Final Reflections

This semester has been amazing, I have learned so much ,not just from professor Rowe ,but about my community around me. I hadn’t really ever paid attention to the history around me before, I always seem to focus on the history everywhere else but here. But now I realize that I don’t have to travel far for me to find a rich and culture filled history. Collecting data at the Hidalgo public cemetery has been a great experience. I go to do hands on work with actual tools that archaeologist use on field excavations, I made new friends and got close to old ones. My professor has opened new doors for my future ,which is something I’m very excited about. I’ve also kind learned to understand life and death . The deceased buried at the cemetery all had stories ,some of them could’ve been happy or sad, but at some point of their life they must’ve had someone that loved them,because if they didn’t then they wouldn’t have had some many grave offerings. My eyes this past semester have somehow been trained to look at things differently even more than they already were before. I can now see different details in the ground , I can now tell what a grave slump looks like and am able to tell what it means , I can see the walking trails in grass that have occurred over time from students taking shortcuts. The Utrgv symposium is something I thought that I would’ve never be apart of, I never thought we would ever win a team award for it either, but we did, which was an amazing moment. That moment meant that our work was also important not only to ourselves but to other people in the public and that this project intrigues people and makes them think about the history of the community they’ve lived in all their life. This project is also a great experience for myself and my fellow students, those of us who are studying anthropology, know how expensive field schools can be , so I know that we all really appreciate the hands on work we get to do with the equipment, such as the total mapping station, which is what we used to map the cemetery that way in the future we can upload the map online and it can allow people searching for their loved ones ,see images of the headstones and know there location. Overall this semester has been an amazing experience and it has opened more doors for my future and I am very excited to see where those doors will take me.

This semester taught me a lot about doing archaeology not only out in the field with the community but the technical and digital aspect of it as well. Before taking this course I didn’t think much about archaeologist having to work with computers and different types of software for data collecting and interpretation. Hopefully in the fall we will be able to learn our way around the digital aspect of the project a little more in depth. I know eventually I will need to become adequately familiar with these computer and digital resources for any future projects.

This semester I think went fairly smooth and I believe we were able to get more done this semester. We were able to record data for most if not all the graves. Having a bigger class this semester and returning students helped move things along. Those of us returning had already experienced some glitches in uploading data and were able to assist other students. The Total Station continued to be used and setting it up seems to be the overall most difficult part of its process. Dr. Rowe has been very patient in helping us set it up week after week! Once it’s up and running it’s easy to use and take measurements. It’s been fun watching classmates bending tree branches in order for the total station and prism to line up. I personally enjoy working with the total station and prism. I didn’t master setting it up this semester but there’s always the fall to continue working on it. I’m looking forward for the fall semester to continue with this project. I intend to continue with it until I graduate from UTRGV.

Working on this project has opened my eyes to many differences in culture here in the Valley, the cemeteries here are so much more a part of the community than the cemeteries where I grew up in Indiana. Up north, cemeteries are quiet, tranquil parks with rows of similar yet simple headstones, nothing is ever handmade or decorated. Here in Edinburg, this cemetery is almost alive with decorations, every time we visit we find that family members have come and freshened up some graves, or added new decorations. I find it very comforting to know that even tho the community has lived through difficult times, they never forgot their loved ones. It was striking to me that some headstones seemed much newer than the dates of death, indicating that many families had saved up for years until they could afford a headstone. Other families never could afford commercially made headstones, but they took the time to build unique and individual graves that spoke to who the deceased was in life. One of the headstones was a stainless steel television! These personal touches are something that I never saw up north, and to me they make our local cemeteries so much more meaningful.

I watched the movie Coco during this semester, and I really found the movie valuable in explaining the significance of a lot of the symbols and beliefs in the local culture. As a person who isn’t from this area, movies like Coco help me understand why cemeteries are so important to the community. In my community, cemeteries aren’t a part of the living world, you only go there for funerals. In this area, though, cemeteries are regularly visited and interacted with. When Dia de los Muertes comes this fall, I want to see how the local community celebrates it, and how they interact with the cemetery. I think this is something that is unique to this area, and we should not only record and research it but encourage and participate in it! This is part of the beauty of public archaeology, telling the story of how a local community personalizes a well known celebration and sharing that with the world.

