does a cemetery affect property rights?

[bugger]

Does anyone know the rules in GA surrounding an old, forgotten cemetery on private land? What if the graves are unmarked and from long forgotten white settlers (I know there are specific rules surrounding Indian graves)? I think the cemetery might appear on a few very old maps, but only on the old ones. No living kin, nobody knows about it, etc.

I know it's not exactly good karma, but would it be legal to develop the land on top of them? Is this a don't ask, don't tell kind of thing?

Also, if there is a marked gravesite, do the kin have visitation rights? What if it is unmarked? Does it matter? I wouldn't try and deny them, but I'm just curious.

Anyone know the laws in GA about how graves affect property/development rights?

Thanks.

 

[Miguel Cervantes]

See if this site or any of it's links will help;

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~gasg/

 

[WTM45]

See the planning and devlopement office of the specific county.
You might be suprised how detailed their knowledge is of existing burial areas in their county.
Never try to cover up the knowledge of a burial area. Big fines and penalties exists.

There are laws on the books to protect those properties. Development rules require various things to be done before permits are issued.

 

[Twenty five ought six]

Does anyone know the rules in GA surrounding an old, forgotten cemetery on private land? What if the graves are unmarked and from long forgotten white settlers (I know there are specific rules surrounding Indian graves)? I think the cemetery might appear on a few very old maps, but only on the old ones. Have you checked the probate court? It usually will have a record of every burial ground in the county. No living kin, nobody knows about it, etc. There are living kin somewhere. You might not know who they are or where they are, but they are there.

I know it's not exactly good karma, but would it be legal to develop the land on top of them? No. One of Athens most famous legal malpractice cases involved a title opinion that resulted in a house being built over an unmarked burial site. Is this a don't ask, don't tell kind of thing? not even close

Also, if there is a marked gravesite, do the kin have visitation rights? yes. Besides, I thought there weren't any kin. What if it is unmarked? Does it matter? no. I wouldn't try and deny them, but I'm just curious.

Anyone know the laws in GA about how graves affect property/development rights? If you want to find out how fast a development can be stopped in its tracks, turn over a grave site.

Thanks.

 

[Capt Quirk]

That is just bad mojo dude. I wouldn't if I was you.

 

[AR-Trvlr]

Would it be possible to develop the property in a way that leaves the cemetery area undeveloped? Perhaps use it as a natural area or a greenspace? In many areas you can do that and still get density credit for the space.

 

[bugger]

Thanks for the advice. I'm not trying to build anything at the moment, I'm just curious what laws are out there.

It sounds like, at the very least, I should check at the probate court to see if the sites are truly "unknown". Assuming they are listed, what are the options then? What if they are not listed?

 

[DYI hunting]

You have to provide access to the graveyard regardless of the date of the graves.

A builder was developing the property across the road from me before the economy turned sour. There is a small graveyard from the early to mid 1800's about 30 foot by 30 foot across from my driveway. The builder incorporated the graveyard into his building plan by creating a split entrance and exit drive, one on each side of the graveyard. The plan was to plant shrubbs around the graveyard to hide it some while using the entrance roads as public access. I have the plans around here somewhere.

 

[ChiefOsceola]

Our farm in Irwin County had an old family plot graveyard there from who knows when. The current house was built in 1914 on the site of the OLD house...which was long gone when the new one was built...so I assume mid 1800s on the graveyard.

Anyhow...the family of the dead folks hired some company back in the late 40s or early 50s to "move" the graves to closer to them. From what I've been told by my family members, the "moving company" took a scoop out of each grave and called it a day. For years and years you'd find bones out in the field known as the cemetary patch. My mother and a cousin (both 6 years old or so) got in big trouble for making a skeleton out of the bones they found shortly after the graves were moved. Don't see the bones anymore though...guess it's been harrowed and plowed enough to have done away with any remnants.

 

[tmelrod]

There was a court case in Rome a few years back dealing with this. To the best of my knowledge the property owner was told he could not restrict visitation in any mannor. He had to allow public access.

 

[DCHunter]

Would it be possible to develop the property in a way that leaves the cemetery area undeveloped? Perhaps use it as a natural area or a greenspace? In many areas you can do that and still get density credit for the space.

Yes, you can do that.

 

[rjcruiser]

See the planning and devlopement office of the specific county.
You might be suprised how detailed their knowledge is of existing burial areas in their county.
Never try to cover up the knowledge of a burial area. Big fines and penalties exists.

There are laws on the books to protect those properties. Development rules require various things to be done before permits are issued.

Yup...there was a development in Covington...the CVS store was being re-done and an old tombstone was found. Shut down the project for a couple of weeks while a bunch of research was done. Found out that an old tombstone engraver used to work there and it was just leftovers, no graves. Work continued, but I wonder how much $$$ over budget that old business cost CVS

 

[Backlasher82]

A developer bought some land from my aunt that contained our old family graveyard. It wasn't real big and the gravestones were small hand chiseled pieces of field stone and if there is anything at all carved on them it's just initials and the year but the years were from the 1700s.

So now, outside of Winder at the back corner of a nice subdivision is a iron fence surrounding the graveyard next what used to be the old home place.

When I was settling my Mother's estate the lawyer asked if I was related to the folks buried there and told me that we would always have access to the graveyard and it would be protected by law.

As I understand it, that will always be our property even though my aunt sold it.

 

[Slingblade]

I seem to remember several cemetaries in parking lots of malls and theatres. I do recall the Corps of Engineers shutting down the Hwy 72 bridge project across what is now Lake Russell when the work crews unearthed some pottery shards and such.

 

[CAL]

Personally,I had rather go kick in the door at the White House than to disturb a grave yard.