The City of Pensacola has confirmed the identification of at least 45 unmarked graves at Miraflores Parkand now plans to conduct further examination of the site.
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The information released Tuesday during Mayor D.C. Reeves’ weekly press conference stems from a ground penetrating radar survey conducted in November by the company, Terra Explorations, according to Adrianne Walker, historic preservation planner for the city.
“We did receive preliminary, interpretation from them, and they've identified 45 unmarked burials in the area that they surveyed,” said Walker. “With that, their recommendation is to return and survey the remaining portion of the park.”
RELATED: GPR survey suggests evidence of historic burials at Miraflores Park
Data from the initial examination of the site, funded with a $22,000 grant from the National Park Service, identified some burials although no number was given.
Walker said the GPR survey team will be returning to Pensacola sometime between now and February 23 to survey the east half of the park.
“There were unmarked burials found pretty close to the edge of the survey area," she said. "Because of that, it's in our best interest to survey the entire park to make sure that, there aren't any additional burials,” Walker stated. “And there very well could be.”
Historical documents previously uncoveredindicate the Miraflores Park site was used as a cemetery in the late 1800s. While no additional historical information has been found about the site, the city has inquired about the cost of further archival research by Terra Explorations. Also, the pursuit of a future grant for additional research is being considered.
Providing more detail from the GPR survey, Walker said the graves located thus far reflect a typical pattern for a historic burial ground.
“They're somewhat in a linear fashion. They are somewhat clustered in a space, together, which is a fairly large area,” she stated. “So it will be very interesting to see what the rest of the survey says and how we can move forward with protecting those burials.”
This exploration of a possible historic cemetery at Miraflores Park was sparked by the June 2021 discovery of human remains in the crawl space under the old Boy Scouts’ building during a cleanup at the site. UWF researchers identified the skeletal remains as belonging to two people, a man and a woman.
According to Walker, the survey area was based largely on a historic 1884 map with a fenced area where the burial ground was projected to be. Technology is confirming where the burials are concentrated.
“We did survey 16th Avenue," she explained. "We were able to close the street temporarily to do that. No unmarked burials were found within the street city right of way. There were also no burials indicated at the playground area, so we're able to sort of clear that area. So they are concentrated away from those parts.”
While the burials appear to be concentrated within the city, Mayor Reeves said revealing exactly where they’re located isn’t likely.
“There's some statutory protection, in those types of things. Obviously, that's very sensitive information,” said Reeves. “So on one hand, marking it off would be a double-edged sword at this point. So, we'll do the best we can to navigate that.”
Reeves confirmed plans to continue with a $70,000 renovation of the Boy Scouts’ building at the site. But, whether and how it will figure into the interpretation of the burial ground has yet to be determined.
“It would be fitting and understandable, I would think that as we figure out how to best commemorate this and honor the people who are here, the families that have been affected, that the building, the structure that's already there, may play some role in that,” he said. “What that role is remains to be seen.”
How the building might be used likely will be part of the discussions of the Miraflores Burial Ground Study Community Advisory Group appointed by the mayor last year.
The panel is set to reconvene in April or May after city officials receive the results of the GPR survey to be conducted this month.
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