Construction crews renovating North Dakota Gov. Kelly Armstrong’s official residence in Bismarck made a grim discovery last month: seven coffins containing human remains buried on the grounds of the governor’s mansion.
Workers were in the middle of a $2.35 million security upgrade when they hit something no one expected. Preliminary examinations identified the remains of two women, two men, two teenage boys, and a toddler. An unidentified wooden box was also recovered from the site.
The mystery kicked off on May 19, when contractors digging near the southwest corner of the property found human remains and fragments of coffin hardware. Work in that area stopped immediately, and archaeologists from the State Historical Society of North Dakota took over.
According to human remains at North Dakota governor’s mansion, the Office of Management and Budget put out a statement explaining what happened next: “Initial results identified a total of nine additional anomalies indicating potential for 10 graves in the work area.” So there may be even more coffins waiting to be found. Nothing says “security upgrade” like discovering a full cemetery in your backyard.
The land has a history that explains at least part of the puzzle. The grounds once served as Bismarck’s first community cemetery from 1873 to 1877. Officials had believed all the graves were relocated to other cemeteries back in the 1880s. Somebody clearly missed a few.
Brandon Solberg, the facilities management director for the office, told local media, “It’s going to take a while now to do the research and analysis.” That’s probably an understatement when you’re dealing with seven coffins, an unidentified wooden box, and the nagging possibility that ten graves were parked under state property for over a century without anyone noticing.
For now, work in the immediate area remains paused while researchers figure out who these people were and what comes next for the site. Share your thoughts in the comments below or on social media, because apparently even the governor’s front yard can surprise you.
