Victoria in Victoria County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)
Memorial Square
Est. 1824
— Victoria Trail Through Time —
Photographed By James Hulse, February 21, 2022
1. Memorial Square Marker
Inscription.
Memorial Square. Est. 1824.
Many Victoria pioneers were laid to rest here.. , Early Spanish colonization requirements dictated that land be set aside as public burial grounds. However, the tradition of home burial persisted and the "Old Cemetery", now Memorial Square, was seldom utilized during the era of Martin de Leon, Victoria's founder. That changed in 1846 when a city government ordinance required that the dead be buried in public burial grounds. Those defying the ordinance were fined $25 for each offense. , Many Victoria pioneers were laid to rest here, along with immigrants who never reached their destinations. During the Texas Revolution, members of Fannin's Goliad command were brought to Victoria for burial. Also interred were soldiers from General Zachary Taylor's army who died while camped in Victoria en route to the Mexican War. Many of Victoria's sons lost during the Civil War came to rest here as well. During Reconstruction, Union occupation troops stationed in Victoria desecrated the cemetery, uprooting and destroying tombstones. Those remains which could be identified were re-interred at Evergreen Cemetery., Throughout its existence Victoria has been a crossroads, and not just for people. Gruesome were the epidemic diseases that periodically swept through the town. Victims of these outbreaks quickly filled the "Old Cemetery." In a particularly harrowing and horrifying episode, Dillman Mantz recalled that German immigrants arriving at Indianola in 1846 contracted cholera from drinking brackish water. Bound for the Texas Hill Country, hundreds of them died along the way. In Victoria they died so rapidly there was no time to construct coffins or give victims decent burials. Bodies were wrapped in bed linens or blankets tied at each end and buried in mass graves. As many as seventy-two bodies were removed from one house. Wolves and coyotes raided the cemetery at night, fighting over the dead. Their howling added to the horror. During this time a man known as "Black Peter" was contracted by the city to bury the dead. The pay for his gruesome work-$2.50 and a quart of good whiskey per corpse. , As new burials gradually ceased, the grounds came to be used for other purposes. Since 1899 it has been known as Memorial Square. The documented remains of more than 230 individuals are interred here in unmarked graves. , Captions Upper Left: Original Sketch by Tom Jones 300 Years in Victoria County, "Burial Scene" Victoria Advocate Publishing Company Lower Left: "Alabama Red Rovers" Original Illustration by Tom Jones
Many Victoria pioneers were laid to rest here.
Early Spanish colonization requirements dictated that land be set aside as public burial grounds. However, the tradition of home burial persisted and the "Old Cemetery", now Memorial Square, was seldom utilized during the era of Martin de Leon, Victoria's founder. That changed in 1846 when a city government ordinance required that the dead be buried in public burial grounds. Those defying the ordinance were fined $25 for each offense.
Many Victoria pioneers were laid to rest here, along with immigrants who never reached their destinations. During the Texas Revolution, members of Fannin's Goliad command were brought to Victoria for burial. Also interred were soldiers from General Zachary Taylor's army who died while camped in Victoria en route to the Mexican War. Many of Victoria's sons lost during the Civil War came to rest here as well. During Reconstruction, Union occupation troops stationed in Victoria desecrated the cemetery, uprooting and destroying tombstones. Those remains which could be identified were re-interred at Evergreen Cemetery.
Throughout its existence Victoria has been a crossroads, and not just for people. Gruesome were the epidemic diseases that periodically swept through the town. Victims of these outbreaks
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quickly filled the "Old Cemetery." In a particularly harrowing and horrifying episode, Dillman Mantz recalled that German immigrants arriving at Indianola in 1846 contracted cholera from drinking brackish water. Bound for the Texas Hill Country, hundreds of them died along the way. In Victoria they died so rapidly there was no time to construct coffins or give victims decent burials. Bodies were wrapped in bed linens or blankets tied at each end and buried in mass graves. As many as seventy-two bodies were removed from one house. Wolves and coyotes raided the cemetery at night, fighting over the dead. Their howling added to the horror. During this time a man known as "Black Peter" was contracted by the city to bury the dead. The pay for his gruesome work-$2.50 and a quart of good whiskey per corpse.
As new burials gradually ceased, the grounds came to be used for other purposes. Since 1899 it has been known as Memorial Square. The documented remains of more than 230 individuals are interred here in unmarked graves.
Captions Upper Left: Original Sketch by Tom Jones 300 Years in Victoria County, "Burial Scene" Victoria Advocate Publishing Company Lower Left: "Alabama Red Rovers" Original Illustration by Tom Jones
Location. 28° 48.039′ N, 97° 0.069′ W. Marker is in Victoria, Texas, in Victoria County. Marker is at the intersection of North Wheeler Street and East Commercial Street, on the left when traveling north on North Wheeler Street. The marker is located at the southeastern corner of the Memorial Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Victoria TX 77901, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 28, 2022. It was originally submitted on February 28, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 169 times since then and 24 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on February 28, 2022, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.
