Clemson University has found 604 unmarked graves on its South Carolina campus. But who were they?

GREENVILLE, S.C. — They were buried more than 100 years ago, their bodies laid to rest on a steep hillside without tombstones. But these eternal resting spots were mostly forgotten to time.

Clemson University is working to find exactly who is buried in 604 unmarked graves —which undoubtedly belong to enslaved peoples, domestic workers, sharecroppers and convict laborers who lived, worked and died on the university's land in the 1800s — found in the on-campus Woodland Cemetery.

The discovery ignited a long-held, but not oft-discussed, truth about lands that once served as plantations, according to the site's lead researcher.

"Long before a university or a college campus community, this place was an African American community," university historian Paul Anderson said.

Now that the bulk of land surveying is complete, the university is working to discover who these people were, why they were forgotten and how Clemson can honor them, 100 years later.

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