8/1/2002
By Susan Wenner Jackson
Vandalism, development and other forces are keeping our ancestors from resting in peace.
From Texas to Virginia, the final resting places of our ancestors are being vandalized, built over, raided and desecrated. The culprits range from developers to grave robbers, and little is being done to repair the damage or stop future invasions from happening.
In Lake O' the Pines, Texas, relic hunters are digging up Caddo Indian burial sites to find prized ceramics, according to Knight Ridden The small vessels buried with the Caddos fetch hundreds to thousands of dollars, and weak laws in Texas prevent solid protection of these unmarked graves.
A similar problem happened in Hanover County, Va., where police are investigating whether the remains of Civil War soldiers were removed from their graves and stripped of valuable artifacts. The Richmond Times-Dispatch says four boxes of remains — minus such items as cloth, buttons and buckles — were found reinterred near Cold Harbor Battlefield Park.