The town of Harwood was founded in 1875 as a stop on the Galveston, Harrisburg, and San Antonio Railroad. Land was designated for a cemetery when town lots were platted. The oldest marked grave is that of I. M. Shelton, a Civil War veteran who died April 14, 1877. According to local tradition, Shelton was struck by lightning as the worked on the railroad. Other veterans interred here are from the Texas Revolution, the Civil War, Spanish-American war, World War I, World War II, and Korea. A cemetery association was formed in 1957 to maintain the site. Texas sesquicentennial 1836-1986.