TULSA, Okla. — According to the City of Tulsa, Friday, the excavation and exhumation portion of the city’s second full excavation at Oaklawn Cemetery concluded.
In total, eight burials were exhumed and 32 total were found. Each of the eight exhumed burials is continuing to be examined by forensic scientists, and in the coming weeks, viable DNA samples will be sent to Utah to be further examined by Intermountain Forensics.
Each of the eight sets of remains will be kept above ground until viable DNA sets are obtained, after which time they will all be re-interred sometime in early 2023 During this excavation’s forensic analysis process so far, one of the eight burials was found with a gunshot wound to the head.
This finding, coupled with last year’s finding of another gunshot victim, brings the total number of gunshot victims from Oaklawn Cemetery to two.
Though this excavation was another significant step in the search for potential victims from the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, it has yet to be determined that burial findings are from the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre.
Since this excavation began on October 26th 32 total burials have been found, including one child-sized and one with a gunshot wound. Eight of those burials have been exhumed for further examination. The forensic analysis is the next step in this investigation.
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