Heritage Association of San Marcos
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The Riverwalk Memorial Grove  

Planting of the Memorial Grove commenced in celebration of the nation's Bicentennial in San Marcos. The Grove and Riverwalk were established as a permanent “gift to the City” to continue into the next century.

The City Bicentennial Commission, which later became the Heritage Association, planted the first Arbor Day tree in 1976. The tree was a gift to San Marcos from the Texas Forest Service, a “Liberty Tree,” distributed to recognize Bicentennial Cities in Texas. This large Texas Pecan presently centers the Memorial Grove located between the Charles S. Cock House Museum and the railroad tracks extending to the Riverwalk at the San Marcos River.

This Grove began with the four large trees located at the parking lot behind the Museum. These trees were planted in honor of those for whom memorials had been contributed to help finance the Riverwalk.

Mrs. Addison Buckner   
Herbert Holcombe
Ralph Ingram, Sr.
Fred W. Johnson
​Mr. & Mrs. Alfred Kroll                                    

Kimberley K. Longley                                       
Herbert Lennie                                                    
John Judy Middagh, Sr.                                     
Mrs. Bert Miller, Sr.
Ed O’Banion
Tom G. Oliver, Jr.
Mrs. L. B. Oltman
Eric Stephen Pool
Mary Cock Rylander
Gabriel Serur
Malcolm Sherrill
Peyton Thomas                                                   
Mrs. D. L. Weir
Frank Zimmerman, Sr.


Also among the trees originally planted in the Memorial Grove is the Andrew Jackson Magnolia located near the flagpole and the gazebo. This tree was propagated from the magnolia tree growing on the White House grounds in Washington, D.C. It was a gift to the Bicentennial Commission in 1973 from U.S.  Congressman J. J. Pickle.

The large tree east of the gazebo at the edge of Hopkins Street is the Lyndon Baines Johnson Magnolia. It was planted as a memorial soon after the President's death according to the wishes of Mrs. Johnson. 
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In addition to the recognition of those who contributed to the construction of the original riverwalk, the Riverwalk Park Committee, on behalf of the Heritage Association, has planted trees in memory of other individuals during Arbor Day events, beginning in 1979. These individuals, recognized for their dedicated service to the San Marcos community, include the following:

Virginia Hightower, 1979
Walter Buckner, 1980
Herbert Yarbrough, 1981
James Dell Cummings, 1982
Robert C. Van Gundy, 1983
Dr. Buford Williams, 1984
The Rev. H. Ellis Thomas, 1984
Dempsey Serur, 1985
Dennis McCoy, 1986
Addison Buckner, 1987
Terry L. Jacks, 1987
Joe Vasquez, Jr., 1987
Oscar Calvin Smith, Jr., 1988
R. Eugene Phillips, 1989
Helen Holcombe Allen, 1990
Tula Townsend Wyatt, 1991
Elizabeth Hofheinz Martindale, 1992
Joe Nicola, Sr., 1993
H. Y. Price, Jr., 1994
Robert J. Pollard, 1995
Thomas J. Yoakum, 1996​
​Bob Kercheville, 1997
Ambassador William H. Crook, 1998
Theodora Scrutchin, 1999
Joe G. Rodriguez, 2000
Lydell Clayton, 2001
Jack Lindstrom, 2002
Dr. William L. Moore, 2003
John Cooper, 2004
Luciano Flores, 2005
Max Souby, 2007
Carl W. Anderson, 2008
John Morrissett, 2009
Steve R Gregg, 2010
Dr. Gwen K. Smith, 2011
Edwin Mutschlechner, 2012
Emmett McCoy, 2013
Willie Higgs, 2014
Martha D. Jackson, 2015
​Bob Sappington, 2016
​Dorothy "Dottie" Sims, 2017
​Ofelia Vasquez-Philo, 2018
Bruce Ingram, 2019
​Patty Sherrill Sullivan, 2020
​Marie Jager, 2021
Ted and Frances Breihan 2022
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