The Cemetery

Heflin is a beautiful, isolated country cemetery, reflective of the land surrounding it.

Buried at Heflin are pioneer settlers and their descendants, veterans of wars from the Civil War onward, ranchers and farmers, business people and homemakers, people from all walks of life. The men, women and children buried here represent the handful of families who make up the Heflin Cemetery community.

Heflin represents the range of cultures that settled this land whose traditions are seen today.

The entry to Heflin is through an arched gate known as a lichgate, an Anglo-Saxon word that derives from the terms, “corpse gate,” marking a ceremonial entry to a cemetery. In Britain, where the tradition originated, these can be quite elaborate. But elsewhere in Texas, as it is here at Heflin, the gate is simple: made of iron or wood, with the name of the cemetery written in the arch. 

Heflin is surrounded by a fence, which is a custom of the south but not the Midwest or New England. The tradition likely springs from the practical need to keep livestock from grazing on the graves.

Many religious denominations are represented here. But Heflin, like other rural cemeteries is not considered sacred ground, meaning it is not a sanctified holy space, but rather a private burial ground, build on private land. This might be seen as a break from western European custom, or partly a frontier necessity.

Heflin sits on a hill. This is part of its beauty, and part of a tradition that predates Christianity and permeates diverse religions all around the world, bringing it closer to heaven. It is also part of a tradition almost universal in the south for a cemetery to be on high ground, capturing cool breezes and protecting it from flooding.

Take a walk around Heflin, and you will discover so many traditions: family plots, emblematic of the south; scraped graves, where graves are scraped clear of grass and weeds; mounded graves, an ancient tradition common in pre-Columbian Africa, Europe, England, and among Native American communities.

Spend time with the grave markers and you will learn of the lives here, and their heritage. You will find simple markers and elaborate ones. Markers made of fieldstone, cement and granite. In addition to inscriptions, you will find a range of tombstone decorations, symbolizing meaning: a finger pointing up, meaning “going home;” clasped hands, suggesting “welcome to heaven;” a lamb, signifying a child; a rose, remembering a mother; and many, many more.

In 1990, Dr. Paul Burns gave a talk at Decoration that captures well the spirit and meaning of Helfin. In it, he said:

“Every cemetery tells a story and Heflin is always very personal to me and to all of you. It is about family and close friends and neighbors making a life on a harsh frontier, then swept up in epidemics, droughts, war, accidents, and debt and just as common, lives filled with contentment and happiness and peace and freedom. The settlers brought thousands of years of traditions, customs and beliefs with them and kept these intact while everything around was changing. When I am at Heflin, I think of my family, and it makes me sad and lonely. I realize how much I miss those who were so close. I always considered Heflin unique, but it is not. It is molded by millennium of tradition and customs."

The history of Helfin is the history of all us who make up the Heflin community and who carry its traditions with us today, and into the future.