Bones Found at School Contain Deep Local History
A construction crew in Milwaukee made a surprising discovery while doing some renovation at a local school.
According to The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, multiple bones were found during construction at Maryland Avenue Montessori School. The location sits on what was once the city's East Side Potter's Field designated for the burial of poor, unclaimed, and unknown people. It was Milwaukee's first-ever potter's field, according to Wisconsin Historical Society assistant director of strategic communications Colleen Lies, and was used through the mid-1800s.
A report from the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner detailed what they found after going down into the three-foot-deep excavation site. Investigators noticed some bones sticking out of the dirt on one of the side walls, and when they brushed some of the dirt away, they uncovered a "large amount" of bones.
"[We] confirmed that all construction was stopped for further coordination with everyone involved," Lies said. "UW-Milwaukee Cultural Resource Management has temporary care of the remains and will be completing archaeology and analysis work for the burials uncovered during construction."
The bones likely have some connection to a local cholera outbreak dating back more than 160 years. A 1951 Milwaukee Journal article states that the potter's field was the final resting place for many of those who died in Milwaukee's cholera outbreak in 1849 and 1850, which is believed to have killed nearly 700 of the city's 20,000 residents at the time.
It's not the first time human remains have been found here. Bones were first found at the site during construction of the school in 1887 and again during excavation for new construction in 1951. And as recently as 2021, some bones were discovered during excavation to fix a basement issue at the school.
While cholera is often associated with 19th century life, it still remains a prevalent problem today. In fact, according to the World Health Organization, we're currently in a cholera pandemic with rising numbers since 2021.