San José

Cementerio San José is a historic Mexican and Mexican-American cemetery located in the Montopolis neighborhood of southeast Austin, Texas.

The Investigation

In January 2020, a group of students from The University of Texas at Austin led by Diana Hernández came together to investigate the history of a neglected cemetery in the Southeast Austin neighborhood of Montopolis. Established in 1919, the cemetery tells the story of the lives lived in twentieth century Texas. As with many places, the story often begins long before. Our research investigates the entire picture of the cemetery as well as the area of Montopolis.

An Island in the City

Montopolis entered Euro-American history in 1830, when Jessie C. Tannehill from Kentucky established a townsite on the top of a hill by the Colorado River—named Montopolis, Greek for “city on a hill.” San Jose Cemetery was established on Montopolis Drive in 1919 by the Union Fraternal Mexicana as a designated space for Mexicans and Mexican-Americans to bury their own due to segregation. By 1949, the original cemetery was full, thus a second cemetery was added to the south on Hoeke Lane near the present-day airport. Today, the Montopolis area has experienced tremendous growth and gentrification due to the overall boom of Austin since the 2000s and 2010s.

The Montopolis area from 1940 to 2018. Both cemeteries are highlighted in red.

The Story

The Cemetery

Reclaiming Memories Research Lab, Spring 2021

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The Montopolis area from 1940 to 2018. Both cemeteries are highlighted in red.

Reclaiming Memories Research Lab, Spring 2021