Construction at North Dakota Governor's Residence Unearths Seven Coffins From Early Settlement Era
BISMARCK — Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of seven early settlers on the grounds of the North Dakota governor's residence. According to Smithsonian Magazine's October 15 report, construction workers first discovered human remains and coffin fragments on May 19 on the southwest corner of the property, where they were working on a $2.35 million project to upgrade the security fences and driveway at the residence, which was built between 2016 and 2018 on the State Capitol grounds.
Archaeologists with the State Historical Society of North Dakota were called in and used ground-penetrating radar to explore the area, revealing more than 80 anomalies. During a two-week excavation in early September, they unearthed an empty wooden box and the remains of seven people — two women, two men, two teenage boys and one toddler. The site was established as a cemetery in 1872, when Bismarck was a small frontier community called Edwinton; most, but not all, of its graves were exhumed five years later to make way for a railroad.
Brandon Solberg, facilities management director for the North Dakota Office of Management and Budget, said researchers are now studying and documenting the remains, a process expected to continue into 2027. The state will attempt to determine basic information about the remains but has no plans to conduct DNA testing.
Sources: Smithsonian Magazine; Bismarck Tribune; North Dakota Monitor
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 北达科他州议会大厦，Bismarck（州长官邸位于园区内）。North Dakota State Capitol in Bismarck. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA
