HISTORY OF ROSE HILL CEMETERY, TYLER, SMITH COUNTY, TX Submitted to the USGenWeb Archives by the East Texas Genealogical Society, P. O. Box 6967, Tyler, TX 75711 Submitted 8 May 2000 by Peggy Brannon - peggybrannon@hotmail.com. Proofread 16 Dec 2000 by Nancy Crain - Ncrain1@aol.com Directions & Coordinates added 29 April 2003 by Lawrence E. Oliver Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ***************************************************************** East Texas Genealogical Society, P. O. Box 6967, Tyler, TX 75711 CEMETERY RECORDS OF SMITH COUNTY TEXAS, Volume I, Oakwood & Rose Hill, p. xii. This cemetery is located in the City of Tyler, Texas. The address is 2400 South Donnybrook. South Donnybrook runs parallel to South Broadway, the main north/south street in Tyler, and is one street to the east of it. The map coordinates are: Latitude: N 32:19:23.9 Longitude: W 095:17:52.1 ***************************************************************** Rose Hill Cemetery, Tyler, TX - TT-02 On George Washington's birthday, February 22, 1916, the City of Tyler ac­quired its second cemetery. It contains 46.79 acres and was a part of the Green Lane Survey No. 215. Some of it was conveyed by Laura A. HAMVASY to E. J. and Mary B. ALLMAN in 1913. This land was bought from Alex WOLDERT and was paid for with four promissory notes bearing 10% interest. Note #1 for $2,096.40 came due Sept. l, 1918. Note #2 for $1048.20 came due Sept. 1, 1919. Note #3 for 1048.20 fell due Sept. 1, 1920 and Note #4 for $1048.20 became due Sept. 1, 1921. Although the cemetery was paid for in 1921, the city didn't have it recorded until June 7, 1935. Located one and three-fourths miles southeasterly from the courthouse in Tyler, the new cemetery became known as ROSE HILL. It is bounded on the west by South Broadway, on the north by Troup Highway, on the east by South Donnybrook and on the south by Wilma Street. This record is known as Abstract No.589 and is recorded in Deed Records of Smith County, Texas, Volume 323, Page 397 The first cemetery caretaker remembered in Tyler was Mr Will SIMMS who looked after Oakwood for many years. Mr. John MARTIN was the first "Cemeterian" to be in charge of both Oakwood and Rose Hill. Following Mr. Martin, Mr. Reed NUNN held the position until Mr. A. R. PRITCHRRD was appointed Cemeterian in 1949. He served until his retirement in 1976. Mr. Robert CRANE is presently Cemeterian. Rose Hill was opened for burials in April 1917, and on May 2, 1917, Mr. Assad John SARKIS, born in 1882 in Mt. Lebanon, Syria, was buried. His is the first known grave in Rose Hill. A few buried there died earlier than that, such as "Baby" MOORE who died in 1888 and Mary Aldrich MOORE who died in 1901, but their remains were moved in at a later date. Rumor has it that some of the old horses used by the Tyler Fire Department were buried in that area. The only real indication of this came when Wilma Street was being cut through and bones much too large for a human were uncovered. Rose Hill is the final resting place for numerous veterans of the Civil War through the Viet Nam War. It contains people from paupers to multi-millionaires. On Nov. 3, 1955 seventeen paupers were moved to the pauper section on the south end of the cemetery so South Broadway could be cut through. The cemetery was fenced with a chain link type fence in 1960. The office was built about 1958 by Denson Construction Co. at a cost of $5,268. Rose Hill has been the victim of some vandalism over the years. Two grave markers were stolen and never recovered. The office has been broken into twice but only two forks were missing. A few carelessly parked cars have rolled down the hills and knocked over or broke a few markers. One lady would like to sell the crypt her husband lies in because she wants to remove his remains to the town where she now lives. Mr. Pritchard said he has seen as many as six burials in one day but the average is about 300 a year. A couple of sections are known as "Babyland". It was there that babies of military personnel at Camp Fannin were buried. When the military societies decorated veteran graves with American flags, Mr. Pritchard plotted them on a cemetery map. Very few "spook" stories have grown up around Rose Hill. One night a lady called to tell him she could see two red lights moving from a marker up the hill and back. Upon investigation he found two candles burning on a marker. One day Mrs. Birdie HARGROVE visited the cemetery, ostensibly to visit the graves of her Uncle and Aunt, Richard B. and Mattie Taylor LONG. She brought her beautiful old green parrot along and he escaped from her. She was unable to retrieve him and called Mr. Pritchard in the night for help. Together they finally caught him. It was her expressed desire that the old bird be put to sleep and buried with her when she died. No matter who or what lies buried in ROSE HILL, MAY THEIR SOULS REST IN PEACE. - Howard Pollan