Richard Moore Outdoor Report: Historic Refuge Cemeteries

RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas (ValleyCentral) — The Rio Grande Valley's national wildlife refuges protect a vast array of native plants and animals, but in addition to safeguarding our natural heritage, the refuges also preserve a poignant reminder of the region's cultural heritage.

Tucked away down a dusty trail strewn with mesquite and ebony beans lies the historic El Rancho Granjeno (Vasquez) Cemetery at Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge east of Rio Hondo.

El Rancho Granjeno was established in the 1840s by Gil Vasquez, and following his death the ranch was administered by his nephew Antonio Vasquez. The cemetery was established in 1870, and three generations of the Vasquez family are buried here.

Farther west, on the banks of the Rio Grande south of Pharr at Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, is the historic Cemeterio Viejo nestled among winter-worn mesquite and ebony trees.

Long before the land became a national wildlife refuge Mexican ranchers raised cattle, horses, and sheep.

In 1834 after Mexico’s independence from Spain, Benigno Leal received the Santa Ana Land grant and established El Rancho de Adentro, “The Inside Ranch.”

Cristoval Leal, the adopted son of the original Santa Ana landowner is buried in this boveda or tomb with his wife.

An ancient hand-hewn Texas ebony fence surrounds the cemetery, and many of the massive logs are over 100 years old, with others added more recently to restore the fence.

Among the weathered wooden crosses is one marking the grave of Thomas Walter Jones who drowned in 1853 while assisting in a survey of the Rio Grande.

Much has changed in this southernmost tip of Texas now known as the Rio Grande Valley, as less than five percent of our native wildlands remain intact, but thanks to our national wildlife refuges a remnant of natural habitat persists along with a vestige of our cultural heritage.