MERCEDES BAPTIST CEMETERY

Cementerio Bautista de Mercedes

Hidalgo Co. Cemeteries of Tx

Submitted by Frances Isbell

With Permission  of Hidalgo Co. Historical Commission (2006)

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Cementerio Bautista de Mercedes

With permission of Hidalgo County Historical Commission 2006

LOCATION: In Mercedes on Anacahuitas Street .75 miles west of Texas Avenue, across dirt road east of and bordering Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Cemetery.

SURVEY: Partially surveyed April 2006 by Fran and John Isbell.

HISTORY: The Primera Iglesia Bautista Mexicana de Mercedes (First Mexican Baptist Church of Mercedes) was organized about 1918. Among their first members were Mercedes residents Joseph H. and Maria Howell and their eight children (Casimiro, Paulino, Jacinto, Albert, William, Henry Jr., Maria and Joseph H.). Joseph H. Howell Sr., born in Port Isabel, was the son of Albert Charles Howell, indentured in New York, who ran away at the age of 16 because of mistreatment. In New Orleans, he joined the Confederacy, was captured, imprisoned on a ship, and escaped to Mexico.

On June 30, 1939, the First Mexican Baptist Church of Mercedes purchased about two acres for a cemetery from Faith Lutheran Church (formerly Ebenezer Lutheran Church founded in Mercedes in 1911, which moved to Weslaco in 1931). The location was adjacent to and west of Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Cemetery and across the street from Immanuel Lutheran Cemetery, in southwest Mercedes.

Twelve members of the congregation donated amounts from $2.00 to $30.00 to make up the purchase price of $100 for the property. Donors were : J. H. Howell, Rodolfo Garcia, Julian Zepeda (listed twice), Regino Robledo, Paulino Avila, Pedro Hernandez, J. K. Riese, Billie Tilery, Jake Fossler, P. G. Kenly, and Apolonio Gonzales. Jacob Fossler, a member of the Immanuel Lutheran Church, apparently contributed to help his Baptist neighbors acquire the "other" Lutheran Cemetery.

A cemetery committee headed by Apolonio Gonzalez published rules in 1961. They provided that all relatives of decedents were morally obliged to pay for or help maintain the cemetery, exempted indigent widows and orphans from fees, limited interment to members of the church, and established burial fees of $12.00. Crosses, religious statues, tall trees, wooden houses, animal pens and rubbish heaps were prohibited.

The Baptist Cemetery was cleaned a few years ago by a youth group. Currently it is maintained by Juan Garcia and Lupe Palacios. Juan Garcia has been caring for the cemetery since 2002; he is not a member of the congregation, but has family members interred there.

The cemetery is bare earth, in the tradition of Mexican-American ranch cemeteries in Hidalgo County, shaded by large ebony and mesquite trees. A curb surrounds the large Howell-Pumarejo plot at the entrance. Hurricane fencing runs along the north side (Anacahuitas Street). The wrought iron entrance gate is broken. Brush on south and east separate the cemetery from nearby ranches. There are approximately 350 graves.

Pastor in 2006 was Guillermo Fuentes of Mercedes.

 

