ELM GROVE CEMETERY -
WESTMINSTER
33 22 19N
96 28 52W
Cemeteries of Collin County, Texas, by
Joy Gough
This cemetery was associated with the communities
of Westminster and Sedalia, which was a few miles northwest of Westminster, and
with the Elm Grove Cumberland Presbyterian Church. The church was established in
1874 and disbanded in the mid 1930's. The deed for the church is listed in Vol
18, p 522. The church building was southeast of the cemetery and faced west. In
1933 the district church gave the land to the Elm Grove Cemetery Association
with the deed listed in Vol 291, p 194. Elm Grove Creek runs by the cemetery.
The cemetery is still in use.
The cemetery is not fenced and covers
several acres of land. There is a sign that says "Elm Grove Cemetery." The
cemetery has a historical marker. There was some argument about who gave the
land for the cemetery. The marker says that the Roland family donated for the
cemetery. One family insisted that the Fields family had given the land based on
family history and demanded that the historic marker be taken down. They wrote a
very good history of the cemetery and community but did not prove that their
family had given the land for the cemetery. There is only one Roland buried
here. His wife might be buried next to him but there is no stone to verify that.
Most of the Rolands are buried in the Coats/ Horton/Roland Cemetery, which is
about ½ mile due south near the old home place.
Historical marker, 1981.
ELM GROVE CEMETERY
MEMBERS OF THE PIONEER ROLAND FAMILY, NATIVES OF
ALABAMA, SETTLED HERE IN THE 1830S. LAND AT THIS SITE
WAS PART OF A REPUBLIC OF TEXAS LAND GRANT AWARDED
TO FAMILY MEMBERS IN RECOGNITION OF THE MILITARY
SERVICE OF JOHN ROLAND, WHO WAS KILLED DURING THE
TEXAS REVOLUTION. RECEIVING THE PROPERTY WERE HIS
MOTHER, MARTHA ROLAND ARRINGTON, AND TWO BROTHERS
SHERROD AND EZEKIAL ROLAND.
A VETERAN OF THE TEXAS REVOLUTION, EZEKIAL (B. 1824)
AND HIS WIFE MAHALA (PACE) SET ASIDE THIS PART OF THE
LAND GRANT FOR USE AS A PUBLIC CEMETERY. THE FIRST
BURIAL HERE WAS THAT OF THE DONOR, EZEKIAL ROLAND,
WHO DIED IN 1859.
THE PIONEER ELM GROVE CEMETERY ALSO SERVED THE
EARLIEST RESIDENTS OF THE SEVEN POINTS COMMUNITY,
LATER KNOWN AS WESTMINSTER. ESTABLISHED IN THE 1860S,
THE TOWN WAS THE SITE OF AN EARLY METHODIST SCHOOL,
WESTMINSTER COLLEGE, WHICH OPERATED HERE UNTIL THE
EARLY 1900S, AND A LATER BAPTIST ACADEMY.
STILL IN USE, ELM GROVE CEMETERY CONTAINS OVER 1500
KNOWN GRAVES AND 250 UNIDENTIFIED GRAVESITES. FOR
OVER 100 YEARS IT HAS SERVED AS THE BURIAL SITE OF
PIONEERS, COMMUNITY LEADERS, AND RESIDENTS OF THE
SURROUNDING RURAL AREA.
INCISED ON BACK: TOMMIE R. ULRICH, SCOTT T. ULRICH, MAGGIE D. HODGE
ELM GROVE CEMETERY
History, Foncell Fields Powell
[This is the reasoning behind Ms. Powell’s
claim that the information on the historical marker is incorrect.]
Ezekial Roland is the only Roland buried in this cemetery, with the possible
exception of his wife, who may or may not be buried beside him. When he died in
1859, he was in his 30s. He died intestate, which seems to indicate that he did
not donate the land for the cemetery. The Elm Grove Presbyterian Church was
started years after his death, which is further indication that he may not have
donated the land. The Fields family, which owned land east of the cemetery,
claims that their family donated the land for the cemetery, which has several
members buried here.
No deed has been found for either family
donating the land for the cemetery. There is a Roland family cemetery, started
by Sherrod Roland, about ½ mile south of the Elm Grove Cemetery.
ELM GROVE CEMETERY
Historical marker application.
