Advance ticket purchase is required for this walking tour. Scroll down to reserve tickets.
Located in the shadow of the downtown skyscrapers, Founders Memorial Cemetery is one of the few physical links to the early days of Houston and Texas. The plot of land along the San Felipe Road (now West Dallas Avenue) began being used for burials shortly after Houston was founded in 1836 and became the resting place of veterans of the Texas Revolution, heroes of the Battle of San Jacinto and government officials of the Republic of Texas.
Our 90-minute docent-guided tour explores the history of this significant burial ground and tells the stories of some of the extraordinary people buried there, including Henry Livingston Thompson, commodore of the Texas Navy; John Wharton, called the "keenest blade of San Jacinto"; and John Kirby Allen, one of Houston's founders. Their stories are the stories of Texas' beginnings, and they're a fascinating look into the early history of the state.
There are no public restrooms along the tour route.
About the tour
Advance ticket purchase is required for the tour; tickets are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. We will not be able to accommodate walk-ups on the day of the tour. There are no refunds for tour tickets.
Registrants will receive parking and check-in information via e-mail.
In the event of inclement weather that prevents the tour from being offered as planned, we will notify registrants as far in advance as possible about their options to attend a rescheduled tour or transfer their reservations to another Preservation Houston tour.
Do you have an Architecture Walks pass?
If you have joined Preservation Houston and received a pass for a free Architecture Walk, you may redeem the pass for admission to this tour. E-mail tours@preservationhouston.org and we'll be happy to help.
Passes are redeemable subject to ticket availability.