Dubuque's Forgotten Cemetery

"This pivotal book unravels much of the mystery behind a forgotten historic cemetery in Iowa's oldest community. Well researched, insightful, sensitive, and with an engaging narrative, it is a work that deserves to be read by anyone interested in history, archaeology, and the evolution of cemeteries in our society."--Michael D. Gibson, Director, Loras College Center for Dubuque History "The fascinating story of the cemetery a community forgot and the project that encountered it a century later and tried to understand why. In the process, a mini-social history of nineteenth-century death and dying in mid-America emerges alongside reflections on who owns the past. An Iowa must-read!"--Lynn M. Alex, author, Iowa's Archaeological Past "Given the large number of old American cemeteries that have been neglected or abandoned, Dubuque's Forgotten Cemetery will become a model text for future archaeologists confronted with the task of locating graves and removing remains. And it is a remarkable historical story in and of itself."--Marilyn Yalom, author, The American Resting Place: Four Hundred Years of Cemeteries and Burial Grounds

Robin M. Lillie has worked as skeletal biologist for the University of Iowa Office of the State Archaeologist Burials Program since 1989. Her primary responsibilities are the analysis of prehistoric human skeletal remains and assisting the Burials Program Director with the protection of Iowa's ancient burials. Her interest in human skeletal remains began in graduate school, when she had the opportunity to work on forensic cases with her thesis professor. She served as project manager and on-site director for the excavations at the Third Street Cemetery in Dubuque, Iowa, and directed all laboratory analysis for the project. Jennifer E. Mack has been working in the field of archaeology for more than fifteen years. She has participated in excavations across the United States, as well as in Ireland, Germany, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. Her lifelong interest in burial grounds began with her childhood explorations of cemeteries like St. Michael's and St. John's in her hometown of Pensacola, Florida. Though she is happy digging any kind of site, she specializes in excavating and researching historic American graveyards. Human osteology is her other vocation. While at the University of Iowa, she analyzed human remains from Bolores, a Neolithic rock-cut tomb in Portugal, as well as the materials from the Third Street Cemetery.