Do you love a good party and a few spooky and salacious ghost stories? Then you don’t want to miss the upcoming Preservation Dallas Día de los Muertos party and tour of four historic cemeteries next week.
Preservation Dallas will kick off the weekend on Friday, October 18, with a Dia de Los Muertos party at White Rock Brewing Company in Oak Cliff. Costumes are encouraged, and there will be prizes, a tarot card reader, a psychic, and, of course, libations and light bites. Ruben Arellano with the Dallas Mexican American Historical League will also be present to discuss the importance of Dia de los Muertos.
“Coming at the end of Hispanic Heritage month and just before Dias de los Muertos, it seemed like a great opportunity to recognize the Hispanic pioneers of Dallas county as well as those who settled our city,” Victoria Clow, former president and current board member of Preservation Dallas, said. “It’s important to understand this time of year as a way of honoring those who have passed.”
The tour starts at Old City Park in the Cedars and includes Pioneer Park, Fish Trap /La Reunion, Western Heights, where Clyde Barrow of Bonnie and Clyde fame is buried, and Cement City /Campo Santo De Cemento Grande.
“Coming at the end of Hispanic Heritage month and just before Dias de los Muertos, it seemed like a great opportunity to recognize the Hispanic pioneers of Dallas county as well as those who settled our city,” Victoria Clow, former president and current board member of Preservation Dallas, said. “It’s important to understand this time of year as a way of honoring those who have passed.”
Each cemetery will feature unique opportunities, from an archaeologist at Pioneer Park Cemetery discussing work on the excavations of graves in anticipation of the convention center expansion to guided tours and demonstrations of stone cleaning.
Pioneer Park Cemetery
Pioneer Park was established in 1849. It received a State Historic Marker in 1994 and became a Dallas Landmark in 2002. It is the final resting place of six Dallas Mayors, three veterans of the War of 1812, and countless other important historical figures. Cemetery restoration expert James “Rusty” Brenner will be on-site demonstrating headstone cleaning techniques. Archaeologist Michelle Wurtz Penton will discuss the cemeteries that used to exist at this location and the relocation of graves during the last expansion.
Cement City/Campo Santo De Cemento Grande
One of the least known and most important cemeteries in Dallas is Cement City or Campo Santo De Cemento Grande. It’s not generally open to the public because it’s located behind the gates of a large AT&T facility. The cemetery is the resting place for the community of Cemento Grande, the company town for Mexican immigrants who came to work at the Trinity Portland Cement Company. Approximately 200 people are buried here. The last burial occurred in 1946 when Eladio R. Martinez was reinterred in the cemetery. Martinez, a native of Cemento Grande, was killed in action in the Pacific during World War II and was originally buried in the Philippines.
“We will have master naturalists, bilingual interpreters, and tour guides at Cement City Cemetery,” Clow said. Originally, Mexican, Texas, and American flags were at the entrance but had become worn and tattered. Preservation Dallas has contacted a Boy Scout troop for a flag-raising ceremony for the new flags.
Western Heights Cemetery
Western Heights is perhaps one of the best-known cemeteries because it’s the burial site of North Texas outlaw Clyde Barrow. The cemetery has 307 markers, with the oldest dating to 1862. A dedicated group of volunteers with the Fort Worth Avenue Development Group has been instrumental in reviving Western Heights on multiple levels. Through a collaboration with Preservation Dallas and the Constellation of Living Memorials, the cemetery received a grant from the Texas Historical Foundation to create a native pollinator habitat.
Fish Trap/ La Reunion Cemetery
Fish Trap is all that remains of the former La Reunion colony, so there is a depth of history here that most people don’t know. It’s the burial place of French, Belgian, and Swiss settlers. The unusual name was taken because the cemetery lies on the road from La Reunion to willow fish traps set by the colonists in the Trinity. Although the colony failed, many settlers remained in Dallas and became business and cultural leaders. In 1934, former Cement City resident and outlaw Bonnie Parker was buried in La Réunion Cemetery. Her grave was moved to another cemetery due to vandalism.
Cemeteries are valuable historic resources that remind us of our settlement patterns, religions, lifestyles, and genealogy, keeping the memories of our ancestors alive. Preservation Dallas is offering us a unique opportunity to explore our cultural heritage with this tour, so don’t miss it!
If You Go
Dia De Los Muertos party takes place at White Rock Brewing on Friday, Oct. 18 from 7-10 p.m.
The Preservation Dallas Cemetery Tour begins at Old City Park on Saturday, Oct. 19 from 1-5 p.m.
Purchase tickets on Eventbrite
Please be aware all four cemeteries are rarely open to the public and have access challenges including uneven walkways and inclines.
