On September 2, 2025, the Texas Historical Commission designated the Payne Gap Cemetery as an Historic Texas Cemetery, the culmination of a rigorous application process. The Mills County Historical Commission, working under the THC, sponsored the application. The title becomes official when it is certified at the November 2025 meeting of the Texas Historical Commission. Mills County now has seven cemeteries with the designation: Duren Cemetery, Goldthwaite Memorial Cemetery, Jones Valley Cemetery, Mohler Cemetery, Payne Gap Cemetery, South Bennett Cemetery, and Williams Ranch Cemetery.
Citing the historical importance of Texas cemeteries, the commission writes, “Cemeteries are important keys to Texas’ past. They are reminders of settlement patterns and reveal information about historic events, religion, lifestyles, and genealogy … The HTC designation was developed in 1998 to help protect historic cemeteries by recording cemetery boundaries in county deed records to alert present and future owners of land adjacent to the cemetery of its existence. Every county in Texas has at least one cemetery designated as a Historic Texas Cemetery through this program. The HTC designation is the first step toward preservation of a historic cemetery.”
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This is a great honor. Thank you, Sam Duncan, for the time and effort needed to make this happen. The families of those who are buried there appreciate your efforts in getting this recognition for their loved ones.