Potters field san jose

But somewhere there has to be paperwork in county records about this field. In , the Board of Supervisors ordered legal notices to clear the way for removal of graves.

That all that was forgotten — ditched, ignored, or put in the circular file — marks the last shrug toward folks who never had the money to be remembered properly. A fleeting breath, yes, but no mansion. Not then and not now. Contact Scott Herhold at sherhold mercurynews. Still, a couple of tables under a tent displayed some personal belongings to tantalize the imagination and spark a measure of compassion. They included a wedding ring, earrings, pocketknife, smoking pipe and even a set of dentures.

And oddly enough, a surgical scalpel and syringe. While the half-acre cemetery existed before the hospital was built in , officials believe most of the graves held the remains of poor patients whose families could not afford to bury them, or patients who went unclaimed by anyone.

Most were buried between and After that the cemetery disappeared from official maps and was forgotten and paved over. Once uncovered, cleaned and examined for identifying marks or belongings, the remains were sent to a laboratory at San Francisco State University for analysis, mostly for age, sex and cause of death. The majority were men from age 23 to their early 60s. A small percentage were women and infants, possibly the victims of fatal childbirth.

Bascom Ave. Full Story. Local News. Philadelphia Pennsylvania New Jersey Delaware. Weather U. Station Info. Follow Us:. Potter's Field remains, artifacts to be put on display wpvi. None of the bodies could be identified, she said.