Texas Cemetery
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Texas Cemetery was my favorite old Cemetery not only because it holds many of my ancestors but because of the setting. The old church (built 1870) still stands (pictured below) and the cemetery is maintained well although the northeast corner is starting to crumble stones and all. The charm of the cemetery and old church in the late afternoon is breathtaking and peaceful. It is located right on the borders of sections 21 and 16 in Texas Township, just west of the Galilee Camp grounds. The land was originally owned by Nehemiah Clifton who registered the land in 1834 Nehemiah was born 1790 in N.C. he married Margaret Davenport July 4, 1815 in Casey County, KY and came to Illinois in the early 1820's. Mary Clifton was the first formal burial here, she was the daughter of Job and Polly (Spainhour) Clifton, she died 1843 but her gravestone is no longer found. An area just north of the cemetery by Salt Creek is said to have been an Indian burial ground for the Kickapoo and Pottawattamie Indians so the woods surrounding surely hold many tales.
