Faces Turned Away from Heaven: A Strange Case of Deviant Burial in Antebellum Ohio
Oct. 29 2022
Ohio History Center 800 East 17th Avenue, Columbus, OH, USA Open in Google Map
2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Adult - $16 Senior (60+) - $14 Student (w/ ID) - $14 Child (3-12) - $10 Child (3 & under) - Free Ohio History Connection member - Free

Included with museum admission.

In 2010, the cultural resource management firm Gray & Pape made an unusual discovery: while excavating the former Episcopal Burying Ground (1818-1858) in Washington Park in Cincinnati, they uncovered the remains of a small child, buried face-down with a dozen, long, iron nails driven through the sides of her coffin. What was the purpose of these strange burial rituals? Where the people who buried this child afraid of her, or were they afraid for her? 

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Dr. Katherine Ranum recently earned her Ph.D. in history from the University of Cincinnati. She lectures on histories of religion, disability, gender, and death at both the University of Cincinnati and Xavier University. 

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