Historical Archaeology at Dove Cemetery, City of Atascadero, San Luis Obispo County, California
Type of services: Archaeological testing, data recovery, and archival research
Client and contact information: Central Coast Division
735 Tank Farm Road, Suite 100
San Luis Opisbo, CA 93401
Approximate cost: $200,000
The site of Dove Cemetery (CA-SLO-1892H) is located on a grassy hill within a parcel of land proposed for development known as The Dove Creek Mixed Use Development Project, or The Villages of Dove, in the southern portion of the City of Atascadero. To bring the proposed project, which includes residential housing, commercial uses, and open space, into compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA; Public Resources Code §21000 et seq.) and the CEQA Guidelines (California Code of Regulations §15000 et seq., as amended), SRI was contracted to deal with the sensitive issues surrounding the location, recovery, and reburial of the abandoned Dove Cemetery burials.
Originally, the cemetery was associated with a historical stage stop and post office, once located northeast of the site. Although known to local historians for many years, the exact number of burials in the cemetery was unknown, even though geophysical research had been carried out prior to SRI=s involvement. Two broken headstones lying face up on the hilltop were the only evidence of those who were buried below. Beginning in January 2003, SRI was brought in to conduct historical research in hopes of finding relevant documents or photographs in local, state, and federal archives. Despite extensive research, the full extent of Dove Cemetery remained undefined, and the exact number of burials could only be confirmed through archaeological investigation.
SRI developed a testing program that included exploratory excavation, the only means left to define the extent of the site. Working from the known (an existing plinth) to the unknown, we carefully removed the top few feet of overburden mechanically, until the outlines a grave shafts were visible in the chalky white bedrock of the hill. In this way, we identified 17 grave shafts. Now in the data-recovery phase, SRI will continue to work with care and respect. Data recovery involves osteological analysis, artifact analysis, archival research, report preparation, and curation.
Dove Cemetery has challenged our abilities as historians, anthropologists, and archaeologists. SRI has risen to these challenges by mediating between the client and the public, a diverse group including living relatives of the Dove Cemetery dead, the local community, and the media; by conducting our legally mandated work with deep concern for the deceased and their families; and by maintaining a scholarly commitment to producing documents and presentations for the profession and the public. We also were able to meet the logistical challenge of expecting 2 burials but discovering more than 17. SRI will be involved in creating the memorial at the new cemetery and perhaps the on-site kiosk that will commemorate those buried in the cemetery. We will take the lead in communicating the story of Dove Cemetery through publications and presentations to the community. In this way, the long-forgotten history of an old cemetery on a grassy knoll will come alive once more.