Examining Cemetery Investigations At The First Presbyterian Church Of Elizabeth And First Reformed Dutch Church of New Brunswick, New Jersey: A Discussion Of Remembrance and Regulation

Summary

Unique circumstances have provided the opportunity to carefully investigate two historic New Jersey cemeteries as archaeological sites: the  First Presbyterian Church of Elizabeth (founded in 1668) and the  First Dutch Reformed Church of New Brunswick (founded in 1765).  In Elizabeth, a grave marker conservation effort involved excavations that yielded insights into the evolving cultural landscape of the property.    In New Brunswick, a monitoring program employed during new construction at the existing church exposed evidence for the changing narrative of cemeteries at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.  This paper examines archaeological data at these properties that, because of regulations protecting them, are not typically open to archaeological investigation.  Evaluation of these studies and supporting research will explain why and how these sites lost or were not given their due respect at the turn of the 20th century. This paper also explores ways regulations might be improved moving forward

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• "Spirits of the Dead": The Historical Archaeology of Cemeteries and Commemoration   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2016

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 943