 |
| Another
broken tombstone.
TE photo, January 2010 |
| Yet
another.
TE photo, January 2010 |
| "....reminiscent
of New England tombstones."
TE photo, January 2010 |
| Another
inscription.
TE photo, January 2010 |
|
Photo courtesy Brian Milliron, August 2010 |
|
Photo courtesy Brian Milliron, August 2010 |
| Pine
Springs Cemetery Bridge. More Texas
Bridges
TE photo, January 2010 |
| Near
Oso / Pine Springs
TE photo, January 2010 |
| Bull
and cow near Oso / Pine Springs. See Texas
Animals
TE photo, January 2010 | |
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