In December 1854, Polish settlers from Upper Silesia began arriving in eastern Bexar County and formed an early community of fewer than 20 families called Martinez. In 1857, residents built a mission log church on the land of Ludwig Zaiontz, and local settlers established a cemetery beside it that was served by traveling priests. The first known burial there was the Rev. Julian Przysiecki in November 1863 after he died from a fall from his horse, and his death left the church without a Polish-speaking priest for some time. In 1868, the community built a new church dedicated to the Virgin Mary. In 1872, church members chartered a new cemetery at this site and reinterred burials from the original site. Residents later changed the settlement's name to St. Hedwig in honor of Silesia’s Patron Saint, and the gravestones reflect a community that included people of Polish descent as well as residents with German, Hispanic, Irish, Alsatian, and other surnames.