Dear Deb,
While going through an old and large cemetery in the City of Dallas (Oakland Cemetery) to find my grandfather's grave, I noticed a very large and beautiful grave monument in the shape of a gazebo, but made of white stone and marble. Upon viewing the monument, I noticed the deceased person's name was Peres (I think it was a Louis). It ran through my mind that this was not our typical Spanish spelling of that name (which is usually Perez), so I asked the gravekeeper about this person. He told me a very interesting story about the man and said that he originally came from the Island of Madeira, migrated to Chicago, then to Memphis, and eventually, to Dallas, Texas. He was well known and liked and was a successful financier (maybe banker). Before he died, he designed his own monument and it is a beauty, indeed. I have always been fascinated with this story and the man, and when I saw your comments on RootsWeb, thought I might contact you about this. Maybe there's a small chance that he might be one of the refugees you talked about, or maybe he might be someone's lost ancestor. That graveyard is very old (my grandfather died in the early 1900's) and some of Dallas' pioneering merchants are buried there. It is not located in the very best of areas as things stand now, so not too many people know about it nor visit it. It is very fascinating and I plan to do another trip there the first chance I get. There are 22,000 people buried there now, and the gravekeeper's name is Mr. Hooper. If you would like to get a more concise and correct report on this person and the dates involving him, you might want to call him, as he has been there quite a while and seems to know a lot about the history of the people buried there. I do not know how old he is, nor how long he will be there.

The number listed in the book for Oakland Cemetery is: (214) 421-2244
3900 S. Oakland Ave.
Dallas, Texas 75215
(Oakland Ave. has been changed recently to Martin Luther King Blvd., I think, in case you have trouble with that name, but it still shows in the book as Oakland Ave.)

Good luck!
Jacqueline