L.HIS 125 - The Forgotten Burial Ground: Understanding Dubuque through the Third Street Cemetery

Credits: 3

This in-depth January term study course focuses on the Third Street Cemetery, a lost burial ground in Dubuque. Located directly west of St. Raphael’s Cathedral on top of the bluff, a human bone discovered in 2007 led to a five-year salvage excavation by the Office of State Archeologist Burials Program. When the team began the project they believed that they would remove a few burials missed during the disinterment following the closure of the graveyard. Because they found 939 graves, the developer, hoping to build a condominium complex, called off the project. Through an exploration of American ideas of death and burial practices as well as contemporary conversations about balancing development with the preservation of sacred spaces, L.HIS 125 introduces students to the history of Dubuque and to vocations in the field of public history.
Prerequisite: First-Year Students Only
Co-requisite: None
General Education Classification: Not Applicable