Challenging collaborative archaeology: Remote sensing of African American burials in a majority‐White, rural town

Abstract

AbstractInterest in documenting and preserving African American burial grounds is rapidly expanding across the United States of America. This work has wide support and numerous groups advocate for the creation of such projects. In majority‐White, rural communities, these projects can elicit strong reactions — positive and negative. This article discusses the challenges arising in such locations by reviewing a recent cemetery mapping and ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) survey of the Cedar Key Cemetery located on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Numerous challenges, including concentrated attempts to halt the work, emerge over the duration of the project. In Cedar Key, years of transparent engagement between community members and archaeologists results in the emergence of a diverse stakeholder community supporting the project and guaranteeing its completion. Today, this group is mobilizing to document and commemorate similar places in nearby communities.