I’ve also come to appreciate how much superstition is still alive in our region, voodoo dolls and other evidence of superstitious activity abound in the cemetery. Meanwhile, a majority of the headstones contain religious imagery of some sort, mostly Catholic. This blend of beliefs is fascinating to me, and I am very curious about what these voodoo symbols mean to those who participate in it, and how they reconcile their beliefs with Catholicism. I hope that next semester someone researches this. If we could interview the people who are placing these items in the cemetery that would be fantastic! I think this belief system is very powerful, and it would be enlightening to know just what these beliefs are.

Over this semester, we were able to record a large number of graves, we identified a few graves missing headstones, and we were able to publicize our project in two local news stories as well as at the UTRGV Engaged Scholar Symposium. I feel like we have accomplished alot, but it has been mostly data collection. In the coming semesters other classes will begin to put our data into context, and I am so excited to see what they can find! There are so many stories just waiting to be told, and in my opinion that is the main point of why we are doing this project: to tell the stories that would otherwise have been lost. I think the plans for next semester are going to go along way to making this happen. Shifting focus from data collection to application and research is going to reveal new directions we haven’t thought of. Statistics may show us commonalities we hadn’t considered, and maybe highlight times of social unrest that haven’t been well publicized. Next semester, with a focus on interacting more with the community and producing work from the data we have gathered so far, we will really see the project come alive. So far, we are just scratching the surface of what we can do!

But the most important part of what we do is for the community, how can our project benefit the families of those interred at the cemetery we are researching? I think the best benefit we can provide is a permanent record of their loved one’s grave, because the reality is the cemetery is not permanent. The headstones made of temporary materials, or that are falling apart due to age, or that are broken by storm damage; we have taken photographs of, recorded the official details, and thus we have created a virtual record of that grave. The virtual record can be edited, added to, and shared. One day in the future, these virtual records will be all that is left of some of these graves. So publicizing our research is the most important thing we can do, simply recording this data is more than has been done in the past. Telling the stories is nice, but the family can tell the stories too. Its a side benefit, the icing on the cake. They can’t, however, make a digital record of their loved one’s grave in a way that makes it meaningful. That is where we come in, by providing a digital forum and gathering place for information that is otherwise not available. In time, family members can start to add stories to our data, in addition to the stories that we learn in the course of our research. We can provide a way for the family members to bring context to our project online, which can make our project so much more rich and valuable.

I am very happy that I got to be involved in this project, and I hope that I can continue to be involved in it! I am curious about the information we will learn, but more importantly I am proud to be a part of a project that is permanently recording a part of this community’s heritage.

