Where Floridians Bury Their Dead:
An analysis of cemetery placement

I spacially analyzed cemetery placement in northeast Florida using ArcGIS. For my poster presentation on this research, I was awarded First place in the Anthropological Sciences Section of the 2009 Florida Academy of Sciences annual meeting. 

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Abstract: The selection of a location for the placement of a burial ground hinges on many factors—both physical and social. The physical aspects involve availability of unused land, soil content and vegetation coverage for simplicity of clearing and digging, and ease of access from the surrounding area to the burial location. The social factors are subtler. Different ethnic and religious groups have varying customs involving the disposal of their dead. Over time, the demographics of the population in an area can change and a specific ethnic burial ground may change into a community ground or possibly be abandoned. This paper lays out the methodology, data, and analysis of the factors involved in the placement of burial grounds in the state of Florida. An overview of the factors involved with location selection is followed by detailed analysis of the cemeteries of the counties of Duval, St. Johns, and Clay from a prominence and hydrological perspective.