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Two Mission cemeteries have been designated as Historic Texas Cemeteries, distinctions that members of the Hidalgo County Historical Commission say will benefit the community beyond just preservation.

San Jose Cemetery and Mission Catholic Cemetery, which both sit on the same plat of land at ​​1229 South Stewart Rd., were recognized with the historical distinctions on April 13. The designations mark the third historical listings for the city of Mission this year.

“It recognizes their significance in the context of the city,” Logan Dovalina, 2025-2026 markers and research chair for the Hidalgo County Historical Commission, said. “There’s different historic cemeteries all throughout the state, so this is just … an honorary thing.”

Dovalina spearheaded the application process for the two cemeteries. He also previously wrote the 103-page application for the Shary Heights neighborhood, which was listed in the National Register of Historic Places earlier this year.

San Jose Cemetery was founded around 1916 with the oldest documented burial having been in 1919, according to the historical background included in the application.

“A plot was owned by Mission’s first doctor, Dr. A.J.J. (Alfred Joseph Jonathan) Austin (1843-1933), known as ‘Dr. Paloma’ or ‘Dr. Dove’ because he followed the English physician’s tradition of wearing white suits,” the application reads.

Mission Catholic Cemetery was developed in 1949 by Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church.

The church obtained approximately 11.38 acres on the south side of San Jose Cemetery from Isidora Cavazos of the Cavazos-Cardenas family of La Noria Cardeneña Ranch north of Edinburg.

“So essentially, these two cemeteries are in the same location,” Dovalina explained. “They are two distinct sites, but they are one seamless cemetery. So when I was doing this I realized that there’s actually two (cemeteries) and not one, and San Jose is the oldest cemetery in Mission.”

Both cemeteries are now maintained by the city of Mission.

“The Mission Catholic Cemetery is a typical Rio Grande Valley ranch cemetery, with many home-made tombstones,” the application reads. “The Mexican-American tradition, headstones once placed are not removed; hence there are some duplicate inscriptions.”

Dovalina said that he chose to pursue the Historic Texas Cemetery distinctions for the two cemeteries after learning that they were not yet listed as historic places.

He credited former Hidalgo County Historical Commissioner Frances Isbell with researching much of the history of the two cemeteries in 2006 following a survey conducted by Rigo Ordaz.

“It’s just about bringing recognition to the places that matter to the city,” Dovalina said. “I know that cemeteries are sometimes neglected, but this is a really important site because it relates to the founding of the town, really, and it’s a blend of Hispanic heritage. It really highlights the city in my view.”

Gabriel Ozuna, who serves as chairman for the Hidalgo County Historical Commission, said that there is a large number of cemeteries in the Rio Grande Valley that qualify for the Texas Historical Cemetery distinction, but a very small number have so far gone through the process.

“That is something that we as a County Historical Commission are definitely trying to remedy,” he said.

He explained that the Texas Historical Commission manages a historic sites atlas on its website where it documents the number of historic cemeteries by county.

“I was just looking at it, and we have 92 cemeteries (in Hidalgo County), and as of right now, with the addition of San Jose and Mission Catholic, we are up to 16 Historic Texas Cemeteries,” Ozuna said. “Of those 92 I’d be shocked if 85 of them weren’t Historic Texas Cemeteries that we just haven’t designated. So it’s a lot of work ahead of us, but that’s what we’re trying to do. And Logan definitely got us going with these two.”

Both cemeteries continue to be in operation to this day. Ozuna said that distinctions are a way of the state recognizing the historical significance of the cemeteries not only in Mission, but in Texas.

He said that the Hidalgo County Historical Commission will now be working to get a historical marker for the cemeteries.

“Hopefully it will mean that we can put these historical markers in these important places, and that people can see it and appreciate it and say, ‘I have a connection to this place. It’s historic, and we have a historical marker that’s going to show that to everyone else as well.”