LAST NAME FIRST NAME BIRTH DATE DEATH DATE COMMENTS
PUMAREJO JOSE 18MAY 1894 5APR 1949 A1 LARGE PLOT,CURB
PUMAREJO LEE 11OCT 1925 16MAY 1953 A2 S1 USN, WW2, PLOT
HOWELL BRITTANY RAE 3APR 1993 9AUG 1994 A3 PLOT, FHM GARCIA- TREVIÑO
HOWELL OSCAR 14FEB 1940 1OCT 1995 A4 PVT USA VIET NAM
PUMAREJO FAUSTINO G. 30DEC 1921 23SEP 2002 A5 TEC 5, USA, WW2; PLOT
PUMAREJO ARTURO 2JUN 1956 20AUG 1992 B1, PLOT; SGT USAF
PUMAREJO SANTOS G. - - B2 PLOT
PUMAREJO SANTOS 28MAR 1919 25AUG 1977 B3 PLOT, PFC USA WW2
PUMAREJO FORTUNATA H. 23APR 1935 29DEC 1993 B4 PLOT
HOWELL SENAIDA G. 5JUN 1923 19NOV 1991 B5 PLOT; DOUBLE W/CHARLIE
HOWELL CHARLIE E. 10NOV 1919 14AUG 1982 B6 PLOT; DOUBLE W/SENAIDA; TEC5, USA, WW2
HOWELL JOSEPH H. 1879 1951 B7; PLOT
HOWELL MARIA ESCOBEDA 1877 1948 B8; PLOT; FOOTSTONE
HOWELL CASIMIRO E. "FATHER" 1904 1966 B9 DBL W/CARMEN;
HOWELL CARMEN S. "MOTHER" 1912 1989 B10 DBL. W/CASIMIRO
HOWELL JACINTO E. 16AUG 1905 31DEC 1967 B11
PUMAREJO EZEQUIEL G. 31JAN 1917 1DEC 1944 B12 PVT 18 INF, 1ST INF DIV. WW2; PLOT W/CURB ROWS A&B
HOWELL ALBERT E. 1909 1989 B13 DBL W/MAGDALENA
HOWELL MAGDALENA 1914 1999 B14 DBL W/ALBERT E.
HOWELL MARIA 7SEP 1940 8SEP 1940 B15/16 [TWINS]
HOWELL MARTHA 7SEP 1940 8SEP 1940 B15/16 [TWINS]
HOWELL CRISTINA 23AUG 1939 16MAY 1947 B17; CURB AROUND ROWS A&B
PALACIOS JOSE ANTONIO 25MAR 1899 26OCT 1979 C1
AVILA FELICITAS TREVIÑO 14JAN 1922 - D1; MARRIED 24SEP 1938; DBL W/GEORGE M.
AVILA GEORGE MEDINA 14SEP 1918 8JAN 1990 D2; DBL W/ FELICITAS
GONZALEZ TOMASITA D. 22SEP 1900 13NOV 1983 D3; FLAME-SHAPED GRAY GRANITE;
GONZALEZ APOLONIO 10FEB 1894 24NOV 1971 D4
UNKNOWN - - - D5; CONCRETE BASE
UNKNOWN - - - D6; CONCRETE BASE
UNKNOWN - - - D7 GRAY GRANITE SLAB, NO MARKING
UNKNOWN - - - D8 GRAY GRANITE SLAB; "MERCEDES’ AT FOOT
PALACIOS LAURA 18AUG 1875 17JUN 1952 D9
PALACIOS TOMASA S. 22DEC 1877 11FEB 1960 D10
UNKNOWN - - - D11 GRAY SLAB W/CRUCIFIX; ILLEGIBLE
GARCIA RODOLFO C. 18DEC 1900 22APR 1995 D12; DBL W/PAULA
GARCIA PAULA D. 21MAR 1905 22OCT 1994 D13; DBLW/ RODOLFO
UNKNOWN - - - D14
TREVIÑO MARTHA B. 10NOV 1938 6AUG 1976 X1
GALLAGA RICARDO T. 18JUL 1899 26SEP 1973 X2
UNKNOWN - - - Y1 AGE 85; FHM GARCIA-TREV.
SAENZ DANIEL G. 16MAR 1888 24JUN 1972 Y2 WOODMEN OF WORLD
UNKNOWN - - - Y3 ILLEGIBLE
UNKNOWN - - - Y4 ILLEGIBLE
CONDE MERQUIADES 25DEC 1898 3APR 1977 Y5 CROSS INSET WHITE MARBLES
GONZALEZ - 13APR 18__ 10OCT 19(63?) Y6
GONZALEZ SANTIAGO 1919 AUG Y7
VENTO AMADO SR 13SEP 1897 19JUL 1973 Y8
GARCIA MARIA - - Y9 WOOD +
UNKNOWN - - - Y10 FHM; CHILD?
TREVIÑO T. LEONOR, SRA 28JUN 1898 10MAR 1980 Y11 HIJAS Y FAMILIA
TREVIÑO VALENTIN 16FEB 1896 24MAR 1966 Y12 ESPOSA, HIJAS,HIJOS
FONSECA MANUEL 1SEP 1920 29JAN 1955 Y13
SAUCEDA GABRIELA 11MAR 1880 11FEB 1964 Y14
GONZALEZ CONSUELO 29APR 1903 20MAR 1986 Y15 DOUBLE W/ JOSE LUZ
GONZALEZ JOSE LUZ 15DEC 1901 2MAR 1971 Y16 DOUBLE W/CONSUELO
UNKNOWN - - - Y17
TREVIÑO VICTORIANO 23MAR 1878 5MAR 1963 Y18
MARTINEZ EVANGELINA MADRE 1APR 1912 23JUL 1992 Y19
MARTINEZ MANUEL PADRE 24DEC 1913 4JAN 1973 Y20 DOUBLE W/GUADALUPE G.
MARTINEZ GUADALUPE G. ABUELITA 12DEC 1888 30MAY 1963 Y21 DOUBLE W/MANUEL
M[ARTINEZ] GUADALUPE G. DE 12DEC 1888 30MAY 1962(sic) Y-22 [PHOTO]
UNKNOWN - - - Y23
REYES JESUS, PADRE 14MAR 1896 30JUL 1964 Y24 DOUBLE W/ MARIA
REYES MARIA 25DEC 1908 21APR 1971 Y25 DOUBLE W/ JESUS
SERRA --- - - Y26
SERRA SOLEDAD G. 1SEP 1891 16OCT 1963 Y27 DOUBLE W/ MANUEL
SERRA MANUEL 15APR 1872 30APR 1950 Y28 DOUBLE W/ SOLEDAD
UNKNOWN - - - Y29 WROUGHT IRON +, PLOT FENCED W/ WIRE STRAND
UNKNOWN - - - Y30
UNKNOWN - - - Y31