Forty-five souls buried in the Nocona Cemetery are no longer nameless thanks to the hard work of Robert Terry, who began installing markers on unmarked graves earlier this month.
The Nocona native began creating a massive cemetery database in 2007 after he found himself wandering through the cemetery in search of a buddy buried among the headstones. The project morphed into a search for the names of all the unmarked graves through old newspaper articles, family connections and many hours of research.
Recently, Nocona City Councilors approved funds from the cemetery bequeath fund for grave markers on 41 unmarked graves that now have identities, plus four laid to rest without a stone.
Terry explained the installation takes several hours for just one headstone, so the process will be a lengthy, but he expects they will be in by the end of June.
He becomes emotional trying to put into words what seeing those names placed on the unmarked graves means to him after years of dedication to the cemetery
Fortunately, he found a way to express his thoughts and feelings about this project in the poem, “An Unmarked Grave.”
“I cried when I wrote it, and I cry every time I read it,” said Terry through his tears.