The Ethics of Archaeological Work in a Historical Cemetery
Author(s): Caitlin Lobl; Darlene L. Brooks Hedstrom
Year: 2020
Summary
This is a paper/report submission presented at the 2020 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.
Is it the responsibility of the archaeologist to explain ethical issues of working in a historic cemetery to those who contract them? Should the focus of the project shift to strictly above ground survey and beautification to commemorate those lives buried there? Is it better to leave the headstones, lost to time, underground until a solid plan is set in place for the revitalization of the area? When working in a low-budget environment, decisions should be made whether it is best to leave the site unexcavated until a plan for the future is made. It is the intention of this paper to explore the ethical issues that come into play when contractors have a goal in mind for a project that does not necessarily take ethics into account. The Columbia Street Cemetery serves as an ideal case study for examining ethics of public archaeology, in a low-budget and educative setting.
Cite this Record
The Ethics of Archaeological Work in a Historical Cemetery. Caitlin Lobl, Darlene L. Brooks Hedstrom. 2020 ( tDAR id: 457403)
This Resource is Part of the Following Collections
Keywords
General
Ethics
•
Historical Archaeology
Geographic Keywords
United States of America
Temporal Keywords
Late 1800's-1900's
Spatial Coverage
min long: -129.199; min lat: 24.495 ; max long: -66.973; max lat: 49.359 ;
Individual & Institutional Roles
Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology
Record Identifiers
PaperId(s): 670