Having taken this course before I was a bit hesitant about the new opportunities it would offer. Though I was nervous, Dr. Rowe provided such amazing news at the end of last semester and at the beginning of the new semester about how our project was developing. Recent developments showed we would be getting additional technology and more acknowledgement towards our project. My first semester working on this project was certainly fun, but this semester was a little more fun and exciting because the project moved more smoothly. Last semester we were still figuring out technology and constantly running through the same grave sites to redocument their data. While this semester we still encountered those troubles, it was reduced extremely, and we had more people working allowing us to move at a faster pace. With everyone working together and effectively we have been able to document so many graves at a much smoother, faster rate and that was real exciting news to hear. Another thing that was exciting was having the news people come out to the cemetery to see what we do. With the reporter came a few people to talk about their family members that were buried at the cemetery. I had no problem being on the news or included for even a second, but I decided that I would keep it low and just work on what needs to be done. As I worked on one of the graves, the two females that came with the reporter began walking up to me and questioning what the class does when we find an individuals family member, how we go about the data we find, etc. I provided the best answers I could offer, and the two females were pleased. Next thing I notice they are talking about a distant cousin that was buried just a few graves away from the grave I was working on at the time. This semester has been insanely exciting because I was able to work with equipment I did not get much time with last semester. I am now more comfortable with documenting information online and I move at a much faster pace because I have gotten the hang of the system, though I do constantly finding myself referring back to the cheat sheet we are provided. So far, my favorite piece of equipment is the Total Station. I do not have much experience working on the actual station but I have had an acceptable amount of experience with holding the Prism. In all honesty, it might be my favorite thing. In addition to using the walkie talkies. We have been working at an incredible pace that it is truly satisfying. I catch myself wondering what we will do next. There is still so much more work to be done but at the efficiency the class has been working on I have no doubt that everything will be getting put together in the next couple years. The whole project is amazing but there is only one thing that tends to make it difficult and that is the weather. Last semester, in addition to learning the equipment, the heat made it difficult to work as effectively. This semester it has been much easier to work effectively because the weather was cooler a majority of the time. On an occasion or two we were rained out near the end of class. I thought that was exciting because everyone was rushing to get the equipment covered up and put away while others were out there finishing up the grave they were working on, me being one of those people. Near the end of the semester is when the heat started coming back but with the water that is provided for us it always makes it a little easier to get work done! The cemetery is a very interesting place. When we returned to the site there was so much color and it really showed that individuals do continue to come and see their family members and place new offerings. With that came other interesting finds that some of the new teammates found when they went adventuring around the site. That is another cool feature of the project. Fresh eyes could find new things that in other words would have gone unnoticed. That brings me to my most exciting find! One day I was looking around the cemetery and I found old animal remains and it was super interesting for me because I felt like I was a detective looking at everything that was around the animal and imagining the life it lived on its final days. Unfortunately, for the semester, the class had to come to an end and with that came planning for next semester! The project finished off on a positive note. We mapped almost all the graves on our final day at the site and it was all done over the course of a year, give or take. On our final day of the semester we wrapped up with our progress throughout the semester and began to plan for the upcoming year. There are so many great and exciting things planned up ahead for the team and the community! We thought of ways to better the effectiveness of the project and how we would incorporate our new plans. Laying out the cemetery and transferring data will be a lot of work but once the data is all put together and sorted the team will be seeing great results. Unfortunately, I will not be able to see the project all the way through, but with what I was exposed to, I had so much fun and learned so much. If I am ever able to offer my time to the project, I will because with all the upcoming projects to fulfill our ultimate goal it will be super exciting and a great learning opportunity. I do not plan to spoil the tasks our team has in store, but I can confirm that it will be a wonderful (and semi-required) characteristic to reach our goal!

The Hidalgo County Public Cemetery Project lead by Dr. Sarah Rowe in order to restore dignity, awareness and identify countless unmarked graves whose records have been lost/abandoned at the Public Cemetery in Edinburg, TX formally known as Pauper Cemetery on Schunior Street, east of Expressway 83. This project began in the Fall of 2017 as a field-based Public Archaeology course where Dr. Rowe and 17 students identified and recorded hundreds of unmarked graves with the help of a forensic K9 unit from California. The project continues in the Spring of 2018 and I am fortunate enough to have been able to join in this amazing project. I missed out on the start of the project because of conflicting class times, but I was not going to miss out this opportunity again. I got to experience actual field experience right here in the city that I was born and raised in.

On my first on-site class day I was shocked to find out that the Pauper Cemetery was a less than 5-minute drive from my house. I have actually passed by this cemetery countless times on my way to school and never thought twice about it. I never knew about the public sector of the cemetery because it was on the outskirts of the property. Dr. Rowe was very enthusiastic about the projected and it was contagious because this is exciting work, discovering and identifying the lost identities of the loved ones of the people who live in this area. The work itself is thrilling on its own, and knowing that we are helping others reconnect with grandparents, great-great grandparents, etc. At about 11 A.M. Dr. Rowe instructed us on the data collecting and provided us with charts and measuring tape/rulers to help us correctly identify and measure the various types of gravestones throughout the cemetery, and sharpies to mark the recorded graves in order to avoid double recording. My first day was just grave recording but it was still a very fun because I was getting into the groove of what we were going to be doing for the rest of the semester.

