Human remains found in Sharpsburg 'may represent a Native American burial ground'

SHARPSBURG, Pa. (KDKA) -- Sharpsburg and Allegheny County authorities said utility workers discovered remains while working in the borough this week. The county medical examiner's office officially identified them as human remains, and they may have an ancient story behind them.  

Daniel DiMaio was taking out the trash when he saw some commotion on his street.

"It was shocking," DiMaio said. "I walked by them, and I heard they found bones."

Sharpsburg Police Chief Tom Stelitano and a spokesperson for Peoples Gas said workers and contractors discovered remains four-to-five feet below Short Canal Street as they were doing excavation work. They immediately stopped digging and called 911.

Stelitano said it happened Wednesday afternoon.

"Myself and another officer responded. We came across what we believed to be some bones, unsure if they were human or animal," Stelitano said.

His officers collected the bones and took them to the Allegheny County crime lab.

All day Friday, county forensic crews spent the day searching the spot for more. Stelitano said investigators did find additional bones, very small fragments. A spokesperson for the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office, the agency leading the case, confirms they are all human remains.

Who could they belong to?

"Down in that area a long time ago, all it was orchards and flat land, and you know the first settlers here were probably Seneca Indians, so we're not sure what we came across," Stelitano said. "Maybe some history."

Investigators are looking into the possibility that the site represents a Native American burial ground.

"The more we can learn about the history in Sharpsburg would be better," DiMaio said.

Becky Linsenbigler and Taylor Stein, who also witnessed the forensics crews, feel the same.

"If it's history, it's interesting," Linsenbigler said.

"It's definitely cool, and it's also a little bit of a mystery still. I'm not really sure how to process it just yet," Stein said.

Those that live there may have been taken aback at first, but now they're fascinated by what could be sitting outside their doors.

"If it's, you know, history for Gaya Suta, and they can connect it, very cool, amazing," DiMaio said.

The spokesperson for the county medical examiner's office said they're consulting anthropologists and archaeologists to help identify the bones and take steps to respect and protect the property during the investigation.

It will take at least several weeks before they release any updates.