Plan for Rink on Puritan Graves Protested

[Spider68]

Aug 2, 5:09 PM EDT

Plan for Rink on Puritan Graves Protested

By TRUDY TYNAN
Associated Press Writer

WORCESTER, Mass. (AP) -- Residents whose Puritan forebears are buried in what is now the last remaining section of Worcester's historic Common are outraged over a city plan to build a skating rink on part of the site, saying it violates a century-old promise to maintain the land with "respect and dignity."

Civic leaders envisioned the open rink as the centerpiece of a two-year, $5 million overhaul of the park that began in May. But members of the First Congregational Church asked the state Historical Commission to revoke its approval of the project after workers recently uncovered headstones.

Worcester's Common, which dates to 1669, is on the National Register of Historic Places. According to the city parks department, it was the scene of the first reading of the Declaration of Independence in New England, and militia members drilled on the Common during the Revolutionary War.

It also was the location of the Old South Meeting House, a combination church and civic center, and the town burial ground, but eventually the graveyard was covered over and in the 1880s the city seized the church's site by eminent domain.






The city pledged to maintain the parcel with "respect and dignity," and church officials argue that a skating rink would violate that agreement.

"We were taken aback," said the Rev. James R. Cote, moderator of the 140-member church. "My wife's family and other families in the congregation are descendants of people buried there."

The Common was originally about 20 acres, but only about 4 acres remain, largely the area of the graveyard and church.

At least 150 bodies were removed from the area in the 1960s during the construction of a reflecting pool.

In 1995, another body was unearthed during the construction of a bus stop, prompting the city to commission an archaeological survey of the Common.

According to the state historical commission, at least 232 bodies are still buried there, but city officials have insisted that no graves would be disturbed during the current renovation, which will include new plantings, paths, the installation of 19th-century style lighting, and removal of the reflecting pool.

"Our reading of that study, which is 1.5 inches thick, is they will dig up somebody wherever they dig on the Common," Cote said.

Mayor Timothy P. Murray said many residents support the rink project as part of the plan to revitalize the Common.

"It's not a very functional Common. There's just no green space, it's not inviting," Murray said.

Murray said any bodies found at the site could be moved to another cemetery, "showing as much respect as possible."

City Solicitor David Moore told the Telegram & Gazette of Worcester that the church relinquished control over its piece of the Common when it signed the eminent domain agreement in 1883 in exchange for $115,000.

The church's fight to save the burial ground took on new life two weeks ago, when workers uncovered three toppled gravestones.

"It proves our point," Cote said. "They don't know where the bodies are."

City officials notified the state historical commission and work on the rink has been halted to give archaeologists another opportunity to survey the area. Graves are protected under state law, said commission spokesman Brian McNiff.

Cote said many older members of the congregation were upset when church leaders did not object more during earlier renovations.

"We have been very polite," he said. "But we are now adamant. The city has trampled enough."

[Carpe Diem]

That's absolutely sad to do. I was under the impression that a site designated as an historial landmark could not be touched, but unfortunately this isn't true as was the case of the famous Toll House which was in my hometown. It was originally an inn built in 1799 and became world famous because of Ruth Wakefield, co-owner along with her husband, Kenneth baked her first batch of Toll House (chocolate chip) cookies . The interior of this restaurant was preserved by the Wakefields who eventually retired from the restaurant business. Well, guess what?????? (I don't mean to scare you). Only the sign remains! The rest of the property is occupied by "Wendy's" and "D'Angelo's". YIKES!!!

[LittleBitSk8er]

Ouch, those are both sad and disturbing stories. I do not live there, but I would think a historical site could not be changed.:??

[blades]

8-)

heeeeeyyyy!!!!....it'$ the new millinium!!!...$$$ talk$...

who need$ hi$tory when you've got money??!!

who need$ education when you've got money??!!

who need$...(fifty grand to shut up??!!...why $ure!!!...who nee...oh yeah...g'bye!...)

[blue111moon]

What the Church members aren't saying is that THEY don't know where the bodies are buried on the Common either. There are no markers, no plans and no way to tell what's under the concrete and grass.

And given the current population that now uses the Common, I suppose they prefer having their family graves used for drug deals and as toilets. Me, I'd rather have people skating over Grampa but ...

