Old and new graves displaying wealth spread across the entire area that is now Oakwood Cemetery. This cemetery was founded in 1879 by one of Fort Worth's first settlers, John Peter Smith, following the death of his stepson. Smith later became a civic leader, mayor, and philanthropist. When he donated twenty acres to the city for the cemetery, the site (simply called New Cemetery) stood on a bluff above the Trinity River. It now overlooks downtown Fort Worth. Over the years, it has grown to approximately one hundred acres in total. The area actually consists of three cemeteries—Oakwood, Calvary, and Trinity—and a walk through the large and beautiful grounds reveals the graves of many prominent men and women from Fort Worth and Tarrant County. These include plots owned by lodges, unions, Catholics, Protestants, and men and women of all races and faiths. There are also sections dedicated to Union and Confederate soldiers. One strip, called Soldier's Row, is land designated for Confederate veterans and their wives. The chapel within the grounds was built in 1914. Oakwood Cemetery became a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1966.
While the original cemetery was simply “New Cemetery,” it was Calvary Cemetery that attracted local Catholics, who buried their dead there. Trinity Cemetery was designated as a burial ground for the city's African American residents.
With so much history within its gates, it is no wonder that the grounds of Oakwood Cemetery are home to plenty of ghost stories. Often described as the “final resting place of cattle kings and oil barons,” Oakwood's most popular story is not about any of them, but rather about a white figure that roams the grounds at night. This figure is often reported by residents living near the cemetery, and some people swear that it is a woman in a wedding dress. Could she have been an abandoned lover? Another story says that the woman is not searching for her lost love at all, but instead walks through the grounds holding a lantern high, searching for her children, who were lost and buried within Oakwood's gates years ago.
Located in a residential neighborhood of Fort Worth at Grand Avenue and Gould Street on the north side of the city, Oakwood Cemetery is both inviting and eerie. There are oak trees as old as the cemetery itself, shading much of the grounds, but when you are there on a rainy day, you begin to imagine this woman moving among the gravestones just beyond the edge of your vision. The mausoleums and gravel paths also raise questions—what lies down that path or inside that old ornate tomb? Or are your eyes simply playing tricks on you?
You can also keep an eye out for the famous Jim Courtright, who was a major figure in Hell's Half Acre and worked to establish law and order in that part of the city. He died after losing a gunfight and was buried in Oakwood. Not being ones to tempt fate, Russell (my trusty photographer and husband) and I spent several hours inside, but in the end, we did not see the white lady. However, we felt eyes all around us. You can feel the energy there, as though someone is watching you. That said, we decided to leave quickly just after sunset.
