Research and Projects

Thank you for your interest in the Mountain Iron cemetery project.  Hamline University is working with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Division of Lands and Minerals, to address concerns about a disused cemetery on Minnesota’s iron range.  The erosion of a nearby inactive open pit mine appears to be encroaching on the cemetery's boundaries.

The cemetery is in Saint Louis County east of the Mountain Iron city limits. It is located on School Trust Lands administered by the Department of Natural Resources, and covers a trapezoidal area of approximately 5,000 square feet immediately to the west of the unused Wacootah mine pit.

The fencing and original grave markers are gone, and the site is covered with low vegetation and scattered trees.  In 2009, local residents received permission to remove some of the vegetation and place new grave markers on some of the graves.

There is little publicly available information about the cemetery.  But it is likely that it was used between about 1890 and 1910 and appears to hold at least 18 burials.  The identities of people buried there are uncertain but could include both Native and non-Native individuals. 

What appears to be certain, however, is that the erosion of the Wacootah open pit mine immediately to the east is encroaching on the cemetery. In the late 1950s, the edge of the Wacootah mine was expanded to the west, almost reaching the eastern edge of the cemetery, as shown in the aerial photograph from 1961. Mining was discontinued in 1964, but since then, erosion has caused the edge of the mine to move further to the west, as shown in this present-day bare earth image.

It is very likely that erosion will eventually impact the cemetery.  And this could cause exposure of human remains and associated burial items on the west slope of the pit.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is working with the Hamline University Center for Anthropological Services to address this situation. The staff of the Center includes archaeologists and osteologists with extensive experience in the thorough and respectful recovery of human remains.

Hamline has proposed a three-stage approach to the situation.  

Because so little is known about the cemetery, the first stage is a preliminary investigation to gather essential information about the cemetery, and the identities of people potentially associated with it. The second stage would use this information to develop a project plan in consultation with interested parties. The third stage would be the implementation of the planned project.  At the present time, the Department of Natural Resources has not made a decision about the final form of the project.

Hamline completed the first stage of the project in the summer of 2023.

In May of 2023, Hamline staff spent approximately four hours at the cemetery, mapping and photographing surface features, and making observations about its physical condition. No ground disturbance occurred during this visit. The visit to the cemetery supported concerns that ongoing erosion of the pit edge poses a serious threat to the cemetery. One corner of the cemetery is approximately three feet from the edge of the pit, which appears to be actively eroding and is undercut in some places.

The Department of Natural Resources has recently hired Hamline University to complete the second stage of the project.  An important part of the second stage will be continuing efforts to learn more about the cemetery and people associated with it. Although there is little publicly available information about the cemetery, it is possible that individuals and families hold important knowledge. 

If you have any information about the cemetery that you would be willing to share, such as its history or names of individuals buried there, we would like to hear from you.

Please use this form to contact us, or contact us by phone at 651-523-2891.

Hamline will consult with interested parties as the project proceeds to ensure that the process is inclusive.

Thank you again for your interest in this project.