Burleson County combines nature experiences at Somerville Lake and Lake Somerville State Park with traces of diverse immigration histories. Discoveries range from water sports, fishing, and trails through seasonal wetlands to cemeteries and churches with Czech, German, Moravian, Hispanic, and Italian connections. You can focus your attention on the landscape and wildlife or explore the history of individual places.
Water, Trails, and Activities
Somerville Lake offers opportunities for water sports and has a total of eleven boat ramps. Specific fishing spots are also identified: Birch Creek offers fishing opportunities, and the Alligator Loop provides access to fishing on Yegua Creek. Water sports on the lake are therefore complemented by the expressly named fishing opportunities at Birch Creek and Yegua Creek.
All trails in Lake Somerville State Park are open to hikers and cyclists. Horses are permitted on the Lake Somerville Trailway and on most trails at Nails Creek. The Trailway is 13.4 miles long. The rules vary by activity: all trails are open to hikers and cyclists, while horseback riding is permitted on the Trailway and most trails at Nails Creek.
Landscape and Wildlife
The Sandy Slough Trail runs along Yegua Creek through mature hardwood forests and seasonal wetlands. The Scenic Viewpoint offers opportunities for birdwatching and views of the main creeks that feed Lake Somerville. Flag Pond is a managed habitat for migratory birds and other native wildlife. Nature experiences range from a trail through forests and wetlands, to birdwatching and creek views, to a habitat that is actively managed.
History in Places and Names
Caldwell Masonic Cemetery contains more than 2,700 graves and is an important testament to the heritage of Caldwell and Burleson County. Its gravestones reflect the region’s Czech and German heritage. In 1950, the cemetery became a public cemetery.
The New Tabor area in Burleson County was settled around 1870 by Czech-Moravian immigrants seeking fertile land and religious freedom. New Tabor Brethren Church built a church building in 1893. A tornado destroyed it in 1915, and it was replaced later that same year. Another settlement story leads to Frenstat: Catholic settlers who arrived in the area in 1884 named their settlement after the Moravian community of Frenstat Rod Radhost, which they had left.
St. Mary's Catholic Cemetery is closely associated with numerous settlers of Czech and Hispanic descent. In Caldwell, the Catholic community built a church in 1895 in honor of Saint Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes. Four years later, the community acquired the adjoining land for Caldwell Catholic Cemetery; the first burial there took place in September 1899.
San Salvador Mission Church was built by local families in 1908, after services had previously been held in private homes. It was named for the patron saint of CefalĂą in Sicily, the hometown of the Italian immigrants who arrived here in 1894. A grotto of the Virgin Mary of Lourdes was listed as a feature of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church in a 2005 description.
At the Site of Camino Real, the modern highway follows the historic El Camino Real. This makes the relationship between the historic route and a present-day road alignment tangible.
Discover more destinations: Somerville, Caldwell, Winkler County, Palo Pinto County, Deaf Smith County, Uvalde County, Hutchinson County, Pecos County
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