After visiting a friend in the area recently, I decided to take a walk through the historical Concordia Cemetery in central El Paso. This was the first time I visited. The cemetery began in 1856 when Juana Ascarate, the deceased wife of Chihuahuan trader Hugh Stephenson was buried there. The area was the couple’s home. Around 40 years later, the cemetery increased in popularity. Settlers, civic leaders, ranchers and politicians are also buried here. Concordia was nicknamed “El Paso’s Boot Hill” because it accommodated outlaws and gun fighters. It carried the nickname because a number of them died with their boots on.

Concordia also includes a Buffalo Soldier Memorial dedicated to African American Civil War veterans and various other sections. A section is also dedicated to the Chinese who immigrated to El Paso to help build the intercontinental railroad. The cemetery has separate Catholic, Jewish, Mormon and Masonic sections. According…