Monuments

Monuments

The following is a list of monuments that were erected on Texas State Cemetery grounds to honor groups of Texans that are not necessarily interred there.

TEXAS ARMED FORCES MEMORIAL FLAGPOLE

A flagpole in the center of the Cemetery flag is lowered to half staff whenever a Texan dies in the course of military duty.

Senate Bill 2135 was passed during the 2009 Legislative Session authorizing the installation of the Texas Armed Forces Memorial Flagpole at the Texas State Cemetery.

List of Texans who have died while in service to their country.

MEDAL OF HONOR MONUMENT

The Texas Medal of Honor monument was dedicated on Memorial Day of 1999. On that day, Governor George W. Bush, Lieutenant Governor Rick Perry and Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives Pete Laney gathered at the Cemetery to dedicate a pink granite obelisk listing the names of all Texans and adopted Texans who have been awarded the Medal of Honor. James Marion Logan, Jose Mendoza Lopez and several other Medal of Honor recipients were on hand for the ceremony. Near the monument is a burial ground reserved for Texans awarded the Medal of Honor.

List of Medal of Honor Recipients who are located at the Texas State Cemetery.

GOLD STAR MOTHERS MEMORIAL

The Gold Star Mothers’ memorial honors women who have lost children in military service to the United States. The memorial was erected in 2001 and was unveiled while the Traveling Vietnam Wall was displayed on Cemetery grounds. The Traveling Wall is a smaller version of the monument in Washington D.C. that lists the names of all American soldiers who died during the Vietnam War.

American Gold Star Mothers

NINE MEN OF PRAHA MEMORIAL

The Nine Men of Praha Monument was dedicated on Veterans Day, November 11, 2002, in memory of nine soldiers who died during World War II. Those nine soldiers represented an entire generation of men from Praha, Texas, a small community in Fayette County. During a 12-month span, from February 1944 to February 1945, they all died in combat. The monument is carved from sunset pink granite, and includes the names and military affiliations of each soldier and the circumstances of each man’s death. Family members of the soldiers, Praha residents and community leaders were in attendance as well as local and state officials.

PURPLE HEART MONUMENT

The Cemetery dedicated a Purple Heart Monument on September 20, 2003, and is dedicated to all Texans who have been wounded while serving in the United States military. The Purple Heart is the oldest military decoration in the world still awarded. General George Washington created the decoration that was the first American award made available to the common soldier. It is specifically a combat decoration, awarded only to members of the United States Armed Forces who are wounded. It is given posthumously to the next of kin in the name of those who die in action or die of wounds received in action.

VE/VJ DAY MONUMENT

The Victory in Europe and Victory in Japan Day monument is dedicated to all Texan World War II veterans and was unveiled on Veterans Day of 2005. The monument is carved from Ebony Mist granite and features a timeline of significant events that occurred during the War, as well as two bronze plaques depicting Allied overall victories in Europe and the Pacific. At the same ceremony, a group of Baylor Alumni dedicated a cenotaph to Jack Lummus, a Medal of Honor recipient who died at the Battle of Iwo Jima.

SEPTEMBER 11, 2001 MONUMENT

The 9/11 monument is dedicated to all Texans who died during the September 11 terrorist attacks and during Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and was commissioned by Governor Rick Perry in 2002 on the first anniversary of the attacks. It was completed and unveiled on the attack’s two-year anniversary in 2003. Numerous designs were submitted from artists, architects and private citizens from around the state. The final design by O’Connell, Robertson and Associates of Austin was chosen by the Governor’s Office and the Texas State Cemetery Committee. Included in the design are two steel columns from Ground Zero that the public are encouraged to touch and examine. The columns were not altered in any way and were recovered in the state in which they stand.

VIETNAM MEMORIAL

The Texas State Cemetery honored all Texas veterans of the Vietnam War by unveiling a new monument on its grounds on April 19, 2008. The monument, the first honoring Vietnam veterans at the Cemetery, features grey and black granite and a bronze sculpture on top. The monument joins those dedicated to World War II veterans, Purple Heart recipients, Medal of Honor recipients and others. The monument honors all branches of service who served during the Vietnam era including the Marine Corps, Navy, Army, Air Force, Army National Guard, Air National Guard, Coast Guard and the Merchant Marines.

Lt. General Jefferson Davis Howell, USMC (Ret.) was the keynote speaker and spoke of his experiences during the Vietnam War. Governor Rick Perry gave remarks on his military service, as well. Howell, a former Marine, was also the Director of the Johnson Space Center for a number of years. In addition to General Howell, remarks were given by a veteran enlisted man, an officer and a nurse. Members of each branch of service and various elected officials were on hand for the unveiling as well as the 36th Infantry Division Band from Camp Mabry in Austin. Weapons Company, 1st Battalion, 23rd Marines provided the color guard and rifle detail.

BLACK LEGISLATORS MONUMENT

In March of 2010, the Texas State Cemetery honored fifty-two African American men who either served in the Texas Legislature, the Texas Constitutional Convention or both during the Reconstruction era in Texas. The men came from all backgrounds, but served their state with distinction. They fought for a variety of issues including education, voting rights, labor rights, frontier defense and others. Following Reconstruction, blacks were slowly disenfranchised from voting rights and from serving in state government. By 1902, the poll tax was instituted, silencing almost 20 percent of the Texas population from voting or participating in government.

Texas Speaker of the House Joe Straus, State Senator Rodney Ellis; and Wilhelmina Delco, the first African-American to represent District 50 in the Texas Legislature, gathered along with the descendents of those men honored to unveil a black marble monument detailing their lives and their contributions to history.

TSDAR PATRIOT MONUMENT

On March 16, 2009, the Texas Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution honored thirty-two men with ties to Texas who participated in the American Revolution at the Texas State Cemetery. Both Spanish Patriots and Anglo Colonists are honored by the monument. Some men were soldiers and fought the British and others contributed to the war effort by herding cattle and horses from Spanish Mexico to reinforce the Revolutionary Army. Two men, Stephen Williams and Robert Rankin, fought during the American Revolution and are buried at the Texas State Cemetery.

The TSDAR monument was carefully designed and is inscribed with the names of all of the Texas patriots. Its obelisk shape was selected to honor the Washington Monument in Washington D.C. For a full list of names and a description of the ceremony, see the PDF brochure.

WAR OF 1812 MONUMENT

In December 2001, the Texas Society of the United States Daughters of the War of 1812 dedicated this monument to the those individuals buried at the Texas State Cemetery who served and fought for the United States during the War of 1812.

Following Revolutionary War, the United States struggled economically, politically, and diplomatically. One of the results was the War of 1812, which lasted until 1815. Many of the veterans of the War of 1812 would later migrate to Texas and would become instrumental in Texas Independence and key figures in the Republic of Texas.