James W. McDade and Dr. Peebles founded Hempstead on Jared E. Groce property after Groce died, about 1837/38, and Peebles married his widow, Mary Ann. This could be a son. The grave stones have been moved. but remain in the general area of the McDade graveyard. One McDade was an officer in the Confederacy and allowed both Confederate and Union dead to be buried here. The McDade graveyard is on the south side of Austin Branch Road, west of Hempstead.
Mr. Weir, as a boy, remembered some cedar crosses located about 35 yards SE of the McDade stones, before they were moved. An older historian believed these to be Confederate with the Union being in a mass grave. It is likely, that since these graves were along a RR spur, running SE from the EW railroad to the McDade cotton gin, that Union troops dying on the return from Camp Felder, "the camp with the most deaths" are buried here.
Unfortunately, there are many lost graves along the route from Camp Groce, near Hempstead, to Camp Gillespie, near Brenham, to Camp Felder, north of Chappell Hill, and back to Hempstead. This trip was necessitated by fear of the current yellow fever epidemic in Houston.
Mr. Weir, as a boy, remembered some cedar crosses located about 35 yards SE of the McDade stones, before they were moved. An older historian believed these to be Confederate with the Union being in a mass grave. It is likely, that since these graves were along a RR spur, running SE from the EW railroad to the McDade cotton gin, that Union troops dying on the return from Camp Felder, "the camp with the most deaths" are buried here.
Unfortunately, there are many lost graves along the route from Camp Groce, near Hempstead, to Camp Gillespie, near Brenham, to Camp Felder, north of Chappell Hill, and back to Hempstead. This trip was necessitated by fear of the current yellow fever epidemic in Houston.
James W. McDade and Dr. Peebles founded Hempstead on Jared E. Groce property after Groce died, about 1837/38, and Peebles married his widow, Mary Ann. This could be a son. The grave stones have been moved. but remain in the general area of the McDade graveyard. One McDade was an officer in the Confederacy and allowed both Confederate and Union dead to be buried here. The McDade graveyard is on the south side of Austin Branch Road, west of Hempstead.
Mr. Weir, as a boy, remembered some cedar crosses located about 35 yards SE of the McDade stones, before they were moved. An older historian believed these to be Confederate with the Union being in a mass grave. It is likely, that since these graves were along a RR spur, running SE from the EW railroad to the McDade cotton gin, that Union troops dying on the return from Camp Felder, "the camp with the most deaths" are buried here.
Unfortunately, there are many lost graves along the route from Camp Groce, near Hempstead, to Camp Gillespie, near Brenham, to Camp Felder, north of Chappell Hill, and back to Hempstead. This trip was necessitated by fear of the current yellow fever epidemic in Houston.
Mr. Weir, as a boy, remembered some cedar crosses located about 35 yards SE of the McDade stones, before they were moved. An older historian believed these to be Confederate with the Union being in a mass grave. It is likely, that since these graves were along a RR spur, running SE from the EW railroad to the McDade cotton gin, that Union troops dying on the return from Camp Felder, "the camp with the most deaths" are buried here.
Unfortunately, there are many lost graves along the route from Camp Groce, near Hempstead, to Camp Gillespie, near Brenham, to Camp Felder, north of Chappell Hill, and back to Hempstead. This trip was necessitated by fear of the current yellow fever epidemic in Houston.
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