[flippet]

At least 150 bodies were removed from the area in the 1960s during the construction of a reflecting pool.

..... and [current plans include] removal of the reflecting pool.
Nice. So then, digging up those bodies was very, very worth it, because, you know, a reflecting pool lasts forever. :roll:

"It's not a very functional Common. There's just no green space, it's not inviting," Murray said.

Well, I don't live there or anything, and have no idea what the site is like, but maybe, if they want to keep it as undisturbed as possible, they should simply turn it into green space, while keeping the graves as intact as possible. It's not like other cemetaries aren't inviting, and places where people come to see history, and relax at the same time. Why not just make it into a green park, with very little in the way of permanent structures that would involve digging?

[blue111moon]

They'd have to dig up all the concrete they put down during the last renovations first.

The reason for adding the rink is that Providence, RI put one in so Worcester has to play Keep Up and do the same.

They are not known for original thinking in Wormtown.

[Stormy]

I didn't realize this was the case in the location they were planning to put the rink. But honestly, I live 5 minutes from downtown Worcester, and ITA with Blue111Moon. Anything that improves downtown is welcome, I don't care what or who they put the rink on.

[loveskating]

What the Church members aren't saying is that THEY don't know where the bodies are buried on the Common either. There are no markers, no plans and no way to tell what's under the concrete and grass.

And given the current population that now uses the Common, I suppose they prefer having their family graves used for drug deals and as toilets. Me, I'd rather have people skating over Grampa but ...


ROFL, I agree -- tend to be pragmatic like that myself! Anyway, I agree with Mark Twain (see chapters on New Orleans in "Life on the Mississippi") that there ought not to be graveyards at all...we should all be cremated.

Additionally, I don't much like cannonizing the Puritans. The only thing that distinguishes them from any other settlers is that they were among the first. Whatever needs to be learned antrhopologically about how they lived and survived can be better learned where they lived, not where their bodies lay.

Despite the fairy tales (Thanksgiving was originally declared a national holiday by Abraham Lincoln, during the Civil War, to commemorate Sherman's decisive victory over the Confederacy at Atlanta, and was not "turkey day" at all...it's meaning was changed due to the "sensitivities" of the former slaveowners of the South AFTER the Civil War) the Puritans had very little to do with what America became in the truly great hands of our founding fathers. The book, Scarlet Letter, is a HUGE broadside critique of the Puritans, as well.

I do understand when cultures who have been discriminated against, indeed, who have suffered genocide, like the Native American tribes, insist on the sacredness of their gravesites...they are trying to preserve what little of their culture remains...but that does not apply to the Puritans, to the contrary!

[icedancer2]

I didn't realize this was the case in the location they were planning to put the rink. But honestly, I live 5 minutes from downtown Worcester, and ITA with Blue111Moon. Anything that improves downtown is welcome, I don't care what or who they put the rink on.

I worked in Worcester about 15 years ago. It strikes me that the place needs whatever improvements it can get!! (Of course, this coming from a person who really really likes skating rinks!!!)

[sk8er1964]

They are not known for original thinking in Wormtown.

Off topic -- why is it called Wormtown?

[Darrell H]

This almost sounds like the prequel to Poltergiest. I think I'd rather not be buried in a place that will eventually be under the waiting line for the ladies room.

[Spider68]

Sorry, I didn't post why I posted the article....I just found it to be part of the really strange aspect of skating (is that an oxymoron?)

Anyway, not knowing the actual local politics, but if the area has indeed been allowed to become run-down, and the church leaders have been negligent of the cemetary, maybe using the land to a better use would be better...and economical!

Of coruse, I love the analogy to Poltergiest prequel...imagine the potential Halloween shows you could put on!

[Artemis]

A lot of skaters are so superstitious anyway ... imagine if this rink were built and then became the site of a big competitive event. Mind you it would give the skaters something to blame. ;)

[blue111moon]

"Wormtown" is a not-too-complementary nicname for Worcester, orginated (I think) by one of the editors of Worcester Magazine, the local alternative newspaper. It was supposed to contrast with Boston's "Beantown" designation by pointing out how low-class and non-artistic Worcester is and stuck among the music and theatre crowds. Basically it means that Worcester is pretty much a dead city where the worms crawl amid the ruins.

