Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 110, No. 61, Ed. 1 Wednesday, October 2, 2013 Page: 4 of 30
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4A
Wednesday, October 2, 2013
LOCAL
Denton Record-Chronicle
From Page 1A
Cemetery
“I think they moved away,
died, forgot that they have fami-
ly out here or they just don’t
know they have someone buried
out here,” Sanger resident Jess
Bell said.
The cemetery is located just
outside of Sanger city limits on
Sullivan Road. Last week, a
group of residents from Sanger
and nearby cities decided to
clean the abandoned cemetery.
On Saturday, many of the volun-
teers even brought their chil-
dren to help on the big cleanup
day.
Bell said she and other volun-
teers worked about 12 hours
each day to remove brush and
garbage and clean the cemetery,
which had become a dumping
site and a hangout for people to
drink alcohol.
“We’ve picked up maybe 100
bottles,” she said.
Volunteers worked tirelessly,
drenched in sweat and wearing
the cuts and bruises they re-
ceived from removing thorny
plants and saplings.
In just a week’s time, the vol-
unteers had cleared much of the
brush and uncovered most of
the graves. Headstones that
were once hidden behind tower-
ing grass are now visible from
the road.
When researching the histo-
ry of the graveyard, Bell said she
was surprised at all of the stories
behind the headstones. She said
there are stories of heartbreak
and romance behind almost ev-
ery grave.
There are several graves of
infants who only lived days after
their births. And there’s the story
of J.R and Lousisa Creach. One
by one, they watched their five
children die from what many
believe was small pox.
According to dates on the
gravestones, three of the chil-
dren died within days of each
other and the other two died be-
fore their first birthdays.
“It’s just heartbreaking,” Bell
said. ‘After the oldest child died,
that family packed up and left
Sanger. He probably couldn’t
take the pain and loss anymore.”
“A lot of people don’t know that
this is here. We’re just trying to spread
the word and make this a place that
people can take pride in and learn more
about their city. We’re all really happy
to see this come together. ”
— Sanger resident Jess Bell
Records estimate that 104
people are buried in Duck Creek
Cemetery and there are believed
to be about 52 unmarked graves.
Volunteers marked the
ground to show the location of
known graves that currently
have no identifiable markers.
“Many of the rocks that you
see out here aren’t rocks. They’re
grave markers,” Bell said.
Historical records show that
the cemetery was founded in
about 1868 when the land was
sold to church trustees for the
Friendship Baptist Church with
the intent for the land “to be
used as a public burial ground
forever.”
Denton County property re-
cords show that Mary Patricia
Etal Walker owns the property.
But volunteer Kacie Pena, who
contacted Walker, said that
Walker has no problem with the
community pitching in to help
with upkeep.
Pena said the effort that the
locals have put forth has been
amazing.
“They’ve really done some
amazing work,” she said. “If it
weren’t for everyone working to-
gether, this probably wouldn’t
have been completed.”
Bell said the community ef-
fort will continue and that now
they want to encourage others to
volunteer.
“A lot of people don’t know
that this is here,” she said. We’re
just trying to spread the word
and make this a place that peo-
ple can take pride in and learn
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Volunteers help clean up Duck Creek Cemetery last week just outside of Sanger city limits.
more about their city. We’re all
really happy to see this come to-
gether.”
For more information about
the cemetery and efforts to help,
call 940-580-5075.
JOHN D. HARDEN can be
reached at 940-566-6882 and
via Twitter at @JDHarden.
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Cobb, Dawn. Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 110, No. 61, Ed. 1 Wednesday, October 2, 2013, newspaper, October 2, 2013; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1102320/m1/4/: accessed March 29, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .