San Antonio City Cemeteries Historic District, Old

Thirty-one adjoining cemeteries spread across 103 acres about 1.5 miles east of San Antonio's City Hall, on land the King of Spain deeded to the city in 1733. Founded between 1853 and 1904, they were begun by the city, churches and synagogues, religious and fraternal orders, families, the federal government and the United Confederate Veterans. East Commerce Street divides them into northern and southern sectors. Most graves lie in north-south rows with markers facing east, following a southern folk tradition. Small granite, marble and limestone markers predominate, with occasional mausoleums, statuary, walls and gateposts, including work by sculptors Pompeo Coppini and Frank Teich. Roughly 70 percent of burials date before 1949. The grounds are significant as a record of the people who shaped San Antonio, including German immigrants, Jewish congregations, Confederate veterans, African American residents and fraternal groups. Vandalism, theft and neglect have damaged many plots, but the district keeps enough integrity to convey its history.