Houston Cemetery Company

The Houston Cemetery Company was one of several chartered and private associations promoted by Houston business leaders for the purpose of effecting civic, cultural and economic improvements following the Civil War. Houston Cemetery Company was chartered as a private cemetery company by the state of Texas on May 12, 1871, and the company set out to establish a rural cemetery with beauty and integrity. Several names for the new cemetery were considered, but stockholders and directors finally chose by ballot the name “Glenwood.” The first burial at Glenwood cCmetery occurred on june 19, 1872. Glenwood Cemetery is an early Texas example of the country cemetery plan first used in the eastern and northern United States in the 1830s. Directors selected property situated between Buffalo Bayou and Washington Avenue interspersed with springs and gullies to achieve the desired pastoral setting. The intended park-like landscape design is reflected in the rambling walks and drives that follow the curvilinear sections situated around a wooded glen and a bridge over a spring-fed gully. The beautiful setting drew Houstonians to Glenwood Cemetery as a place of relaxation and recreation prior to the 1899 establishment of Houston’s first public park, Sam Houston park. The Houston Cemetery Company reorganized as the Glenwood Cemetery Association in 1904, and the Association was succeeded by Glenwood Cemetery, Inc., in 1969. The Glenwood Cemetery Historic Preservation foundation was formed in 1999 to preserve the historic heritage of the monuments and grounds of this important Houston landmark.

Houston Cemetery Company is a historical marker in Houston, Harris County, dedicated in 2009. It is one of 406 historical markers documented in Harris County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 781 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 29.7684, -95.3863 near Houston. The nearest cataloged historic site is Braun, Caspar (historical marker), about 0.1 miles away. Others within a short drive include Gregg, Darius, Kendall, Belle Sherman, and Heiner, Eugene Thomas.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507015714. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.