Round Rock Cemetery Association
The Round Rock Cemetery was established in the early 1850’s, in what is now known as Old Round Rock, and has contributed much to the history of the community as well as Williamson County and the State of Texas. Settlers who moved in the Round Rock area while Texas as still a Republic helped develop this county. On the roster of those buried in the Round Rock Cemetery are the names of men and women who have made a lasting contribution to the history of this area. There are approximately 1,500 people buried in the cemetery, although hundreds of the graves are unmarked. Some of the graves memorialize people born as far back as 1771, and many more by those who may now seem forgotten but were memorable personalities in Round Rock’s past. Within the cemetery there is the Round Rock Slave Burial Ground. This half acre plot, believed to have been established in the 1850’s, was set aside for the burial of enslaved people and freedmen of Williamson County. Round Rock Cemetery is one of the more interesting cemeteries in the area with a wide variety of stories that it can tell - lawmen and outlaws, pioneers, early citizens of Round Rock, slavery, segregation and veterans of many wars.
The Round Rock Cemetery Association was reorganized in 2012 with limited funds at that time. In 2013 the cemetery was mapped by the Texas Cemetery Restoration Company with an assessment of repair needs. Photographs were taken of all the headstones in the cemetery at that time. The cemetery still has over 1,400 plots that are available to anyone who wished to be buried in the cemetery. The cost estimate for making all repairs documented in 2013 was just under $200,000. That estimate was recently updated to just over $300,00. The Cemetery Association contracted with the Texas Cemetery Restoration Company in 2024 with an initial investment of $90,000 to repair and restore 87 headstones. There is additional repair work to be done with a cost estimate of approximately $250,000. The Association has created a Headstone Restoration Fund with all donations to that fund being designated for the remaining repairs and restoration of headstones in the cemetery.
The Round Rock Cemetery Association is recognized as a 501-c-3 organization by the IRS in recognition of its standing as a Historical Cemetery. It has a 12-member volunteer Board of Directors, who are elected by the members of the Association. Association members are those who own plots in the cemetery or those who are relatives of someone who is buried in the cemetery.
The Annual Meeting of the Round Rock Cemetery Association is held on the 3rd Saturday in September at 9 a.m. at the cemetery located at 1400 Sam Bass Road, Round Rock, Texas.