Century Old Human Remains Unearthed Outside South Bronx High School

Construction workers just outside of the South Bronx Educational Complex (the former South Bronx High School) recently uncovered human bones and a coffin nail believed to be over a 100 years old.

Bensonia Cemetery in 1898/Image Via New York Public Library Digital Collection

According to NYCCemetery, long before South Bronx High School was constructed in 1921, the land it stands on was part of the old Bensonia Cemetery which was founded in 1853 when the area was part of the Town of Morrisania in what was then Westchester County.

Map of the old town of Morrisania, villages of Melrose and Woodstock showing Bensonia Cemetery

By 1868, the cemetery was closed to burials and as New York City grew northward after annexing this part of The Bronx in 1874, more and more sections of Bensonia Cemetery were taken over.

In 1908, the city officially took over what remained of the cemetery and transferred the remaining graves to Woodlawn Cemetery.

South Bronx High School (now South Bronx Educational Complex which houses several charter schools) was built in 1921 on what used to be the Bensonia Cemetery.

But it seems not everyone made it as the discovery clearly indicates.

Check out the clip from News 12 The Bronx!

Ed García Conde

Ed García Conde is a life-long Bronxite who spends his time documenting the people, places, and things that make the borough a special place in the hopes of dispelling the negative stereotypes associated with The Bronx. His writings are often cited by mainstream media and is often consulted for his expertise on the borough's rich history.