Concordia Cemetery
3700 Yandell Drive, El Paso
It's very important, both on this site and on Find a Grave, to look in both cemetery names (Concordia and Section Name). Some memorials are listed under Concordia and some are listed under the section name. If we ever get finished with this huge undertaking, we'll make a master list.
History
Hugh Stephenson was born in Kentucky. His parents died when he was young and he moved with a cousin to Concordia, Missouri, where he grew up. He came west as a trapper and in August 1824 became possibly the first Anglo-American in the El Paso area, passing through with a wagontrain. He left the wagon train at Old Mesilla, New Mexico, acquiring land and building a home on the site of present Las Cruces. Shortly thereafter he settled in El Paso del Norte (present Juarez, Mexico, and later acquired a grant of 900 acres, south of the land belonging to Juan Maria a Ponce de Leon, the site of present El Paso.
Stephenson married Juana Maria Ascarate, the daughter of a wealthy El Paso del Norte merchant, in August 1828. By 1835 he had opened a store, in 1843 Stephenson moved to Corralitos to manage the silver mine belonging to his wife's family; he also managed the family business at Janos. In 1844 he moved to his property south of Ponce de Leon's and established a community that he called Concordia, after his child-hood home.
Juana Ascarate de Stephenson died on February 6, 1856, when she was fatally gored by a deer she had raised from a fawn. She was buried on a part of the ranch now known as Concordia Cemetery. In November 1867, after the Rio Grande flooded the old garrison at Magoffinsville, Fort Bliss, was moved to Concordia and as known as Camp Concordia until March 1869, when it resumed its previous name. Over 65,000 people are buried in Concordia.
The cemetery contains about 15 sections including Catholic, Masonic, Protestant, Odd Fellows, French, Mount Sinai and Chinese.
Concordia Cemetery has its own website but the site doesn't contain a burial list.
Cemetery Map
Catholic Section - The Catholic sections include most of the right side of Comcordia Cemetery located on Boone Road to the Jewish section. This was taken from the Ledgers and the list from walking the cemetery. It is not nearly complete.
Masonic Cemetery - The Masonic Lodge owns part of the opposite side of the cemetery on Stevens Street. The Masonic Lodge now takes care of the Oddfellow section that joins their cemetery. These records were taken from the burial book and only shows date of interment and space location.
Protestant Cemetery
Odd Fellows Cemetery - This section is adjoining the Masonic Cemetery and is now under Masonic care.
French Cemetery - Mr French acquired this small plot of land for his family but their are five graves there.
Mount Sinai Cemetery - look toward Boone Street for the green spot of trees and shrubs and you will see the Jewish cemeteries. The list here only covers 2000 - 2002 taken from the obituaries of the El Paso Times.
Chinese Cemetery - Entering at the Yandell gate, look left to a rock wall that surrounds the cemetery.