DAM ENGINEERS TO MOVE 2,500 GRAVES IN AREA
Denison, Texas, February 22 - After months of research, letter writing, and personal contacts, Denison District United States Army Engineers are ready to undertake the most unusual and remified phase of the $50,000,000 Denison Dam project - the relocation of between 2,400 and 2,500 graves that must be moved to higher grounds.
It is probably that bids will be called within the next few weeks for this project and the engineers hope to have the work completed before next January 1.  First removals will be from lower elevations that will be subject to inundation when the river is closed by the coffer dam in July.
The plan provides for establishment of 18 new cemeteries near the reservoir.  Some of these will be consolidated with existing cemeteries and others will be new burial grounds.
The engineers are continuing their meticulous efforts to contact the nearest of kin of each person buried in the area.  This task attains herculean proportions when one considers the many unmarked  and long-forgotten graves in isolated areas.
The engineers estimate that approximately 35 per cent of the relatives have been contacted and permission obtained for relocation of the graves.
A few have requested that graves of their kin be left in the basin and covered by the lake.  The engineers plan to comply with  requests if the law allows.
There are 32 burial places in the area, ranging from a single grave to fairly large cemeteries.  Only about 6 are on the Texas side.


FIRST GRAVE REMOVED FROM DAM RESERVOIR
Denison, Texas, July 22 - The first of 2,499 graves in the $50,000,000 Denison Dam reservoir basin was removed Wednesday.  Graves in the immediate vicinity of the dam will be removed first.
The beginning of the coffer dam this week will overflow a number of graves near the project.  Pal Noe of Denison and L.S. Ogletree of Sherman contracted to move the graves for $41,007.
The 2,499 graves are located in 40 cemeteries.  They will be relocated in 10 government cemeteries, all located along the reservoir edge.