I grew up in the small central Texas town of Marlin and spent lots of my childhood going to cemeteries! It is not as strange as it sounds, though.
My grandmama, Sidney Kindred Harper, would take my sister & i to the close cemeteries where she or my grandaddy, Roy lee Harper, had family buried.We would go to Stranger Cemetery, Mustang Prairie, & Kosse Cemetery.
She called it "fixin up the graves" & we would weed, hoe, rake, etc. She would often notice an untended grave of someone she may not have even known, & "fix it up" too!
MY daddy, Thomas McKinley Criswell was active in keeping up the Criswell cemetery & old school/ church in the Criswell Community. We would go in the hot month of June,the adults would have a meeting & we'd all have a "singing" with Great old familiar hymns. We would also feast on the dishes everyone brought for the meal. I remember walking up and down those long wooden tables filled with so much good food that I would always stuff myself.
My aunt. Lena Stone Criswell is a great historian of this area (her people are all from here) & has helped me with lots of family information. She did all her work Pre-internet & has inspired me to be more active in recording history. The photographs are my favorite thing next to "real" stories, not just facts.
Lastly, my husband Ted peck, enjoys riding through the countryside & looking at old cemeteries....he encouraged me to make it more personal.
I live in San Antonio, Tx now, but try to get to Marlin to visit & would be glad to help find photos for anyone in this area or in San Antone! I am rather proud of having found a headstone for someone on Find a Grave all the way up in Long Island...in the oldest cemetery on that island!


I give permission for anyone to use any photo I contributed myself, or took for another F.A.G. member. Please use it for family or genealogical purpose .....don't screw with it and make it look silly or disrespectful. I would appreciate my name and date taken be shown on photo.
ALSO, if i have misused or misappropriated anyone else's images or stories, i apologize & would be grateful if informed.

I grew up in the small central Texas town of Marlin and spent lots of my childhood going to cemeteries! It is not as strange as it sounds, though.
My grandmama, Sidney Kindred Harper, would take my sister & i to the close cemeteries where she or my grandaddy, Roy lee Harper, had family buried.We would go to Stranger Cemetery, Mustang Prairie, & Kosse Cemetery.
She called it "fixin up the graves" & we would weed, hoe, rake, etc. She would often notice an untended grave of someone she may not have even known, & "fix it up" too!
MY daddy, Thomas McKinley Criswell was active in keeping up the Criswell cemetery & old school/ church in the Criswell Community. We would go in the hot month of June,the adults would have a meeting & we'd all have a "singing" with Great old familiar hymns. We would also feast on the dishes everyone brought for the meal. I remember walking up and down those long wooden tables filled with so much good food that I would always stuff myself.
My aunt. Lena Stone Criswell is a great historian of this area (her people are all from here) & has helped me with lots of family information. She did all her work Pre-internet & has inspired me to be more active in recording history. The photographs are my favorite thing next to "real" stories, not just facts.
Lastly, my husband Ted peck, enjoys riding through the countryside & looking at old cemeteries....he encouraged me to make it more personal.
I live in San Antonio, Tx now, but try to get to Marlin to visit & would be glad to help find photos for anyone in this area or in San Antone! I am rather proud of having found a headstone for someone on Find a Grave all the way up in Long Island...in the oldest cemetery on that island!


I give permission for anyone to use any photo I contributed myself, or took for another F.A.G. member. Please use it for family or genealogical purpose .....don't screw with it and make it look silly or disrespectful. I would appreciate my name and date taken be shown on photo.
ALSO, if i have misused or misappropriated anyone else's images or stories, i apologize & would be grateful if informed.