THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, October 22, 1994 TAG: 9410220275
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MIKE MATHER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines
A construction worker clearing a path through gnarled shrubs and vines Friday unearthed a long-forgotten grave that held the remains of an apparently wealthy adult who died around the turn of the century.
``I have never seen something like this,'' said Neal Kellum, a funeral home director and an expert on old graves. The elaborate vault ``tells me this guy had reasonable finances and civility.''
The brick-and-concrete vault was discovered only a few feet underground when the blade of a bulldozer hooked the vault lid and accidentally opened the grave.
The bulldozer driver was clearing a path in a field off Holland Road so other machines could transport concrete pipes to new home sites.
``At first, I thought it was a car door or something,'' said bulldozer operator Thomas Burkett. ``And when I saw the wood, I thought it might be an old septic tank. When I got down and saw the skull, that's when I started shaking.''
The discovery about 8 a.m. brought detective Shawn Hoffman to the muddy construction site.
Hoffman took the skull to be examined. Although the remains are not apparently those of a crime victim and police aren't investigating, forensic scientists may examine the skull to determine sex and race.
Unmarked graves in the city's rural areas aren't uncommon. Dozens have been discovered during the construction of roads and subdivisions. However, the solid construction of the grave found Friday is uncommon, because ordinary citizens were usually buried without such effort.
The vault is about six inches thick, six feet long and four feet deep. It was made of bricks and concrete and was covered with a curved lid that weighs at least a ton. Specks of what appeared to be straw were mixed into the concrete.
Inside the vault, the cypress casket had almost disintigrated, leaving only a few rotted planks and some curved boards around a skeleton. Ornate metal plates and handles that were fastened to the casket's side were found in the vault.
Several carefully cut granite stones that may be grave markers were found near the vault, but none bore inscriptions. Kellum found nothing that identified the remains.
Kellum speculated that the remains may be those of a land owner who probably lived nearby. He also said that in the prickly undergrowth bordering the tomb there probably are several more graves of family members. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by GARY KNAPP
Neal Kellum, a funeral home director and an expert on old graves,
inspects objects found in an elaborate burial vault unearthed Friday
by a bulldozer driver in a field in Virginia Beach.
KEYWORDS: ABANDONED CEMETERY GRAVE by CNB