Rosedale Cemetery

When John Kettle Armstrong and his wife Sarah bought 160 acres here in 1844, they were among the first settlers. Sarah died in 1856 and Armstrong set aside this tract for a cemetery. Tradition says the Armstrong slaves were interred outside the grounds. After Armstrong's death in 1860, his second wife Margaret Fisher married a Mr. Stewart. For years the Armstrongs and Stewarts allowed everyone to use the graveyard which was called "Stewart Cemetery." After the railroad started the town of Gladewater, a cemetery association organized in 1911 and changed the name of the graveyard to "Rosedale." An additional five acres were purchased from J. K. Armstrong and his wife. "Permits" for burial were sold instead of lots. When the East Texas oil boom began, this policy allowed all surface and mineral rights to remain with the association. In 1932 two oil wells were drilled on the burial ground. The association used the profits to build a caretaker's cottage, roads, a rock fence and to landscape the grounds. In 1973, after 41 years, the wells were plugged. Still in use, the burial ground has about 265 unmarked and 750 marked graves. Many of the older plots are covered with large red rocks.

Rosedale Cemetery is a historical marker in Gladewater, Gregg County, dedicated in 1978. It is one of 81 historical markers documented in Gregg County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 124 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 32.5343, -94.9280 near Gladewater. The nearest cataloged historic site is Foshee Family (historical marker), about 0.8 miles away. Others within a short drive include Shepperd, John Ben, Dr. E. L. and Nannie Lewis Walker House, and First Franchised Motor Bus Line in Texas.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5183009993. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.