Elizabeth Shaw Cartwright Cemetery

Elizabeth Shaw Cartwright Cemetery. . In 1832, Elizabeth Ann Shaw Cartwright (1783-1857) and her husband, Thomas Peter Cartwright Jr. (1776-1845), moved their family of eleven children from Alabama to the Lake Creek settlement of Stephen F. Austin's second colony in the Mexican state of Coahuila y Tejas. They set up their farms, became active members of the community and by 1836, Thomas Peter Cartwright Jr. became justice of the peace for the Lake Creek settlement., When the Texas Revolution began in 1835, many men from the Lake Creek settlement joined in the fighting, including two Cartwright sons, Matthew Winston Cartwright (1815-1884) and William Peter Cartwright (1813-1844). In 1835, Matthew fought in the Battle of Concepción and the Siege of Bexar. His brother, William Peter, joined him in 1836 for the Battle of San Jacinto. Later generations of Cartwrights would continue to serve Texas with their military service and roles as law enforcement officers., In 1848, three years after her husband passed away, Elizabeth purchased 112 acres of land, which included their residence, an outbuilding, and a family graveyard. Both Elizabeth, her husband Thomas Peter, their children and seven generations of family members are buried in this cemetery. This fenced cemetery includes stone carvings and obelisks as well as some unmarked graves, which are surrounded by natural grasses. The Elizabeth Shaw Cartwright Cemetery serves as the final resting place of some of the earliest settlers and founders of Texas, along with veterans of the Texas Revolution, the Civil War, world war one, world war two, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and Operation Desert Storm. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2010.