Identifier

etd-05312005-113524

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Geography and Anthropology

Document Type

Thesis

Abstract

Members of the Randolph family, a prominent plantation family that has lived in Louisiana since the late eighteenth century, contacted a team of anthropologists from Louisiana State University to help recover thirteen individuals from St. Mary’s Cemetery in Bayou Goula, Louisiana. The cemetery had been abandoned since 1970, its graves overgrown with weeds and desecrated by vandals. Of the thirteen individuals recovered, three sets of remains did not have associated grave markers. These three were taken back to the lab and analyzed using standard forensic procedures. Documentary research on the history of the cemetery, the once associated church, and the Randolph family provided important context for excavation. This thesis presents the project in its entirety with the hope that it will provide a helpful blueprint for both anthropologists and family members who might find themselves involved in the rescue of ancestral remains from historic cemeteries.

Date

2005

Document Availability at the Time of Submission

Release the entire work immediately for access worldwide.

Committee Chair

Mary Manhein

DOI

10.31390/gradschool_theses.4204

Download

Share

COinS