The Medallion, Volume 46, Number 1-2, January/February 2009 Page: 3
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Texas Jewish Historical Society
Documents Cemeteries Great and SmallThe Jewish legacy in Texas is similar
to the legacy of other groups that
immigrated to the state in the late
1800s, and more than a hundred
cemeteries serve as a testament to
this proud cultural heritage. Jewish
burial sites are scattered throughout
the state - from small abandoned
graves in rural areas to large urban
cemeteries - and the Texas Jewish
Historical Society is renewing its
commitment to documenting these
significant sites telling the real
stories of their ancestors.
In 1985, the society embarked
on an ambitious project to identify
and chronicle every Jewish cemetery
in Texas, an endeavor ultimately
carried out by Baytown residents
Don and Gertrude Teter. Their efforts
resulted in a 436-page notebook,
Texas Jewish Burials, released
in 1997.
A decade later, the popular book
remains in demand and is in need of
an update. Society member Charles
Hart of Temple agreed to oversee the
revision project, which he expects to
undertake throughout the year.
"This is a significant project
that will benefit Jews in Texas and
throughout the country - it's
important for people to be able
to trace their ancestry and know
their family history," Hart says,
adding that he plans to send letters
to county historical commissions
seeking their help identifying Jewish
cemeteries. "We have a lot of work to
do with 254 counties in this state."
Hart will base most of his
research on the Teters' book, with
the hopes of identifying additional
sites that have been discovered since
its release. Don Teter recently met
with Hart to share his experiences,
including advice and stories about
tracking down vital information.
Austin's Oakwood Cemeterycontains hundreds ofJewish gravesites.
Teter recalls a particularly
insightful and memorable research
experience in Gonzales, where he
was approached by a community
member who shared a little-known
secret about an undocumented
Jewish cemetery on ranchland
outside of town.
"Well, I contacted the property
owner who drew me up a map that
took me onto a cattle trail. He said
I'd find the burial site when I reached
a big puddle near an oil well," Teter
says. "Sure enough, I got out of
the car and after a little searching I
found this little old cemetery. There
couldn't have been more than 10
or 12 gravestones, and there was
a beat up old fence that wasn't
working anymore - most of the
stones had been knocked down by
grazing cattle."
Teter recruited local youth
groups to help clear out the site,
repair the fence and maintain
the cemetery, which contained
graves dating to 1861. The
subsequent landowner agreed to
take descendants and maintenance
volunteers to the site on a flatbed
trailer, but Teter is unaware if
cemetery upkeep efforts are ongoing.His other experiences were
more challenging, particularly in the
large city cemeteries where Jewish
families were buried throughout
the grounds alongside friends
and associates rather than in a
segregated area. Whatever the case,
Teter meticulously documented
each gravesite by dictating vital
information - name, dates of
birth and death - into a tape
recorder while Gertrude handled
the transcription.
"Many people don't realize how
many Jews were in small towns
across rural Texas," Teter notes.
"Most of them migrated to big
cities, but the cemeteries are still
there. These are significant places
because they help us learn about our
Jewish ancestors - that's why it's
so important for this documentation
project to live on."
Ifyou have information about a Jewish burial
site in your community, contact the Texas Jewish
Historical Society at txjhs@yahoo.com. For other
questions about cemetery preservation, visit
the THC's web site at www. thc.state. tx. us.
Article and photos by Andy Rhodes,
managing editor of The Medallion." o o vvo
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Texas Historical Commission. The Medallion, Volume 46, Number 1-2, January/February 2009, periodical, January 2009; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth342077/m1/3/: accessed May 4, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Historical Commission.