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Carr or McRae Cemetery was West of Elwood but no longer exists. More detailed directions are included in the page text but..."nothing remains but grass...".

Carr or McRae Cemetery


We have two notes from Michael Andrew Grisson telling of the Carr or McRae Cemetery. He wrote one in 1974 and then updated this information in 2004. Thank you, Mike. His notes reproduced below:

September 14 1975: "In May, Aunt Norma and I went to a work day, and while there someone told us that there was an old cemetery called The Carr Cemetery around Elwood where the twins of Hugh James McRae, Cyntha and Charlotte, had been buried in 1870. However, a man by the name of Richardson owned the land and had become annoyed with the cemetery and had bulldozed it off, grave markers and all! After hearing what this wretch had done, we had no hope of finding anything, and thought no more about going to it.

Then, yesterday, Howard, Verlon, and I decided to go out and look for it. To get there, we took the first road to the right as we were leaving the Elwood Cemetery going south. I suppose the road that turns right (west) is not even 1/4 of a mile south of the Elwood Cemetery. Then, we went about four or five miles, I guess, due west until we came to the old place that used to belong to Winnie's dad, Mr. Johnson (Aunt Della's husband). There, on the north side of the road, we turned in by the corral and went through two gates into the pasture, and I suppose the Carr cemetery was located about 1/4 of a mile or less due north of the road. In the pasture, there is a little rise which starts sloping off to the NW down toward a valley. This little sloping hill is where Verlon said that the cemetery was located."

October 2004 "More on the Carr Cemetery. I have heard people say that that cemetery was never called Carr Cemetery after all. Some of the old folks say that it was really the McRae cemetery. And, some of those with whom I have talked recently (2002) say that they had walked through it several times in the past and that there were only McRaes buried there. Nothing -- not even the remaining scattered, broken stones of my earlier visit, remain now.

Sample image of American Indian House GraveBut, old folks tell of a grave in that cemetery that had a little, long house built over it. The house was about waist high and had a roof. Being familiar with the Indians' custom in Oklahoma of building houses over their graves, I believe that we may be talking about the grave of Malcom Alexander McRae's mother-in-law, Barbry Whisenhunt. Barbry (sometimes listed as Barby or Barbara) was the mother of Mary Magdalene Whisenhunt, who first married a Mr. Stewart, and then upon his death married M. A. McRae in 1832 in Georgia. In 1856, they all arrived in Fannin County, Texas. Barbry was full-blood Cherokee, and she was last found in the 1870 census of Fannin County at the age of 99. Since her daughter, Mary M. Whisenhunt McRae was buried in that cemetery, we are fairly sure now that the Indian grave there was that of Barbry. She has not been found in any other cemetery in Fannin County."

[Photo is a sample image of the kinds of American Indian Graves he is describing. This photo was taken in Oklahoma. It is not the grave of Barbry Whisenhunt. Thanks to Steve Carberry for the photo!]

Carr or McRae Cemetery

First three listed deaths must have come from a previous transcription as no stones remained for Michael to read. The last two were added as a result of Michaels mention of the two burials in his 2004 note.

Name Birth Date Death Date Notes
McRae, Cyntha Charlotte   24 Feb 183124 Aug 1877wife of Hugh James McRae; "Since thou canst no longer stay // To cheer me with thy love, // I hope to meet with thee again // In yon bright world above."; burial: Harvey & Co., Denison
McRae, Cyntha A.27 Jul 1864   24 Aug 1870d/o H. J. & C. C. McRae
McRae, Charlotte E.27 Jul 1864xx Aug 1870      d/o H. J. & C. C. McRae; Believed to have died within a few days of her twin.
McRae, Mary M. Whisenhuntnot reportednot reportedw/o Malcom Alexander McRae
Whisenhunt, Barbrynot reportednot reportedm/o Mary Magdalene Whisenhunt McRae