Visual inspection and ground penetrating radar investigation of the historical Pulaski County Poor Farm Cemetery

This thesis is a comprehensive summary of the geotechnical investigation of the Historical Pulaski County Poor Farm Cemetery, southeast Waynesville, Missouri. This research demonstrates that unmarked graves in an abandoned historical cemetery can be located using visual site inspection and ground penetrating radar techniques. During the course of these investigations, multiple visual site inspections of Pulaski County Poor Farm Cemetery were conducted and ground penetrating radar data were acquired. Based on the visual site inspections and the interpretation of ground penetrating radar data, a total of one-hundred and fifty-one (151) graves were identified; eighty-seven (87) of the graves were mapped using visual site inspection techniques; sixty-four fifty (64) were identified based on the analysis of the ground penetrating radar data. A report was submitted to the Pulaski County Historical Society, recommending that markers (wooden crosses) be placed on each identified grave. The visual site inspections and ground penetrating radar investigation were successful and proved to be useful methods for detecting abandoned graves --Abstract, page iii

Trends in Grave Marker Attributes in Greenwood Cemetery: Orlando, Florida

Grave markers represent a significant amount of highly important information related to the cultural patterns of a society, as well as how these patterns have changed over time. Although, cemetery studies are popular in other regions of the United States, few studies regarding grave marker attributes have been conducted in Florida. The purpose of this research was to analyze and interpret temporal and demographic changes in grave marker attributes in Greenwood Cemetery in Orlando, Florida. Another aspect of this research focused on the possible correlation between the age and inferred sex of the deceased individual in relation to the type of epitaph and iconography chosen to represent them in their mortuary context. Data was collected from 925 headstones within Greenwood Cemetery; these headstones further represent 1,102 individuals. Attributes analyzed include marker material, marker type, iconographic images, epitaph, memorial photographs, footstones and curbs. These attributes will be analyzed and compared to trends noted within a similar study conducted by Meyers and Schultz (2016), to allow for better interpretation of trends in grave marker attributes across a range of Florida cemeteries. Results indicate multiple trends. The popularity of marble headstones decreased greatly from 51% in Pre-1900 to only 8% from 2000 to 2017. Furthermore, the prevalence of epitaph and iconography categories vary greatly on both a temporal and demographic basis. Male infants are more likely than any other demographic group to be represented by a genealogical epitaph, at 41% representation. Ultimately, these trends illustrate important aspects of cultural changes related to mortuary practice and individual mortuary contexts within Orlando, Florida

Geophysical Survey Of Greenwood Cemetery, Orlando, Florida

Advances in geophysical and remote sensing technology, specifically with ground penetrating radar (GPR) and geographic information systems (GIS), have led to increased use for archaeological research within cemeteries. Because of its non-invasive manner and high resolution of subsurface anomalies, GPR is ideal for surveying areas with marked or unmarked graves within cemeteries. Using a GIS assists cemetery research by facilitating integration of datasets and projection of spatial data. What has not been attempted to this point is systematic attempting to correlate detection rates of marked graves using a GPR with the time frame of the grave while incorporating the data within a GIS. This research project is the first to correlate rates of detection with a GPR and the age of marked graves with the data integrated into a GIS platform. Greenwood Cemetery, located in downtown Orlando, FL, was chosen for the study. A total of 1738 graves (ranging in date from 1883-2008) were surveyed with a GPR and then paired with probe data to address whether there is a correlation between rates of detection and age of the surveyed grave. Further, the correlation between the rates of geophysical detection to an independent verification by a T-bar probe and the relationship between the depth and age of the grave by decade were examined. Finally, the problem of collating the relevant survey data was addressed by using a GIS for data integration. The results of the geophysical survey show a correlation between ages of graves and rates of detection. Older graves were detected less with a GPR compared to higher detection rates of more recent graves. The results also support the utility of pairing GPR with probe data for independent verification of findings but show no relationship between ages of grave and depth of burial. Finally, the integration of the survey data to a GIS helps to address the issue of data storage and management, the accuracy of the spatial data, and the ability of the data to be viewed and queried in meaningful ways

Practical Use of Ground Penetrating Radar: A Survey of Coastal Historic Cemeteries in Brevard County, Florida

Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) research conducted in coastal environments is one area that is lacking in archaeology. Surveys conducted in this type of environment afford the opportunity to evaluate the practical use GPR under field conditions. Coastal environments are effective for this evaluation because they offer a host of conditions that GPR surveys do not normally encounter at one time. The relationship of the land to the coast, sub-surface conditions and reliable survey areas create a perfect storm to test how practical the use of GPR is in coastal environments. This research is a study of homestead cemeteries situated within the boundaries of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), using GPR. The research has three main goals. The first is to utilize GPR to identify if there are any unknown burials at CCAFS. The second is to test the practical effectiveness of GPR in coastal environments where high water table, geology and saline conditions can limit the capability of the technique to resolve subsurface features. The third is to correlate data from the GPR survey with ethnographic information to enhance the protection and maintenance with what is already available for the cemeteries. Research methods include field-based geophysical data collection in addition to archival and ethnographic historic research. The field component, to which this research pertains, entailed an on-site GPR survey at the nine sites on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. This was followed by analysis of the information from the survey using standard processing software. Subsequently, a thorough archival search was completed to link historic and ethnographic information with the archaeological data obtained on the cemeteries. The final result of this research was a report that provides a detailed description of the results of the GPR survey of the cemeteries at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

