Segrest Cemetery, Tyler Couty, Texas

Mike Harris has been kind enough to also offer his pictures of the Segrest Cemetery. He visited that location in January of 2015. The cemetery is located about two miles east of the Cruse Cemetery. The graves of William Cruse, son of Squire Cruse and Piety Pruitt, and his wife, Hester Ann Segrest, are here, as well as the second husband of Hester, George Rich.

The son of the woman who currently owns the land which the cemetery lies upon maintains it by regular mowing. There are, sadly, a number of broken headstone in the cemetery from vandalization by kids about fifteen years ago. There has been no trouble recently. 

Wide Shot of Segrest Cemetery

William Cruse was born on 22 January 1835 in Jasper County, Texas, the first child born to Piety and Squire after the fateful drowning of five of their children in the Mississippi River on the way to Texas. (That event is detailed in Metes & Bounds II: David Crews, Ancestors & Descendants.) William married Hester Segrest, but at the young age of 24 he died from a severe case of big red measles. He and Hester had one daughter, Marinda Cruse, who was the second great grandmother of Mike Harris. 

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Grave of William Cruse
Tombstone inscription:
He that followeth after righteousness, and
mercy find life, righteousness, and honor.

Grave of Hester Ann Segrest
wife of 1) William Cruse and 2) George Rich

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Cruse Cemetery, Tyler County, Texas, Part 5

There are several headstones in the Cruse Cemetery whose connections to the family are unknown.

The first is the headstone of Lona Cruse. The inscription, which is difficult to read, seems to indicate she was a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Barclay) Cruse. However, she is not found on my information.

The second is the headstone of Walker Johnston.

The third is the headstone of Ida Belle Jernigan.

The fourth is the headstone of Jessie Walker.

Cruse Cemetery, Tyler County, Texas Part 4

There are three more graves in the Cruse Cemetery with connections to the Cruse Family.

The first is Clementine "Clem" Cruse. She was was born on 15 May 1837 in Jasper County, Texas, to Squire and Piety (Pruitt) Cruse. She married William "Uncle Billy" Clark. William was born on 8 January 1820. He died at the age of 46, on 30 July 1866, of blood poisoning, not long after the Civil War. He was sitting with his family by the fireside one night. An open penknife was accidentally knocked from the fireplace mantle. It fell and cut his knee. He died a few months later of blood poisoning. Clementine outlived him by 27 years, passing from this life on 13 September 1893.

Josephine Collier was the first wife of Henry A. Cruse, who was the son of John and Elizabeth (Barclay) Cruse. She died in 1891 and Henry remarried Ada F. Bean, daughter of John Thomas "Jack" Bean and Narcissa Jane Fulghum. Both Henry and Ada were great-great grandchildren of David Crews and Annie Magee.

tombstone of Henry's first wife,
Josephine "Joe" Collier

Mattie Luciel Runnels was the daughter of Mary Ellender "Ella" Cruse and Jesse F Runnels, and the granddaughter of John and Elizabeth (Barclay) Cruse. She was born 2 September 1898 in Tyler County, Texas. At the age of four she became afflicted with intestinal complications and subsequently died on 16 September 1902.