Starr County’s Longoria Cemetery earns state historical designation

A cemetery in Starr County is being recognized as a Texas Historic Cemetery, paving the way to preserve the site s rich cultural history in the Rio Grande Valley. Longoria Cemetery, which is located a short distance from the Rio Grande in La Grulla, was established in 1892 when Juan Longoria died and was buried on the property that had belonged to his family for three generations. It kind of goes back to the land grants, Logan Dovalina said. Dovalina submitted the application for the cemetery to be designated as a Texas Historic Cemetery. He d already successfully gained the historic designations for two other Rio Grande Valley cemeteries earlier this year, San Jose Cemetery and Mission Catholic Cemetery in Mission. It s basically a family cemetery in that area that I believe it s still being utilized today, Dovalina explained. There is a newer cemetery behind it that was just built very recently, but that s the original cemetery. For Dovalina, who served as the markers and resea