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New development often means moving old graves
by Johnny Whitfield, Wake Weekly Staff Writer
March 25, 2004
When family members buried loved ones two centuries ago, they often gathered in a clearing to say goodbye to their dearly departed. More often than not, they were burying infants or small children.
Hundreds of years later, those cemeteries dot the region's landscape. Some are well-maintained, others are long-forgotten, with only the faintest signs that a cemetery even exists. But times have changed. Such small family cemeteries are no longer the norm. New homes are being built in places formerly undisturbed, and businesses are lining up along major thoroughfares. As more land is developed, the remaining undeveloped land becomes more valuable. Although large cemeteries don't face challenges from development, smaller often-unmarked cemeteries are much more likely to be dug up and moved to another location. The town of Wake Forest is letting the public know about a host of graves off Ligon Mill Road that a developer wants to move to make way for a new subdivision. The town has published a notice of intent to move the graves over the past month. (That notice appears in the classified section of this week's edition.) The graves contain the remains of approximately 21 people whose names are apparently lost to history. Town commissioners will have to approve moving the graves at a meeting next month. Such moves have become more and more commonplace as development pressures have grown in and around Wake Forest. Randy Bright, owner of Bright Funeral Homes, says his company moves five or six graves every year. "That would have been unheard of just a few years ago," Bright said. State law allows for the disinterment and the reinterment of graves, but efforts must be made to notify family members and gain their approval before the move is made. That's what prompted town officials to notify the public of plans to move the graves off Ligon Mill Road. The graves were discovered in January by the former property owner, Marshall Hartsfield, and Daryl Cady. Cady is the Wake Forest developer who is creating the new Porto Fino subdivision on the land. They went looking for the cemetery in response to a remark made at a town planning board meeting. In that meeting, planning board member Mike Martin said he thought there was a gravesite on the property. Hartsfield said last week he didn't realize there was a cemetery on the property, but he went looking for it just to be sure. "At first we found what looked like about five graves, and then as we looked some more, we continued to find them," Hartsfield said. Some of the graves are marked with headers and footers -- small stones that mark each end of the grave. None of the graves had headstones. Hartsfield cordoned off the area with tape to be sure the gravesites would remain undisturbed until a decision on whether to move them could be made. No one has come forward with a record of just who is buried in the cemetery. But in a letter to Cady, Hartsfield mentioned a woman, Martha Gunsten, who had once told her employer that she had relatives buried on Hartsfield land off Ligon Mill Road. According to a report by Scott Seibel, a Raleigh archaeologist hired to map out the cemetery, the site on the Hartsfield property is likely associated with a 19th century home that still stands across the road from the site. "...based on informant information and the manner in which the graves are marked, the cemetery likely contains slave burials. Slave cemeteries often contain interments identified by rough flagstone markers with no inscriptions," Seibel wrote. He went on to write that most of the graves appeared to be the final resting places of children and infants. Seibel recommended that the cemetery be fenced to prevent future damage to the cemetery and to better identify it for the community. In most cases, moving graves is a formality because they are often unmarked and the identities of the people buried are unknown. Sometimes, however, such moves are less welcome. In 2001, the Holding family objected to moving the grave of Calvin Holding to make way for the Wake Forest Commons Shopping Center. Developers in that case graded around the gravesite and erected a retaining wall around it, leaving the site otherwise undisturbed. State law requires that records be kept whenever graves are moved. If the graves off Ligon Mill Road are moved, a record of the move to the Wake Forest town cemetery will be kept on file in the town clerk's office and in the Wake County Register of Deeds office. But Seibel, the archaeologist who mapped out the site, says leaving the cemetery right where it is might be the best idea of them all. "This cemetery stands as a reminder of the history of the Wake Forest area and can play a role as an important cultural focal point in the planned community," Seibel said.Last Updated On: March 25, 2004
Copyright 2004 The Wake Weekly