Lilly Island (Lily Island)

Polk County, TX

Status: Located

Year Established: Unknown

Council of Governments: DETCOG

Public History: There are no current descriptions related to Lilly Island in the public record. If you are aware of any sources that we may have missed please share them with us.

Community History: “Lilly Island Cemetery THC Historical Marker: “”This burial ground served residents of several communities that formed in this area beginning in the late 19th century. Former slaves resided in these settlements; some came to Texas from Savannah, Georgia with plantation owner Daniel Hamilton. When Hamilton passed away, his daughter Margaret, with husband John S. Havis, began to manage the plantation. They donated property for church purposes after two former slaves, Cal Hamilton and Delila Scott, requested land on which to conduct worship services. By the late 1880s, members of Lilly Eylan (Island) Missionary Baptist Church met here to worship. In 1903, the congregation relocated to a settlement between Barnes and Camden which took the same name as the church. The original church site became known as Lilly Island Cemetery. The burial ground served residents of Barnes, Camden and Lilly Island. Many settlers were former slaves and most farmed. Many of the freed slaves also worked for W.T. Carter and Brother Lumber Company, which provided boarding and houses, schools, medical services, a company store and a post office for its employees. The company was the area’s main employer and thrived until the end of World War II, when many African American workers migrated to urban areas, leading to the decline of this area’s communities. The earliest burial here, of Morris W. Washington, an infant, dates to 1884. Other interments include veterans of foreign conflicts dating to World War I. Today, the Lilly Island Cemetery Association cares for the cemetery, which continues to serve the area and remains as a testament to the former slaves and other residents of the Barnes, Camden and Lilly Island Communities. (Historic Texas Cemetery-2006.)””

Lilly Island Missionary Baptist Church is an active congregation.”

Cemetery: Lilly Island Cemetery

Church: Lily Island Missionary Baptist Church