If the 5 depressions are laid out side by side, then the odds are highly to overwhelmingly in favor of them being graves. If not, way less so, with isolated tree falls being the culprits.
Investigation is tricky. Presumably PA has laws starting from at least the Resurrectionist days against disturbance of a grave without prior administrative approval. It may be as simple as the church granting same as it is private land, if that is the law; or as complex as the SHPO or local court system process. Either way, the legal ramifications need to be addressed before fieldwork.
A toothless bucket on a mechanical excavator would make quick work of determining whether the depressions had sharp 90° edges and therefore looked more gravelike than not. That still doesn't answer the ultimate question because the graves might have been exhumed later. A parishioner with a Mini-Excavator could probably be persuaded to volunteer for the effort.
Another avenue entirely would be police cadaver dogs. As there is no attendant graveyard, there is nothing to confuse the dogs, but the handler would have to be familiar with a low level of response left from a 19th century burial. And, CSI programs occasionally feature electronic sniffer devices that may be able to identify decomposed human remains, but again the time depth is an issue. A training exercise for the local forensic folks?
Perhaps the bigger question is absent some threat, why is there any real necessity to make the determination?
Lyle E. Browning, RPA
Browning & Associates, Ltd.
2240 Chartstone Drive
Midlothian, VA 23113
804-379-1666
804-357-2959 mobile
On Dec 1, 2010, at 1:55 PM, Benjamin Carter wrote:
> All,
>
> I was recently contacted by a local historian who has an interesting problem. I don't have a lot of time, but thought I would throw this problem out there and see if any of you have thoughts on quick and easy ways to deal with this issue.
>
> The story:
> A local iron works was built in the mid to late 19th century. Along with the factory the company built dorms and a church. The church still exists, but there is no cemetery officially associated with it. Indeed, many of the factory workers who attended the church (and whose funerals were held at the church) can be located via head stones in other cemeteries in the area. However, just behind the church are five depressions that are roughly the right size for a grave. The local historical society can demonstrate that there were also five individuals in the church records who are not accounted for in other cemeteries. These tend to be children and itinerant laborers with little apparent connection to the area. It sounds quite plausible to me, but I have NO experience with late 19th century cemeteries.
>
> My question: Aside from GPR, excavation, or other time intensive and expensive methods, is there a quick way to assess whether or not there are human remains in these depressions?
>
> Cheers,
> Ben
>
> --
> Ben Carter, Ph.D., RPA
> Visiting Assistant Professor of Anthropology
> Sociology and Anthropology Department
> Muhlenberg College
> 2400 Chew Street
> Allentown PA, 18104
> Phone: 484-664-3961 Fax: 484-664-3718
> [log in to unmask]
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