The following week at the cemetery the Total Station Theodolite (an electronic/optical instrument that shoots a laser at a prism placed over the surrounding points of a grave in order to survey individual graves) was brought out and I was intrigued because this was the first time that I got to use an actual archaeological tool. Watching how the Total Station was set up and calibrated and actually recording measurements was something that I enjoyed doing because I was learning a skill that could help me in the future if I’m lucky enough to be a part of another project. Another benefit of working the Total Station was practicing teamwork and communication because for most days at the cemetery there were 2-4 students working the TS actively giving grave numbers and point locations, and letting the prism team know when it was okay to move. Admittingly there were times where there was miscommunication that resulted in redoing grave measurements, but we got better as the semester went on.

The Total Station is important but going grave to grave collecting the data is this semester focus point and it allows you to explore and get to know the area. Something that we saw a lot of while data collecting was Brujeria or witchcraft spread out throughout the cemetery. Tied up Voodoo dolls with pins in them were found near or on the grave and we were advised not to touch them for safety reasons and no one really wanted to because they’re Voodoo dolls and those are generally nasty business. The dolls would be in a variety of colors and sizes, form what I saw there were red, blue, green, and black. Whether the color of the doll meant anything is unknown to me but something I would look into. One specific run in with Brujeria that was curious to me and a few classmates was a small olive jar wrapped in a black cloth that was filled with soil, garlic cloves, Chile seeds, possibly other herbs, and two photos tied together with paper clip chains. We could all agree that this was both interesting and frightening but our curiosity was too strong but we stayed away from anything else for the remainder of the semester. Another unsettling thing were the infant graves, and there were quite a few of them, but given that some of these graves do go back to the late 19^th century, medicine unfortunately was not as advanced as it is today.

Each grave is special and important to someone somewhere so identifying them and knowing their story is crucial. Most of the graves are as I said before 100 years old and very worn out/damage to a point that we barely get a name and date of birth/death. Although there was one large grave that a fellow classmate recorded that I assisted with because it was so large. It was nearly destroyed and littered. We thought that there was no marker left to tell us who the deceased was until we turned over a slab and noticed faint inscriptions that were unreadable until we filled in the engraving with dirt, then it was crystal clear. This one was interesting because it told an actual story of the deceased, his name, when and where he was born, and when/how he died. When we read and recorded the findings we were ecstatic like when you finally solve a riddle/mystery. At the end of this semester we recorded over a thousand graves, nearly all of them. On our last class of the semester Dr. Rowe went over next semesters curriculum that involves using more of tech like Ground Penetrating Radar, 3D Modeling, drones, etc. but in the Fall the class will be splitting the work load of data cleaning/mining and cemetery work. I am looking forward to doing diving back into the work because this is valuable experience and personally fulfilling to learn about the people form my area and giving the that information back to the public.

For me Public Archaeology is a way to bring history and maybe a sense of identity to a community. I never thought I would be involved in a project like this and so far it has been an experience I won’t forget. Combining professional archaeology with the community has helped identify some graves at HCPC that had been unidentifiable due to a lack of a grave marking. Having Archaeologists engaging with the community has also helped students get a better understanding of some items encountered at HCPC. For example, we have found many religious materials that we didn’t understand their meaning. Fortunately after asking a few local friends from the area, we were able to know the meanings for some of the materials observed.

This project so far has been very inspiring and I have been enjoying being a part of something that is giving back to the community. Some families have come forward and have asked if we could find a lost relative. Having that type of goal for me is what I am looking for. I am hoping to pursue a career in forensic anthropology to be able to identity human remains and give families closure. I intend to remain active with this project for as long as possible so that I can continue gaining the experience I’ll need in the future. In this class we don’t just learn how to use the equipment and collect data; we learn how to engage with the community through the media, social media and scholarly conferences. Hopefully this fall we will be able to have some type of event with the community at HCPC as Dr. Rowe has suggested.

