Does anyone know an archeologist?
There's a forgotten cemetery in a large city owned park near my home. The park is very woodsy and the cemetery has long since become part of the forest complete with large fallen trees, dense underbrush in places, grazing deer, and broken, fallen, and buried gravestones. We know of about 20 people interred, but not all stones are visible so the total number is unknown. By researching the people and land records for the property I've developed a pretty good understanding of how the cemetery came to be, though the picture could change if/as we identify more graves. Known burials occurred there between 1826 and 1921.
I'm slowly working towards convincing one of the park stakeholders to support a project to locate, reset, and conserve the gravestones. At this point it would be really helpful to talk to an archeologist to find out if and how to involve an archeology team, and how they would likely approach the work.
Does anybody know anybody?
Answers
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I do not know an archeologist, but there is a group in the Houston, Texas area that is working to preserve an African American cemetery. It was all overgrown as well. You couldn't even tell it was a cemetery. And it is sitting right next door to the "white" cemetery that is a pretty and nice. So you might want to contact them. CCCRP.org. They are great people. They have worked really hard to clean up the cemetery and worked to do it right. They knew of about 30 people interred at the cemetery to start. As we have worked to help them with doing research, we are up to over 150 people buried there now. And the number keeps growing. If you have problems contacting the group, contact me and I'll introduce you to the group.
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To add to that, where are you located? I know of a group that's doing this in Auburn, Alabama. The one in charge is a college professor--I know he's worked with the archaeology dept there. So maybe there could also be a local college or university that would be willing to help?
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Thanks for these suggestions. I'm in Baltimore, MD and there are at least a couple of academic archeology programs here. I'm not sure how successful cold calling them would be given that there are hundreds of similar small burial grounds in Maryland. This one turns out not to be an African American site and there are no prominent inter-ees, making the project a harder sell.
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Have you reached out to any local historical societies in the area, they may be a help to you. I don't think that you need to worry about cold calling to the University or local colleges as they might have interns that could help restore the cemetery. You could also reach out to the City Councilman for that area.
I applaud you for your efforts in trying to see that the cemetery is restored. Whether the site is historical is unimportant, what is important is that the cemetery is the resting place for someone's family.
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Yeah, good point. Networking we've found though is sooo valuable. Maybe you could post to some Maryland genealogy sites, like Facebook groups, for additional ideas and contacts? See who might know someone in one of those groups? And like Steve said, historical societies would have an interest in this for sure.
I did read an article last week about a cemetery restoration project. It was written by Stephen Burg (click here for department info) who is a professor of applied history at a university. He wrote this article about a project he's done in the local area with students and he is closer than Auburn so perhaps he knows someone? This is a super interesting case study: https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=slceprojectsummaries
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@DanaChou DanaChou I would love to know more about how you learned about the cemetery and who has been working on this project with you? I love hearing the stories of how people got engaged in these kinds of projects.
Also, I hope these suggestions have been helpful, would you mind updating us as you move forward on this project?
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I learned about the cemetery from an unofficial website about the park created by a park enthusiast, and from the director of a nonprofit that cares for the historic mansion in the park that was once owned by the family from whom much of the park land was acquired in the mid-1900's. The cemetery is off the trail system and after I found it I would walk through from time to time. On one visit I had an impression that Jesse Smith, whose gravestone is still upright, wanted to be found; also that I as likely the only church member aware his grave knew why being found was important, and that I should DO SOMETHING. At the time I didn't know what to do. Though I was very actively working on my Chinese family history I did not have skills for American/European research, and Jesse wasn't in FamilyTree.
At the time I was taking an elderly sister in the ward to the FHC weekly, and I watched and learned as the consultants worked with her. I found out about FindAGrave and BillionGraves, created a listing for the cemetery and its occupants on FindAGrave, and felt I had done the something that Jesse needed to be found. Some time later when I went back to FindAGrave, Jesse's and his wife's pictures had been posted. He has since appeared in FamilyTree as well.
