Following the guidance of the State Archaeologist’s Office, this spring the University of Georgia will reinter the remains of individuals discovered during the construction of the Baldwin Hall expansion. The reburial will take place in Oconee Hill Cemetery and will be commemorated with a ceremony on March 20.

In total, 105 gravesites were identified. The remains were discovered in November 2015 during work on the expansion of Baldwin Hall, an academic building adjacent to the Old Athens Cemetery, which operated as a public cemetery throughout the 19th century. Between November 2015 and February 2016, archaeologists from Southeastern Archaeological Services Inc. and bioarchaeologists with the UGA Department of Anthropology worked to exhume the remains of individuals found in the gravesite.

Samples from 30 of the remains were sufficient to permit DNA analysis. While early onsite examination led archaeologists initially to think that the individuals were most likely of European descent, the DNA results revealed that the vast majority of the remains sufficient for analysis were of African-Americans.

Dr. Laurie Reitsema, an assistant professor in the university’s anthropology department, led a team of faculty, graduate students and undergraduates in conducting basic research of the remains discovered at the site to determine the age, sex, growth, development and other characteristics of these individuals. She will share her findings with the public in a research presentation later this spring.

The university has strictly followed the guidelines provided by the State Archaeologist’s Office throughout the process and, in keeping with that advice, will reinter the remains individually in Oconee Hill Cemetery, which is close to the original burial site.

The ceremony will be held at 3 p.m. on March 20. Speakers include the following community leaders: the Honorable Judge Steve C. Jones of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia; the Rev. Dr. Winfred M. Hope of Ebenezer Baptist Church, West; and UGA President Jere W. Morehead. Dr. Gregory S. Broughton of the UGA School of Music will provide a vocal tribute.

"We are taking the necessary steps to ensure that these men, women and children are reinterred with the dignity and respect that they deserve," said Greg Trevor, UGA executive director of media communications. "This has been our primary concern and commitment from the very first discovery at the Baldwin construction site, and we have never wavered in our resolve."

Construction of the expanded and renovated Baldwin Hall was delayed while the remains were exhumed, ultimately resuming in March 2016, although exploration and exhumation continued in some sections through the end of January 2017.