After years of not much more than occasional cleanup, Chadds Ford Township is looking more deeply into the history and preservation of Archie’s Corner.
While there are a number of gravestones at the site, part of the project includes using ground penetrating radar to find unmarked graves. That work is being done by Len Strozier of Georgia. He calls himself a “cemeterian,” a word he coined because of his fascination with graveyards.
The site is at the northwest corner of Ring and Bullock roads, where Lydia Archie, known as both Mother Archie and Sister Archie, had a small church and cemetery for the African American community in the early 20th century of Chadds Ford.
Strozier said that when a body is buried without any embalming or the casket isn’t protected by a vault, there will be decomposition, and the ground above will harden, and an air cavity can develop between the remains and the ground above. And that is what the GPR detects
“What I’m able to see with that machine there is where the ground was cut, where it was dug from the surface, pulled out all the dirt, the body placed in there, dirt put back on top of it backfilled. I’m able to see all that with that machine,” he said.
And from the size of the impression, he can tell if it’s the grave of a child or an adult.
He also knows which is the head and which is the foot. He knows that from scripture in Mattheew 24:24, which reads “For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”
Theologically, he said, that the second coming would also be from east to west.
“So, Mother Archie taught what everybody else was teaching in the Christian community that we will bury people from west to east so that they will rise so they will rise to meet him in the eastern sky,” Strozier
In less than his first hour of working the site, he said he found close to 20 unmarked graves, and there was still more area to cover. He eventually found 79.
And the word “cemeterian” is one he said he copyrighted.
He chuckled, “It’s not in Webster’s Dictionary. Because I own it dictionary, I can define it. A cemeterian is someone who, when on vacation, takes their family to a new cemetery they’ve been to before because they love cemeteries.”
He continued by saying it has nothing to do with the macabre or ghosts, but it’s about heritage.
“Mother Archie’s heritage, her burial is right here where she’s walking right now,” while pointing to Mother Archie’s gravestone.
Strozier’s been doing this type of work for 19 years and has worked 400 cemeteries in 24 states, he said.
“I come here with such fascination, trying to connect that octagon building [the ruins at the site]. I want to recreate as much of the story as. I can. I’m going to find 100 more burials, I’m confident of that,” he said.
In addition to using ground penetrating radar, Strozier also uses GPS, the global positioning system, acquiring 28-38 satellites to pinpoint the exact spot of each grave to accurately map the cemetery.
His fee is coming via a $20,000 Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission grant, with the township paying a $5,000 match.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