There are a few other people interested in conserving the gravestones, all park neighbors like me. There's no official stakeholder support yet, but neither is there opposition. The city council was in my plans but I need to let my councilman get through re-election in the fall before approaching him. Also before making that approach I need to be clear on the project details and what it will take to recover and reset the stones. Thus the need for an archeologist.
I've already approached entities like the state historical preservation authority, the historical society, and a MD gravesite preservation society. They are not prospective partners for this though they are all for someone taking it on. As I said in an earlier comment, this cemetery just one of hundreds of informal burial sites around the state. I'm happy to update you on progress but this is going to be a slow moving endeavor.
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Very cool! I'm sure, these projects can take years.... One of the things you can do as part of this is to add the families of those buried in the cemetery to the Family Tree. You mentioned Jesse Smith is in the tree now - are his parents, grandparents, siblings, children, grandchildren, etc...? Some people in Houston have started doing this for some of the local African American cemeteries. Just a thought.
I have one more place to ask, but I also recently came across this article - https://www.foxnews.com/science/historic-black-cemetery-that-was-purposefully-erased-during-jim-crow-uncovered - I wonder if that Eric Prendergast would be open for a conversation? I couldn't find contact info anywhere but I did find him on LinkedIn, if you wanted to try that.
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@DanaChou DanaChou It sounds like you've heard of this effort as you mentioned the MD graveside preservation society:
https://www.preservationmaryland.org/new-statewide-cemetery-documentation-project-underway/ and
Have you tried talking to Caroline, the archaeologist with this project?
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Yes, I was aware of this project. I haven't tried contacting any Dept of Transportation archeologists. "My" cemetery probably doesn't fit their project, not being in or adjacent to Department right-of-way, but it's worth checking out. Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately I haven't had any response from the Coalition to Protect MD Burial Sites. They don't have a phone, just a contact form on their site, which so far nobody answers.
Several of the cemetery residents are already in family tree, and I messaged one of the submitters offering additional information (no reply so far). I haven't added sources or expanded trees for these people, nor created pages for people not already in the tree. I can see the reasoning for doing this but I hesitate to do it myself. I find joy in discovering these people's lives, and I come to care about them, though we are unrelated. I'm afraid to take the joy and caring that comes through discovery away from their real relatives by putting my work where their work should be. My compromise is to write a narrative bio sketch for the FindAGrave memorials. The real relatives can spring off the sketch to find the documentation for what I've written. They can also message me through FindAGrave for help.
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I've had that same concern myself, wondering if the projects we do are taking something away from family by doing so much for them. What I've realized myself is that there's only a small number of people who actually find joy in this part of it - the hunt and the discovery of new information during the hunt. Lots of people are almost scared off by that. But if they can look it up and see it, if it's easy, they find a lot of joy in that. But, since you do add the info to FindaGrave, and that website is pretty accessible, that does make it easy for people too. Not sure if that helps but just thought it was interesting that I've had that same conversation in my head!
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Update about the cemetery restoration project: Hoping for free archeology advice I contacted the Archeology Society of Maryland. The administrator who responded suggested I contact a U of MD archeologist who is known for doing projects inside Baltimore city. I did that, including with the inquiry my little history of the site. The professor talked with a couple of his colleagues who had just worked on a cemetery project in the next county, and they have all now offered to clean up, document, and restore at least a portion of "my" cemetery this fall.
Within a few days of contacting the professor I also finally talked to someone from the Coalition to Preserve Maryland Burial Sites. He wants to participate with the U of MD on this project. He says there is potential that another Coalition partner might want to use this project as basis for a film documentary about how conservationists and archeologists work together. I think this would be a posted-on-organization-website kind of film, not broadcast-on-PBS version.
We have our first group organizing call in a few days, which also includes city park administrators (the land owners) and the Friends of the Park group. The Friends had already declined to do anything towards restoring the cemetery but we hope they will help maintain whatever restoration is completed.