In the Fall 2017 semester, I participated in the Hidalgo County Public Cemetery Project through a Public Archaeology course taught by Dr. Rowe at UTRGV. Through this project, our goal was not only to collect information for a comprehensive database, but to restore dignity to a pauper cemetery that has only recently been detangled from the grasps of nature. Through these measures, we aimed to establish a connection with the community. Our hope was that the community would become interested and involved with the project.

We began the course by reading about public archaeology and its parameters as a practice. We learned about the purpose of public archaeology, which is to engage the community and to work on a project that will benefit them. There are different levels of community engagement, from data being presented by archaeologists to community members actively participating in projects themselves. Of course, there are disagreements on the degree of involvement that should be enacted by community members, with some deeming them too inexperienced to properly participate in an archaeological project. I am of the belief that so long as the community wishes to actively participate, they should be allowed to do so. Working on a project that can affect, or is part of a community’s life should include the community. Often, community members can offer insight that would otherwise be unattainable by archaeologists unless they themselves are from the same community.

After doing some preliminary reading, as well as learning how to use the totally station, and everything was properly set up with the county, we were able to finally begin work onsite. We began by numbering a modest amount of flags (about 200), which we quickly realized were not nearly enough to mark all the graves of the pauper cemetery. Nonetheless, a few of us began placing them while the rest of the class dove into data collection. The county provided us with a porch, a table, water and a fully functional restroom, which genuinely facilitated our work. The biggest obstacle had to be the weather, especially since we were at the cemetery during the hottest period of the day. Having an area to take breaks from the sun (as the cemetery does not have a lot of shade) was of great assistance. Other obstacles included a general lack of knowledge in regards to gravestone materials, a lack of consensus on the units of measurement and a lack of a stable internet connection, which often caused the loss of input data. The first can be easily corrected through a brief lesson on the different materials used for gravestones. The second was an inconsistency on our part as students, which we can easily rectify in the continuation of this project. The third, however, is a problem that rests out of our hands. An issue that developed once all the flags had been placed (more than one thousand), was that they were not placed in a very cohesive pattern which resulted in a lot of confusion when searching for specific grave numbers to recollect lost data.

During the time that we were working at the cemetery, a few community members did contact us in search of information on lost relatives that had been buried at the pauper cemetery years ago. What is interesting to note about the Hidalgo County Pauper Cemetery is that while most pauper cemeteries fell out of use in the mid-1900s, the Hidalgo County Pauper Cemetery was in use almost into the 21^st century. For this reason, the cemetery still receives many visitors which is all the more sad when considering the state of ruin it has fallen into. Unfortunately, due to the significant amount of graves still left to work on, we were unable to help most of the people who reached out to us. However, other community members did communicate with us in person while we were at the cemetery. Many were curious as to our objective, and when we explained the purpose of our project, they seemed pleased. A few even offered more in depth conversation.

At the cemetery, there were many graves that were damaged or illegible which allowed us very little opportunity for data collection. In worse situations, there were hints of a grave but no marker, or completely destroyed gravestones that could simply be overlooked as rubble. Since the county already had a suspicion that bodies had been buried without markers, two cadaver dogs and their trainers were flown in from California to inspect. I expected them to find a couple of bodies, but they found upwards of 20 unmarked graves. However, the implications of these findings are minimal, since it is nearly impossible to figure out who is buried in these unmarked graves.

As a beginning, the Fall 2017 Public Archaeology course has been immensely successful in achieving its goals. We not only collected large amounts of data and set up flags for next semester, but we were also able to establish a connection with the community. Since this has barely been the beginning of an ongoing project, the connection with the community is understandably minimal, but it provides the groundwork for a larger collaboration in the future. Fortunately, the Hidalgo County Public Cemetery Project has been much loved by many of us and most of us intend to continue working on this project in the semesters to come. There has already been talk about plans for next semester, including a Dia de los Muertos event at the cemetery where we could communicate with a larger part of the community. Events are a great way to garner community attention, and a Dia de los Muertos event would fit perfectly with what we are trying to achieve through this project, which is to establish a place that the community can be proud of when visiting and their loved ones. Hopefully in the future, all of our goals will be realized and the community will be able to hold on to something that was nearly lost to them.