Cemetery
Randon Bottom FB-C109
History – The Randon Bottom Cemetery is located on the corner of Westminster Drive and Wellspring Drive in the area of Riverwood Forest. This cemetery is approximately one-third of an acre and was platted at the time the Blue Green Corporation acquired the land from Sierra Development in the 2000 time frame. The property had previously been owned by United Financial, and the Wendt family (originally the Harris family.) As part of the “Old Three Hundred,” the Randon family was issued a land parcel which was known as the John Randon League. It is reported that the entire area of Weston Lakes located in the John Randon League was part of the Harris Plantation. The Randon Bottom Cemetery is an inactive cemetery that was used from 1908 until 1972 and is the final resting place for the descendants of sharecropping families, including three veterans of the United States Armed Services. Because the cemetery is located in a ravine area, floods have washed away some of the headstones and markers, making it hard to determine the exact location of all of the graves. The earliest birth date of record belongs to William Jackson who was born in 1862, and many others who were born prior to the turn of the nineteenth century. The cemetery is also known as St. John’s Cemetery and Harris Cemetery.
Keep Weston Lakes Beautiful Restoration and Beautification Project – The Randon Bottom Cemetery was the catalyst for the creation of Keep Weston Lakes Beautiful. Below is a timeline of the project.
March 2017 – KWLB volunteers underwent a week long clean up, tree trimming, pruning and beautification.
September 2017 – Robbins Monuments was awarded the cemetery monument project. The cement foundation was poured on September 13th and the monument that will list the names of those buried there is scheduled to be installed in November. KWLB partnered with Nicholas Stephens, Boy Scout Troop #941, working towards earning the prestigious Eagle Scout honor to plan and install the brick pathway entrance to the cemetery before year end. He will be paying for and providing the labor as a part of his Eagle Scout requirement.
October 2017 – Nicholas Stephens and Boy Scout Troop #941 installed the brick pathway to the entrance of the cemetery under the rose archway.
November 2017 – Robbins Monuments installed the elegant granite monument listing the 43 known names of persons buried there. Underneath those names, reads “MAY THOSE WHO LIE HERE, BOTH NAMED AND UNNAMED, REST IN PEACE.”
December 2, 2017 – Randon Bottom Cemetery Re-dedication Ceremony – Many neighbors, friends, sponsors, and dignitaries gathered together to re-dedicate and honor all persons who lie in the cemetery. The ceremony opened with the presentation of colors by Boy Scout Troop #941, the Pledge of Allegiance led by Scout Nicholas Stephens, and the Invocation by Weston Lakes resident Rev. Charles Wisdom. Many dignitaries were in attendance including our Weston Lakes Mayor Mary Rose Zdunkewicz, Richmond Mayor Evelyn Wendt Moore, Fulshear Councilman Tommy Kuykendall, Sheriff Troy Nehls, Constable Wayne Thompson, Weston Lakes Alderman Bill Ragle and Denis DeLuca. Other special guest in attendance were Miss viola Randle and Linda Newsome Johnson, both have a long history and family connection with Weston Lakes.
The Randon Bottom Cemetery has now been restored and Keep Weston Lakes Beautiful is committed to continuing to beautify and maintain it.
A special Thank You to Weston Lakes resident Clifton Aldrich for sharing his invaluable years of cemetery research. Also instrumental in the restoration of the cemetery are Chairperson Carolyn Martinez and Committee Members (in alphabetical order) Ann Gibson, Bonnie Carr, Carol Fairbanks, Debbie Rodriquez, Earlene Hopkins, Janet Bartek, Kevin Stoerner, Maureen Pederson, Nancy Case, Tanya Klein de Foerster, Terri Oliver, Tricia Wright and Valerie Planchard.
April, 2018 – Beautiful new plants were installed around the cemetery entrance.
Veterans Day 2018 – Three veterans are laid to rest in the Randon Bottom Cemetery:
Walter Johnson, PFC U.S. Army, World War I
Eddie Andrew, PVT U.S. Army
Anthony Moore, PVT 24th INF, Texas
