This cache placement is part of the Garland History GeoTour. Should you wish to download the GeoTour passport to earn our beautiful GeoCoin, you can find the GeoTour page here. The log will contain a secret word which you must enter on your passport in the appropriate slot.
Be sure to log your "Will Attend" for the kickoff party of Garland GeoTour 2.0!
Garland’s Mills Cemetery has been designated a Historic Texas Cemetery by the Texas Historical Commission. Besides being a recognition of the historic significance of the cemetery, the designation will serve as a legal protection from the possibility of future encroachment by adjacent property owners.
The cemetery was established by Edward C. Mills, one of the earliest settlers in what is now the Garland area. Mills received a headright of 640 acres in Dallas County as a Peters Colonist in 1847. Elizabeth Collins Mills, wife of Edward, died in 1854 and was the first burial in the family cemetery. At first the cemetery was only for the Mills family but soon neighbors were allowed to bury there and Mills Cemetery in effect became a neighborhood burial ground, the land having been set aside as a cemetery in Mills' will of 1871.
In 1925 a new cemetery was developed adjoining the west side Mills Cemetery and was given the name Garland Cemetery. This name was a poor choice since there were already two cemeteries, Masonic and Knights of Pythias, which local people thought of as “Garland cemeteries.” Soon the 1925 Garland Cemetery came to be viewed by people of the area as part of Mills Cemetery and the name has stuck. It is now maintained and administered by the Garland-Mills Cemetery Foundation.
Besides Edward C. Mills, two of his sons, James and John, who were also Peters Colonists, are buried in Mills Cemetery, as are several Civil War veterans, including another Mills son, Robert. A fourth son, Hope, also a Peters Colonist, died at the Battle of Vicksburg.
Many well-known area residents are buried in this cemetery. If you are from this area, walk around and see
how many names you recognize. Nearby (see included waypoint) is the burial plot known locally as Smiley's Grave. Smiley's Grave contains five members of the Smiley family, all of whom died on the same day. There are spooky legends associated with this grave, but the truth is tragic.
Around 3am on May 9th, 1927 a terribly violent storm moved from southwest to northeast across Dallas County. People in Dallas were awakened and amazed at the ferocity of the clouds and near-constant lightning display. In Garland, the storm dropped a tornado that killed 13 people and decimated three city blocks.
The seven members of the Smiley family were at home in bed when the tornado roared through Garland. In the aftermath of the storm, parents Charles and Belle Smiley and 3 of their 5 children--Lilath, Greeta, and Charlena--all lay dead. The surviving family members Dorit and Margaret Ruth Smiley were taken to a hospital in Dallas, where they recovered.