The bones of what is believed to be a 1,000-year-old Native
American were unearthed Monday afternoon at a construction site on
Cochrane Road across from Anderson Lake County Park. Morgan Hill
police officers closed off a section of the road in front of the
park after 3pm when an electrical contractor excavating with a
backhoe spotted the remains and alerted police.
Morgan Hill – The bones of what is believed to be a 1,000-year-old Native American were unearthed Monday afternoon at a construction site on Cochrane Road across from Anderson Lake County Park. Morgan Hill police officers closed off a section of the road in front of the park after 3pm when an electrical contractor excavating with a backhoe spotted the remains and alerted police.
A forensic anthropologist called to the scene identified the remains as being Native American, Morgan Hill police Cmdr. David Swing said.
Part of a skull and other bones were among the remains, according to witnesses at the site.
The discovery of Native American remains occur frequently, perhaps 100 times per year across the state, California Native American Heritage Commission Executive Secretary Larry Myers said.
“We hear of more in the Santa Clara Valley and in the Los Angeles area, probably because there is more construction activity in those areas,” he said.
Myers said the first thing the commission does when it’s notified that remains have been found is to try to determine the most likely descendant and contact that person. There are tribal representatives who can help the commission make that determination, he said.
When the most likely descendant has been notified, Myers said, the site will be studied to come up with a recommendation for the property owner or developer.
“Of course, they can accept or reject the recommendation,” Myers said. “What we see a lot of times is the recommendation that they re-bury them back on the property in an area that will not be disturbed in the future, like open space, or a park.”
When the assessment is made, Myers said, there are several factors to take into consideration.
“You have to ask, is this an isolated find, or the beginning; are the remains in an area that is already recorded as a site, or an area known to be a habitation area,” he said. “That way, the developer will have a better idea of what they’re facing. If there are multiple remains, it can be very expensive for the developer, because you’re looking at a re-burial problem, a possible tourist problem, those kinds of issues.”
The forensic anthropologist explained that work on the site will continue, but not in the area around where the remains were found until a decision has been made about what to do with them, according to Swing.
The developer of the construction site is Dividend Homes. The electrical contractor working the site is Giacalone Electrical Services, Inc., of Gilroy.
Native American remains are protected by law, Swing said. It is a felony to disturb Native American historic remains, he said.
