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Lilac
School, 1901
"The boy with the arrow overhead is Henry Baker" - James
See
Texas
Schoolhouses |
| There
is a historic marker at the above intersection across the street from the Graves
Cemetery. In
the spring the cemetery blooms with the flowers of hundreds of irises. The
highest reported population at Lilac was 100 people in 1884. It lost its post
office in 1905 and the population fell to 40 by the end of the 1930s.
Today it is what is known as a "dispersed rural community."
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Historical
Marker TextLilacPrimarily
a farming and stockraising settlement, Lilac was originally known as Oak Point.
Dr. John H. Graves, a dentist and planter, brought his family to Milam County
in 1858. The community which developed around his farm was named Lilac in 1883
when a U. S. post office was established. The Graves family continued to reside
in the area for generations, donating land for a school, Baptist church, and Methodist
encampment. (See Forum below) At its height Lilac
included two stores, a cotton gin, blacksmith shop, and homes. It declined after
a 1921 flood and the Great Depression.
(1990)
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Historical
Marker TextLilac
Cemetery Dr. John
Herndon Graves (1807-1889) and his family settled in this area in 1858. They acquired
several large tracts of land over time, and Dr. Graves' daughter and her husband
deeded the land around this site for Lilac Baptist Church in 1880. It was intended
for use as a cemetery as well. According to oral history, another area resident
subsequently deeded a strip of land across the south end of the cemetery. (See
Forum below) The earliest marked grave on this
site is that of Calvin McCormick (d. 1870). Dr. John H. Graves' marker indicates
that he was the earliest-born of those interred here. Other burials of interest
include four Civil War veterans, one Spanish-American
War veteran, nine veterans of World
War I and a number of veterans of other wars and conflicts. Lilac Cemetery
continues as a chronicle of Milam County history.
(2000) |
Lilac,
Texas ForumSubject:
Lilac, Texas
The old church ground, old school ground, and the cemetery
land was donated by the Richmon family, not the Graves as proclaimed on the historical
marker at the corner of FM 487 and FM 3061. The Wilson family has held the
title to all of these properties for over 100 years before giving them to the
Graves. - Sincerely, Fred Wilson, January 13, 2008
Where
to Stay - Lilac Area Hotels:
Austin
Hotels |
| A
well-built and detailed outhouse
TE Photo 2001 |
| Texas
Escapes, in its purpose to preserve historic, endangered and vanishing
Texas, asks that anyone wishing to share their local history, stories, and vintage/historic
photos of their town, please contact
us. | |
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