Determining geophysical responses from burials in graveyards and cemeteries

Graveyards and cemeteries around the world are increasingly designated as full. Therefore, there is a requirement to identify vacant spaces for new burials or to identify existing ones to exhume and then reinter if necessary. Geophysical methods offer a potentially noninvasive target detection solution; however, there has been limited research to identify optimal geophysical detection methods against burial age. We have collected multifrequency (225–900 MHz) ground-penetrating radar (GPR), electrical resistivity, and magnetic susceptibility surface data over known graves with different burial ages and soil types in three UK church graveyards. Results indicate that progressively older burials are more difficult to detect, but this decrease is not linear and is site specific. Medium- to high-frequency GPR and magnetic susceptibility was optimal in clay-rich soils, medium- to high-frequency GPR and electrical resistivity in sandy soils, and electrical resistivity and low-frequency GPR in coarse sand and pebbly soils, respectively. A multigeophysical technique approach should be used by survey practitioners where grave locations are not known to maximize target detection success. Grave soil and grave cuts are important grave position indicators. Grave headstones were not always located where burials were located. We have determined the value of these techniques in grave detection and could potentially date burials from their geophysical responses

Washington Park Cemetery: The History and Legacies of a Sacred Space

Washington Park Cemetery (WPC) is an historically African American cemetery that has struggled to endure countless years of mistreatment and negligence. It is important to identify not only the cemetery itself as sacred, but also the legacies and stories of those who are laid to rest in the space. Provided is a comprehensive history of the once prominent African American cemetery that examines its origins, various controversies, and current physical state. Since the history of this cemetery has never been collected and compiled into a comprehensive document, this research serves as a historical tool that allows individuals to learn about the triumphs and hardships African Americans have experienced in life and death at WPC

Community-based mortuary archaeology on Sapelo Island, Georgia

“We can’t swing a shovel without waking someone up.” This quote from a Geechee resident of Sapelo Island, Georgia expresses her distress about an ongoing problem at Sapelo’s Behavior Cemetery: the presence of unmarked graves and disturbances to them from recently dug graves. It also provided the impetus for a communitydriven program of mortuary archaeological research focusing on (1) discovering the spatial and temporal parameters of a 19th century slave site within the Cemetery parcel; (2) recording all extant grave markers in the cemetery and making this information accessible; and (3) identifying the presence of unmarked graves through the application of GPR in order to clear areas for future burials. This paper highlights the mutually beneficial nature of a public partnership with archaeologists that directly addresses social and religious priorities of contemporary Gullah-Geechee peoples while simultaneously answering basic questions concerning antebellum Gullah-Geechee life.https://scholar.utc.edu/archaeology-reports/1010/thumbnail.jp

The utility of geophysical techniques to image the shallow subsurface in karst areas in Missouri

This dissertation is composed of three papers, which are focused on the utility of geophysical techniques to imaging the shallow subsurface in karst areas in Missouri. In the first paper, ground penetrating radar (GPR) and time domain electromagnetic metal detector (TDEM-MD) methods were effectively deployed in an investigation of the cemetery with the intent of locating unmarked graves. The outcome of this study is to expand the knowledge of GPR and TDEM-MD methods, to locate unmarked graves in cemeteries. The study concluded that the GPR method is superior than TDEM-MD to locate buried caskets in cemetery investigations. In the second paper, optimum field parameters of multi-channel analysis of surface waves (MASW) method were investigated in karst terrain and constrained with electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) data interpretation. Determinations were made based on the comparative analysis of MASW and ERT data results. It is concluded that the use of MASW method in karst terrain with smaller array provides good quality data. In the third paper, ERT and MASW methods were effectively used to map the bedrock of study area by using shear wave velocity and resistivity values. It was observed that the bedrock in some study areas was difficult to recognize, because of the dry soils or moist soils were intact with bedrock. The results of this study indicate that ERT and MASW methods are suitable for mapping bedrock in a karst environment --Abstract, page iv

HISTORIC BURNHAM CEMETERY (BURNS 8BR85): DOCUMENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF A THREATENED ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITE AT CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, FL

This document is a student report containing the methods and results of surveys of the Burnham Cemetery (8BR2352) Site. It contains data on missing graves collected through metal detectors, soil probing, thermal imaging. It aims to reanalyze previously collected data througth GPR