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Evergreen Cemetery, Lamar County, Texas

LOCATION:	Evergreen Cemetery is the largest cemetery in Lamar County. It is in the southeast quadrant of the county within the southeastern city limits of Paris on Highway 19-24 just inside Loop 286. It is Block 223 in the city of Paris of the Lamar County Road Map produced by American Drafting and Services revised December 1993.
DIRECTIONS:	The cemetery is located at the intersection of Business Hwy 19/24 and Evergreen St.
GPS COORDINATES:	33° 38' 39.94 N, 95° 33' 16.48 W. (33.6409392 Latitude and -95.5521793 Longitude)
OLDEST KNOWN BURIAL:	Because many graves were moved from the old City Cemetery when Evergreen was created it is difficult to ascertain the earliest known actual burial. John Dawson Thomas shows a death inscription of 1842, and Elam E. Boles has 1859 inscribed as a death date while George D. Hancock shows 7 Jul 1860 as a death date. However, Evergreen Cemetery was established in 1866 and it is assumed that Lucy Pope Bell Maxey was the first burial. She died 7 Jul 1866.
NUMBER OF GRAVES:	There are over 40,000 known graves in the cemetery. (July 2017)
SIGNS/MARKERS:	There is sign for the cemetery. Historic Texas Cemetery: Yes    Texas Historical Commission Marker: Yes(2016) The following is from the Historical marker outside the cemetery:      The Evergreen Cemetery is the final resting place for many notable citizens of Paris and Lamar County. Due to the steady growth of the area, the old cemetery of Paris, located near the center of town, quickly became too small. in 1866, the Evergreen Cemetery Association was chartered by well-known community leaders to purchase land for cemetery purposes. After the initial purchase of sixteen acres from George Wright, additional tracts were acquired in 1893, 1907, 1956 and 1957.      The first burial is attributed to Lucy Pope Maxey (1794-1866), the mother of Samuel Bell Maxey, a West Point graduate, confederate general and United States Senator. his wife, Marilda C. Maxey (1833-1908) is also buried in Evergreen Cemetery. Most of the cemetery’s eleven incorporators are buried here, including Samuel Bell Maxey (1825-1895), Dr. Alfred Simpson Johnson (1814-1881), Albert J. Redding (1821-1900) and William Bramlette (1851-1908).      Another incorporator buried here is Willet C. Babcock (1828-1881). His “Jesus in cowboy boots” monument attracts visitors from across the nation. Examples of the unique stonecutting art within the cemetery include a bevy of angelic figures and religious imagery, flowers, vines, cotton bales, broken trees, anchors and chains, sheep, a life-size buffalo and a replica of the front page of The Paris Morning News. This historic cemetery reflects the growth and rich history of Paris and Lamar County.
LAST ENUMERATION:	Updates are continually being added to the online cemetery records database.
ADD'L INFORMATION:	Evergeen Cemetery was incorporated in Sep 1866 when the Old City Cemetery became too full for more burials. It continues to grow and has room for expansion.
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