Harris Chapel Cemetery 
Hughes Springs,  Cass County, Texas
Cemeteries of Texas Coordinator: Dolores I. Bishop

Information provided by the State of Texas Atlas Site
 
 Location: 
about 5 mi. S of Hughes Springs on FM 161 

 
Marker : 
This area of Cass County was settled in the 1850s. 
The rural community became known as Harris Chapel after John T.
 Harris and his family came to the area in 1853 and purchased land on 
which a Methodist log church and cemetery were located. The church building 
was also used as a schoolhouse for area children. The first log church was replaced 
by a larger wooden structure near the cemetery in 1859. The Rev. Solomon O'Dell preached 
the first sermon in the new church. Although there are many unmarked graves in the Harris 
Chapel Cemetery, some of which may date from an earlier period, the oldest legible 
tombstone marks the grave of Zelpha E. conley (1839-1859). In 1868 M. g. Harris, 
son of John T. Harris, deeded the church and cemetery property to the community. 
Harris family graves are enclosed by a wrought iron fence. The second church was 
destroyed by a tornado in 1949 and was replaced by a brick structure in 1953. 
In addition to the graves of many early pioneers, those interred here include veterans 
of the Mexican War, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and Korea. The historic Harris 
Chapel Cemetery serves as a reminder of early rural life in Cass County.