Graduation Year

2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

M.A.

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Degree Granting Department

History

Major Professor

Philip Levy, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Davide Tanasi, Ph.D.

Committee Member

Brian Connolly, Ph.D.

Keywords

historical memory, digitization, images, memorials, narrative

Abstract

This thesis is a critical analysis of digital methods employed as part of a growing movement to identify, record, preserve, and research historic Black cemeteries. Through the joint partnership of the Black Cemetery Network (BCN) and the Institute for Digital Exploration (IDEx), a digital public mortuary archaeology approach was applied to digitally preserve Mount Carmel Cemetery in Pasco County, Florida. The digitization project resulted in the production of digital images, 3D models, and updated site maps of the cemetery and the memorials within. In all, ten gravestones in various conditions were identified, digitized, and turned into 3D models. The remains of a wooden structure and a memorial plaque were also digitized and made into 3D models. I utilize the case study of the digitization of Mount Carmel Cemetery as an entry point to consider the implications of this and anticipated future digitization projects of historic Black cemeteries as projects of historical recovery. Through a critical engagement with digitization, I read and interpret Mount Carmel Cemetery with and against the digital images of the remaining gravestones to argue that while the digital data preserves the physical site through its creation of a database of digital images and 3D models, it leaves the connected histories of the site just as vulnerable, flattening the historical complexities of the site and its significance. I argue that only by combining and contextualizing digital images with historical contexts and the stories of individuals connected with the cemetery can the digital data be made truly productive towards the work of historical recovery.

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