...[Ezekial Roland] goes back to Cotaco
County, Alabama, which was later known as Organ county, His father Christopher
Roland (son of Robert Roland) and his mother, Martha W. (Patsey) Pace (daughter
of John Pace), applied for and receive their Marriage Bond in Cotaco County in
1818. Christopher and Martha Roland has three sons named John, Sherrod (referred
to as Sherrod II in order to distinguish him from his uncle Sherrod I who was
Christopher’s brother) and Ezekial.
In the year 1828, Christopher sold his land in Morgan County to a brother,
Joseph, to travel with another brother, Sherrod I and wife, Elizabeth (Betsey)
Pace Roland to Fort Towson (Indian Territory...). Martha and Elizabeth were
sisters who married brothers. Christopher probably died on the way to Fort
Towson or soon after they arrived in the area because the next evidence that has
been located is that of Martha and her sons in the 1830 U. S. Census in Monroe
County, Arkansas. The census lists her with her second husband, Ebenezar Ingram,
and three Roland sons and two young Ingram sons. In 1831, Martha’s and
Elizabeth’s father, John Pace, died intestate, in Blount County, Alabama. In the
Probate minutes, all the children were named. From this we know that Martha had
married Ebenezar Ingram. Later in 1838, Martha appears in the Red River County,
Texas, courthouse to record the sale of her Ingram land. (This land is
geographically located a few miles south of Fort Towson.) The land had
originally been granted to Ebenezar. Eight days later, Martha appears at Red
River County married to Noel Arrington. It is apparent that this marriage took
place between March 1 and March 9, 1838.
Martha and Noel had one known son, George Washington Arrington, who came with
the family to Collin County, Texas by the year 1850. (George was five years old
in the 1850 Census.)
John Roland, the oldest son of Martha and Christopher, was killed in the Texas
Revolution against Mexico in August 1836. ... A Land Grand of 1,920 acres was
deeded to his heirs, Martha, Sherrod II, and Ezekial (his mother and two
brothers). Sherrod II signed a statement that his mother and brothers were
residents of Texas by November 1834. In 1853, Martha, Sherrod II and Ezekial
appeared at the Collin County Courthouse to record the division of the land
between the three of them. Martha was again a widow by this time as evidenced by
the 1850 census.
Ezekial Roland married Mahala Pace, his cousin, and they had four children named
George Robert, Elizabeth B., John H., and Ezekial Francis.
Sherrod Roland II married Susan B. Turner and they had twelve children. Four of
the children died very young. The living children were Martha Elizabeth, John
C., Mary A., Josiah R., William H., Virginia Lee, Sherrod L., and David Holmes
Roland....
Ezekial Roland was the first of John Roland’s heirs who died.... There is a
space for his wife Mahala which is empty according to cemetery records. Martha
Arrington died in 1882 and is buried in Elm Grove Cemetery next to W. A. Pace
(Uncle Billy). The person buried next to Uncle Billy was believed to be his
wife, but it was later discovered that he never married. While researching the
cemetery records, it was decided that evidently Martha (Patsey) was buried next
to her nephew. Nearby are the graves of James Ingram and daughter, Melissa.
James Ingram was Ezekial’s half-brother. Sherrod’s and Susan’s daughter, Martha
Elizabeth Russell, is also buried nearby.
The John Roland Survey, on which the cemetery is located, was the beginning of
the town of Westminster. It was a flourishing town for many years. Susan Roland
donated the land for the Seven Points college in Collin County. At first it was
named Seven Points College and was a part of the Texas Methodist Conference.
From Plat Book, Map of Westminster, page 382,... there is a deed for 108 acres
of land on the John Roland Survey for the town and the college. W. L. Fagg was
the President of the Conference. In 1897, this was a four year theological
seminary. There were twelve students who received a Bachelor of Divinity degree
upon graduation. After 1902, the college was purchased by the Baptist Church. It
became the Baptist Academy, a preparatory school for preachers and teachers.
Susan Roland had two grandsons who were Baptist ministers, James M. Simmons and
Joseph Kelly Simmons. Joseph was the editor of The California Southern Baptist
publication. He died in 1963.
CEMETERY INDEX
Recommended
citation:
Elm Grove Cemetery - Westminster,
"CEMETERIES OF COLLIN COUNTY." Collin
County, Texas History and Genealogy Webpage by Genealogy Friends of Plano
Libraries, Inc., <http://www.geocities/genfriendsghl>
[Accessed Fri February 13, 2004 ].
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