Ephraim Fuqua came to Texas in the early 1830s. The area he settled became known as Fuqua Prairie. In 1841, he received a land grant from the Republic of Texas, a part of which he donated for a cemetery.
Some of the earliest graves in the cemetery are from members of a wagon train passing through the area who became ill and died. Their graves are simply marked with rocks, and their names are unknown.
One of Ephraim’s daughters, Mary Frances Fuqua, married John Harrison Moody and brought the Moody name into the Fuqua family. Another daughter, Martha Fuqua, married William Arrington and brought the Arrington family name into the family. One of Ephraim’s sons, Patrick Fuqua was killed in 1862 during the civil war and became the first Fuqua family member buried at the cemetery
During the late 1890s, a post office was established on the original Fuqua land grant. Erwin Post Office was named in memory of a Fuqua child. Therefore, the cemetery and the community went by the same name. Ephraim died in 1870, and his wife Patsy in 1886. Both are buried in the cemetery. The left behind a legacy of 33 grandchildren and over 130 great grandchildren.
The first mention of the cemetery in the property records of Grimes County was in 1877, following the death of Ephraim Fuqua. His widow, Patsy, conveyed 102.5 acres to Ephraim’s grandsons, Harvey and Henry Moody. Since that time the ownership of the land surrounding the cemetery has changed more than a half dozen times, but each deed has recognized the existence of the cemetery in the property descriptions, and excluded it from conveyance.
The Texas Historical Commission has designated the name of the cemetery as Fuqua Family Cemetery, although the association will continue under the name Fuqua Family Cemetery aka Erwin Cemetery Association.
