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In 1927, land was purchased by a private corporation; $10.00 was paid for 112.5 acres of land! Family migrations, the breakup of family farms, and the growing populations in cities, family cemeteries were no longer feasible. A private corporation filled the need for burials with space available for public use in Austin. A rock home still stands proudly at the cemetery entrance which once served as a home for the superintendent to live on the property.
Although there may have been earlier burials, April 1928, is the first recorded burial. In 1941, the city of Austin purchased the land from the corporation for $56,000 for the land in the heart of the City. By 2010, the cemetery listed over 23,400 burials.
Austin Memorial Park cemetery is the final resting place of many American veterans: three Civil War veterans—two Confederate and one Union; Spanish-American War, WW1, WW11, Korea, Vietnam, and the war in Iraq.
The monuments provide a walk of diverse culture of Texas indicated by names of German, French, Hispanic, Anglo, Asian and at least one Native American. There are two Jewish cemeteries within the boundary of the Memorial Park.
Texas Historical Commission designated Austin Memorial Park Cemetery as a HISTORIC TEXAS CEMETERY in 2008, worthy of preservation. A dedication ceremony was held April 2010. The historical marker was unveiled and a memorial stone was also placed at the gravesite of the first burial which had been 83 years earlier. .