FIRST - Marked Grave - Bovina, TX
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 34° 30.768 W 102° 52.759
13S E 694671 N 3821058
A well kept cemetery, on the edge of a very old West Texas town.
Waymark Code: WM131HY
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 08/26/2020
Views: 1
County of Marker: Parmer County
Location of Marker: 1st St., East St. & South St., Bovina
Marker Erected by: Historic Texas Cemetery, Texas Historical Commission
Date Marker Erected: 2004
Marker Text:
BOVINA CEMETERY
Prior to the founding of the city of Bovina, the XIT Ranch located its southern headquarters in this vicinity. The Pecos and Northern Texas Railway built through the ranch in 1898, and the settlement became known as Bull Town because of cattle frequently found on the tracks. A community developed around the railhead, and in January 1899 the official post office name became Bovina. Due to a boom in cattle shipping, the town's population began to grow after the turn of the 20th century. Since then, the city has owned this cemetery, which was maintained for a time by the Bovina Cemetery Association.
The XIT Ranch initially used this site for burials of cowboys. Oral tradition holds that several grave markers initially bore only common names of the cowboys, such as Dusty and Big Jim. It is believed there were approximately 40 such graves, but all are now unmarked. The earliest marked grave is that of J.W. McDonald (d. 1907). Bovina Cemetery is the final resting place of veterans of military conflicts dating to World War I, as well as generations of area residents.
Historic Texas Cemetery - 2004
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