Founders Memorial Cemetery | |
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Entrance wall to Founders Memorial Cemetery | |
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Details | |
Established | 1836 |
Location | |
Country | United States |
Coordinates | 29°45′27″N 95°22′45″W / 29.7574°N 95.3792°W |
Type | Municipal, public |
Owned by | City of Houston |
Size | 1.5 acres (0.61 ha) |
Find a Grave | Founders Memorial Cemetery |
The Political Graveyard | Founders Memorial Cemetery |
Founders Memorial Cemetery, also known as Founders Memorial Park, is the oldest cemetery in Houston, Texas, United States. Founded in 1836, it was originally known as "City Cemetery", and opened in conjunction with the founding of the City of Houston in what is now Fourth Ward near the edge of Downtown Houston. The cemetery is owned and operated by the Houston Parks and Recreation Department, and is also a public park. The two-acre site is a designated "Texas Historic Cemetery" by the Texas Historical Commission, and features many graves from citizens of the Republic of Texas including co-founder of Houston John Kirby Allen and veterans of the Texas Revolution. Consequently, the cemetery contains the second-most Texas Centennial Monuments, behind only the Texas State Cemetery.[1] It lies adjacent to Beth Israel Cemetery, which is the oldest Jewish cemetery in Texas.