Old Mounds Cemetery

This cemetery served residents of the original site of the community of Medicine Mound in southeast Hardeman County. The settlement took its name from mounds that rise abruptly from the otherwise flat topography of the county; one mound contained springs, herbs and gypsum believed to have medicinal properties. Established by the late 1800s, the community consisted of Gobins' General Merchandise Store, a school and a church. The cemetery was adjacent to the one-room building used both as a schoolhouse and sanctuary. Most early residents of the community participated in farming or ranching activities. Little information is known about the early pioneers buried here. It is believed that approximately nine burials took place in the community's early history. Only one original gravestone, dated 1891, is preserved, and it marks the burials of two infants, Smoot and Ford Kerley, children of settlers J.C. and Ida Kerley. Other known burials are of Old Mounds residents of Mexican descent. In 1908, the Kansas City, Mexico & Orient Railway laid track two and half miles north of here. Residents moved near the railroad and the previous community came to be known as Old Mounds. In 1919, the school relocated as well, and soon the old settlement was entirely abandoned, as was the cemetery. Today, this burial ground is all that remains of Old Mounds, a testament to the pioneering farmers and ranchers of this area and the Hispanic families who lived and worked here. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2006