Human remains found in Sharpsburg confirmed to belong to Native American group
SHARPSBURG, Pa. (KDKA) - A discovery in Sharpsburg will now be a story for the ages after authorities confirmed beliefs about an indigenous burial site near the water after gas crews found human remains last month.
Sources told KDKA this was a lucky find. Gas crews had trouble fitting a part into the ground, and when they took one more scoop, they found the remains.
Taylor Stein may not have realized she had a front-row seat to history, but that in fact was the case.
"History outside your front door, not every day you get to sit inside your living room and watch that happen," Stein said. "It's definitely fascinating."
On June 21, workers and contractors for Peoples Gas excavating on Short Canal Street discovered human remains four to five feet underground.
Sharpsburg police initially responded with Allegheny County forensics taking over a couple days later. After consulting anthropologists and archaeologists, the medical examiner confirmed early beliefs that the bones belong to Native Americans.
Melanie Linn Gutowski is the chair of the Sharpsburg Historical Commission.
"I think when everybody heard about it, their immediate thought was, 'Oh, it's got to be Seneca, you know, it's Guyasuta's people,'" Gutowski said.
She said according to the anthropologist from the Seneca Iroquois National Museum in Upstate New York, the remains are from an Iroquois group.
"That could be any one of five different tribal groups, including the Seneca," Gutowski said.
The anthropologist took them back to New York to study and make that determination.
However, before he left, this past week they found beads, shells, and pottery in Sharpsburg that could help with this research.
At this point, they've stopped searching for more remains, and what was found won't come back to the borough.
"If it's determined that it's appropriate for them to be interred up there on the sovereign lands, then that's what will happen, and if they need to be repatriated to another group, then that that will happen as well," Gutowski said.
Now, there's much to look forward to.
"I really hope that this will bring us closer in connection with our friends with the Seneca Nation to learn more about this discovery and also more about our Native American heritage in Sharpsburg," Gutowski said.
Folks are turning back time in the history books.
"You don't really think about what was going on, you know, 100, 200 years before you were here, so it kind of makes me want to go to the library or read more about it or something, Klein said.
It's unclear whether the remains were discovered previously. A source told KDKA what gas crews found now was in undisturbed ground, and different techniques were used when installing lines years ago.
There are tentative plans to bring the anthropologist back to town in November for some public events to talk about Sharpsburg's history.
Gutowski also hopes the borough can commemorate this spot with a plaque in the future.
A spokesperson for Peoples Gas told KDKA they're done digging on Short Canal, and only need to do some paving work.