The rink they're talking about here isn't a building; it's just a slab set in the park, an outdoor surface that would only be used for skating during the winter months, like Boston's Frog Pond, to draw people to the Common (since there are no stores or anything else to bring people downtown). There was talk in the past about turning the reflecting pool into a skating surface during the winter but it couldn't be done because of the way it was designed. I don't think the planned rink will be close to regulation size - the Common isn't big enough - and since it's a seasonal thing, I doubt if there would be any major events held there.

To be clear, there is no "cemetary" as such on the common, just a marker stating that it was the former site of the church and a couple of salvaged headstones surrounded by a fence. The vast majority of the graves were unmarked to begin with and nobody knows what they're going to find. There was a story in the news a few years back about a landscaper who dug up a skull when trying to plant shrubbery and I know the public utilities have dug up bones while installing conduit through the area.

[Flatfoote]

Some cities always find a way to get the land they want when something "historical" is in the way. One town I lived in had a beautiful old barn and windmill that were designated historical landmarks. The city had been after the land/homeower to buy his land for ages. He flat out refused, knowing they would instantly knock down the barn to build on that site. Late one night the barn mysteriously burned to the ground.......

The Botanical Gardens my mom used to work at was built on top of a former cemetary. They were supposed to have relocated the bodies, but apparently a few were missed. It was a common occurance for one of the gardners to be out digging on the grounds, and dig up a bone of some sort. And inside the building, some very wacky things went on. In the greenhouse my mom worked (by herself), she would carefully roll up and hang up the hoses each night. Many mornings, she'd come in and the hoses were off the hooks and tossed/scattered around the floor. Her "un-kinkable" hoses often kinked/clogged up. She got to the point where she'd just go, "oh knock it off, will ya?" And the hose would unkink. Upstairs in the offices, the night security guards would walk through, making sure all the doors were closed and locked. On the next walk-through, every door would be standing open.

[3Loop3Loop]

Maybe we should forward this thread to M. Night Shymalan and he could use it as a basis for his next movie? I am a descendant of the puritans and don't think the graves should be disturbed. Then again, I've never been to Worcester either and seen this particular site.

[IgglesII]

They'd have to dig up all the concrete they put down during the last renovations first.

The reason for adding the rink is that Providence, RI put one in so Worcester has to play Keep Up and do the same.

They are not known for original thinking in Wormtown.


Of course, if this situation was reversed, and it was Providence that had unearthed bodies, the procedure here is very clear.

Construction stops. An archaeological survey is conducted. Historical records are reviewed, and the deceased are identified (as best they can).

THEN - in order to move the deceased to new graves, they need the approval of next of kin. If they don't get it - or can't be identified, or no next of kin exists - they can't be moved.

Thus, RI has small, family-plot type "historical" cemetaries dotting the landscape. There's one behind the Shell station down the street from my job, there's one inside the perimeter fence of the airport, friend of mine has one that cuts out a portion of his yard, etc.

They were just digging last week in Johnston, RI to put in a new self-storage facility. Found headstones. That contractor can kiss his project goodbye.

[blue111moon]

The Worcester officials KNOW the graves are there and supposedly church officials have a list of some of the people who was buried there. But there are no headstones, and when a bone is dug up, no one knows whose it is. The site has already been dug up multiple times. Some of the bodies were moved but no one knows exactly how many there were to begin with so they can't tell if they got them all.

I think it's a little late for the Church people to be making a fuss; according to one map at the Historical Society, their gravesite extends across a street and under a bank tower, another part is under the front steps of a Catholic church that has been there over 100 years.

[RoaringSkates]

I'd rather have people actively using this area for healthy purposes than leave it as it is. Worcester definately needs something to bring people in. It's a pretty dead town. This would just be one small thing among many that hopefully would help bring some life back to this area.

And this common is nothing special.

A rink certainly sounds more appealing than an unused reflecting pool. Can they build the rink without digging deeply - instead just disturbing the areas that have already been disturbed?

Here's info on the common:
http://www.ci.worcester.ma.us/wpr/parks/common/home.htm

Here's a picture - I hope it's a direct link:

http://www.preservationworcester.org/tour/index.html

If it's not direct, click on "virtual tour" and go through a few photos and it will come up.