Terrell Mayor Memorializes Wildwood Cemetery

Denise Bell
Post Managing Editor

October 7, 2008

The Wildwood Cemetery Association held their Annual Memorial Service on Sunday and was blessed with truly beautiful weather.

Co-sponsored by the Volunteer Services Council of Terrell State Hospital, area clergymen were invited along with City of Terrell Mayor Hal Richards, to assist in remembering the patients buried within the historic cemetery.

Located on the grounds of the state operated psychiatric hospital since 1885, the cemetery has for over a century been used as the final resting place for thousands of unfortunate hospital patients, many of whom didn’t have families to claim their remains.

Appalled by the large number of unmarked graves within the deteriorating cemetery the volunteers of the Wildwood Cemetery Association have over the last year done a remarkable job of restoring order and dignity to the vast cemetery grounds.

In a ongoing restoration project entitled, “Restoring Dignity…From Numbers to Names”, many dedicated volunteers have spent countless hours identifying by patient number all 3,600 unnamed graves.

Installing a brand new black decorative fence to line the cemetery’s entrance, volunteers continue working to replace broken, missing and often unreadable cement makers with small granite gravestones that give dignity and identity to the patient’s life.

Opening the multi-denominational memorial service, Terrell State Hospital Superintendent Dr. Joe Finch thanked everyone for attending and recognized TSH Grounds Supervisor Phillip Armstrong for all the beautiful landscaping improvements recently made to the cemetery.

Next TSH Chaplin, David Stine introduced Terrell Mayor Hal Richards, who recounted his own experiences with the historic hospital and then several ministers who led the attendees in prayers and blessings.

The Student Ensemble Choir from Southwestern Christian College in Terrell performed three lovely and inspirational songs. And the Terrell High School Duet of Angelina Tierney and Beth Buchne lead the crowd is singing, Amazing Grace.

The ceremony was closed with an inspirational prayer and followed by the traditional playing of Taps by Terrell High School musician, Randall Carpenter.

Post readers are invited to listen to Mayor Richards sincere remarks about TSH, its history and the volunteers of the Wildwood Cemetery Association. Anyone interested in the ongoing efforts to restore Wildwood Cemetery should visit www.terrellshvolunteers.org.