Does anyone know much about the bones and tomb stone that were dug up in Kensington over the weekend? Sounds like it could be an interesting story.

If you didn't know:

http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?se...cal&id=6078394

I heard it on the news tonight. I suspect the guy died, the family buried him in the back yard, and bought him a tombstone. When they moved, they buried the tombstone, rather than dig him up.

Very bizarre, but it is Kensington. There was an empty lot on 8th and Medina st that had a headstone in it for years. God I love this city.

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"Oh, mercy mercy me
Ah things ain't what they used to be
No, no"

M.Gaye

This sounds very reasonable but to do it in 1970 sounds sorta odd.

I remember fishing on the Delaware a few years ago in the port richmond area, and there were a bunch of tumbstones along the banks of the river. I assumed a grave yard got washed away at one point, I was surprised the city just let them sit there.

If this was just a case of "the family buried him in the backyard" it would be easy to solve, not a big mystery. All you would have to do is check the property records and/or birth/death to see if a family of that same name owned that property previously.. or if not the same name, if he was related (married, etc.) to someone who did own the property.

This is the sort of thing that could probably be done in a few minutes, so it leads me to believe that is not the explanation.

As far as the headstones in the river goes... I've heard that there are headstones at the base of the ben franklin bridge, although I currently can't find any source in a simple search to confirm this. I wouldn't doubt headstones along the banks, either. I would guess that these were either replaced stones, or stones with mistakes on them that were subsequently repurposed for use in places where rocks/boulders were needed.

Cbri29, would you please supply a specific place (street name, nearest geographical point) at the Port Richmond waterfront where you viewed these tombstones. Thank you.

I remember reading about tombstones dumped in the river from a cemetery in the inky years ago. You can probably find the articles in the Inky archives at www.philly.com.

Over the decades many cemeteries have been moved out of the city limits;the stones don't always go with the remains.

I honestly don't remember, but maybe Richmond and the gas station(is this allegheney?) toward the river? I know there were some woods we walked through, and I believe the land was PECO's(i don't think you're allowed back there). There was a small bridge over a canal we started fishing on close by. Maybe someone who knows the area well might be able to piece this together.

Why so curious?

-Chris

I've heard about old tombstones down under/near the Besty Ross Bridge.

That fits with the above info re: PECO property and a canal/bridge.

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OMG Becky, look at her blog...

This explains how the grave markers found their way into the Delaware.

End of the Road-Philadelphia Graveyards

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