Howard Henderson (1842 - 1908) came to Texas in 1857. He survived the Civil War Battle of the Nueces in 1862, when he and other Unionists were ambushed by a Confederate force near the Nueces River. He later served as a Texas Ranger. Henderson married Narcissa Turknett in 1866, and they settled near this site. In 1870, after the deaths of their infant twin sons Thomas and Philip, they began a family burial ground that became known as Henderson Cemetery. Other family members and neighbors were also buried there.