As I'm writing this a message came from a local author and historian with whom I've been emailing for insights about the cemetery. He just offered to write a newspaper op-ed to widen interest in and support for the project.
I'm amazed at what has suddenly come together. I'm so looking forward to seeing archeologists at work. The professor is looking into the availability of ground imaging equipment for the survey. The Coalition would be able to do subsequent projects to continue restoration for areas not done this fall.
The people in forgotten cemeteries are precious to the Lord.
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That is great news! It's amazing how pieces can just fall into place, one after the other. I love your final statement, that is so true. Thanks for keeping us updated on how it's coming together!
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@DanaChou DanaChou That is absolutely wonderful information! Thank you so much for reporting back and letting us know. It is amazing how the inspiration and determination of one person can create so much good. You have been very blessed to have so many people interested. I encourage you to write all of this down and take pictures. One thing I have learned over the years is that having pictures and notes has helped me when I have needed to reference or remember things. Sometimes others want to duplicate what I have done, and it is good to go to an online file and have the information at my fingertips. It doesn't have to be fancy - it just has to be what works for you.
We look forward to hearing more as time goes on. ❤️
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Progress update on Ridge Cemetery project:
Following the organizing Zoom meeting we met for a site visit which involved 3 archeologists, a cemetery conservator, the nonprofit Friends of the Park president, and a couple of interested park neighbors. A park administrator meant to be there but didn't make it. The visit went well and we are moving forward. The lead archeologist wrote a proposal following the visit, here's the gist:
"The Ridge Cemetery is a nineteenth-century burial site. It is overgrown with damage and displacement to grave markers and stones. Park neighbors have sought to bring stakeholders and professionals together to address the cemetery’s condition.
The cemetery cleanup is necessary to be able identify the cemetery features and limit the destruction of these features by vegetation and other natural and man-made processes. Underbrush, small trees, and fallen branches and logs need to be removed. Ideally, this work could be accomplished by the end of October.
Once the vegetation and debris have been cleared, archaeologists will spend several days locating and identifying the cemetery features including grave and boundary markers as well as large vegetation and topography. Using a total station (an electronic surveyor’s transit), these features will be digitally mapped. From this data, a digital map will be made of these resources and the cemetery in general. University of Maryland archeologists will perform the survey and documentation, possibly involving college students and members of the Archaeology Society of Maryland.
After the cemetery features are located, identified, and mapped, some of these features may be further analyzed and restored. Restoration is contingent on several factors, including condition of the features, level of treatment, and funding."
So the archeologists create the map, and the conservator does the excavation and restoration of gravestones and other features. The conservator consulted without charge as a representative of the Coalition to Preserve Maryland Burial Sites. For his company to do the restoration work requires funding. The archeologists know of a grant that can be applied for almost immediately so they are preparing a proposal. If one of the stakeholder organizations agrees to put its name on the proposal and receive the funds, and funding comes through, then we can have professionals excavate the stones. If not then we can get free training from the Coalition when they do workshops again, hopefully next year if Covid permits, to learn how to do the work ourselves.
We neighbors are hard at work on the clean up and recruiting others to help. Five more weeks is not a lot of time for all there is to do. If we can keep getting helpers here and there it's doable.
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@DanaChou DanaChou Thank you so much for giving us a follow-up of what has been happening and who you have been reaching out to. There is a lot of work that goes into cemetery restoration and it takes a few resources. I wish I lived closer so that I could help with the clean-up that needs to happen by the end of October.
Have you looked into local scout groups, high school clubs, or genealogical societies to help with the clean up? It would take a little supervision - depending on the state of the gravesites, but doable. October is a great time to be doing this - not too hot or cold outside. October is also National Family History month in the United States - wouldn't that be fun to start researching some of the people that you find? Imagine the fun projects that would come out of that!
We look forward to hearing how it goes.
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