Native American burial ground sold to developer

The 38 acres along the western shore of Robbins Pond is a known Native American burial ground, said to contain as many as 15 unmarked graves and an abundance of tools and artifacts that date back thousands of years. It is also, as of an auction last week, headed for development.

The property's Native American significance did not slow bidding on the parcel, and in the end it went to Canton builder Thomas Duggan, who scooped up the prime waterfront for a little more than $3 million from the Full Gospel Tabernacle Church of Brockton.

Bridgewater resident Gill Solomon -- who is also known by his Native American name, Feather on the Moon -- watched from the sidelines. ''I knew about this property, but I thought with the church owning it, it would remain sacred land," said Solomon, who is a sachem, or leader, of the Massachuseuk Ponkapoag.

''Our ancestors are buried here. If this land is developed, it will destroy an ancient site."

Solomon said he and other Native Americans will watch the permit process with great interest. They expect East Bridgewater officials to require at least some exploration -- including an archeological survey -- before any development can be done.

If human bones are found -- they would most likely be on a knoll overlooking the water, Solomon said, or down along the shore -- it could at least temporarily halt work.

''Sometimes, then, the developer will say, 'I'll leave it alone, but you have to pay for the land,' but there isn't much money among Native Americans," Solomon said. ''Or they will try to move the graves. But would you want your ancestors dug up and their bones handed to you?"

While Solomon said there could be protests on the land if the situation with the developer becomes confrontational, Duggan said he plans to work with local officials as well as the Native Americans to avoid a standoff.

''There's always give and take," Duggan said. ''I think we can come up with something that will make everybody happy. If we have to set aside the land that's a burial ground, so be it."

Duggan said the fact that the site was formerly a Native American camp area ''is pretty intriguing, and it will add to the interest in the site."

Selectwoman Theresa McNulty, who has researched the property, said she turned up anecdotal evidence that a Ponkapoag chief is buried on Osceola Island, which was included in the auctioned piece. And McNulty said there is evidence a Native American princess, Pomponoho, is buried somewhere on the site as well. ''Rudimentary tools and arrowheads have been found there that date back 400 to 8,000 years," McNulty said.

''I have talked to an archeologist at the Mass. Historical Commission, and they have recorded archeological findings on the site. I'm not averse to people building in our community, but I hope this developer will work with the town to protect the history of this property."

Duggan, who builds residential subdivisions of Colonial-style homes, said he has built in Norwell, Norwood, Walpole, and Easton, and has homes going up in Canton. While he said the prime lots on the Robbins Pond property would be those along the waterfront -- an area Solomon pinpointed as a possible location of the unmarked graves -- Duggan said he is still a long way from any building. He plans to spend at least three or four months on site exploration before deciding how the property will be developed.

Steven Belcher, chairman of the Planning Board, said that if Duggan decides to carve off house lots with adequate frontage along the existing road, the board would have little review power. But if he chose to go with a subdivision plan, which would net him more house lots, the board would have full plan review power and public hearings would be held.

The Historical Commission's chairwoman, Mary Ahearn, said her panel would definitely be looking for an archeological survey, and the commission has the authority to require one. Ahearn said it is already working to get the site included in the National Register of Historic Places, although inclusion would not prevent the owner from developing it.

Brian McNiff, spokesman for the Massachusetts Historical Commission, said his panel would become involved only if the developer is using state or federal funding, licensing, or permits for the project.

The property, which extends along the west side of Robbins Pond, was owned for several decades by Evelyne Waldorf (her preferred version of the family's last name, which originally was Wolshendorf) and her father, George. According to local historian Margaret Alexander, the Waldorfs ran an amusement park there in the 1920s and 1930s. Alexander said the Waldorfs knew where the Native American burial sites were ''and they respected them."

When the amusement park closed, Evelyne converted the site to a seasonal campground. But because she often offered shelter to the homeless at the camp, Waldorf sometimes found herself at odds with health officials over sanitary conditions, Alexander said. Waldorf's combative relationship with local officials eventually caused her to change her mind about donating the site to the town's various churches, as she had originally planned, Alexander said. She instead turned it over to her own church, Full Gospel Tabernacle, which ran Christian camps there.

Alexander said church officials made it clear to Waldorf they would sell the parcel when she died. ''They said they'd sell it off because they didn't feel welcome in East Bridgewater," she said. Waldorf died in August, and church officials put the land up for auction.

Duggan said he is looking forward to researching the site and working with the town. ''That's an absolutely beautiful piece of land," he said, ''with a lot of potential."

Christine Wallgren can be reached at CLWallgren@aol.com.