You'll Never Guess What's Hiding In Plain Sight Right Here In Georgia
Marisa Roman
Author
Have you ever visited the Savannah/Hilton Head Airport? Maybe you landed there after a long flight, or were taking off from that airport to new destinations. At first, it seems like your basic airport….right off Interstate 95, between Savannah and the city of Pooler, Georgia, it’s the primary commercial airport for the three-county Savannah metropolitan area. Regardless, it seems like a regular, straightforward transportation hub, doesn’t it?
Unfortunately, it’s not that basic. In fact, if ever you’re looking closely, you’ll see not one, but TWO gravestones embedded in the runway. IN THE RUNWAY.
Here’s the scoop on this insane set of graves hiding right in plain sight in Georgia. When the Savannah Airport was building an extension for Runway 10 in the 1980s, they hit a huge roadblock. It turns out that like many others, Savannah Airport was built on an old sprawling farmland, in an attempt to capitalize on the wide open space, perfect for terminals and continual expansion. Oftentimes in these situations where farmlands are purchased for commercial use, there are a few small family cemetery plots that the purchaser happily foots the bill to move at the consent of the family. That is, of course, if the family does provide consent.
If they don’t…then you’ll run into the same issue that the Savannah Airport did. Richard and Catherine Dotson, who were married for 50 years, worked hard on their farm and were adamant about spending their final resting place exactly where they both lived and loved. Since it’s illegal to transfer buried remains without the consent of family, (and since the surviving Dotsons refused to provide consent,) the airport did the next best thing—added two headstones and paved over them.
You would never know by looking at the runway that it’s actually the final resting place for four people; the Dotson couple plus John Dotson and Daniel Hueston. John and Daniel died a day apart in 1857, but there isn’t much known about who they are.
Today, some pilots and crew know about the gravestones and have even heard rumors of ghost stories involving the airport. If you take off from Runway 10, make sure to keep an eye out for an up-close look at the gravestones.
Want to see what the gravestones look like from above? Thanks to Google Maps we can show you an aerial view.
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Such a strange thing hiding in plain sight here in Georgia. Have you ever seen the gravestones? Let us know about your experience! Or perhaps you’re looking for some more unusual stuff to check out in Georgia. If so, take a look at 15 Bizarre Roadside Attractions In Georgia That Will Make Do A Double Take.
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