The historical cemetery in La Ronge is located adjacent to a former residential school site. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

uncovering the past

Archaeologist believes ground penetrating radar can show true reality of residential schools

Jun 1, 2021 | 2:29 PM

A Saskatchewan archaeologist believes science can play an integral part in revealing what words cannot.

Mike Markowski co-owns a heritage consulting company based in Saskatoon that specializes in ground penetrating radar, the same technology used to uncover a mass grave of 215 children in British Columbia that was announced last week. He explained oral history and science has put a spotlight on residential schools and the true reality of what happened there.

“The first part is the oral history from the survivors, and I think the archeology using ground penetrating radar can provide the scientific part of the story to show that ‘yes, there are unmarked graves here,’” Markowski said.

Markowski’s experience with ground penetrating radar goes back to 2012, but he said his company began focusing its business approach towards cemetery management in 2015. In Saskatchewan alone, he’s mapped for than 50 cemeteries for First Nations, municipalities, church and history groups, as well as the RCMP.

In the province, most settler cemeteries date to the early 1900s and Markowski mentioned graves can be lost due to the deterioration of wooden crosses, families leaving the area, people moving markers or even forest or prairie fires. He said it was common to find unmarked graves in most rural cemeteries throughout the Prairies.

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“We’ve always been busy. Every year we get booked up with mapping cemeteries throughout the province and we’ve certainly been in talks about the residential school cemeteries,” Markowski said. “It’s going to continue to grow. It’s just people aren’t aware of the technology out there where we can find, mark and properly commemorate the unmarked graves.”

This headstone is located in the historical cemetery in La Ronge by the urban reserve. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

Ground penetrating radar being used in a cemetery. (Submitted photo/Atlheritage Services Corp.)

La Ronge resident Kandis Riese reached out to Markowski early this year about his ground penetrating radar services. She approached Air Ronge village council in March about using the technology in a historic cemetery within the municipality. Riese has since formed a committee to advance the cause further.

Riese was happy to learn of Lac La Ronge Indian Band Chief Tammy Cook-Searson pledged to use radar at another cemetery adjacent to the former Lac La Ronge All Saints Indian Residential School site in La Ronge.

“One of the things on my to do list was to approach chief and council to ask to be at a meeting to say ‘are you interested in having ground penetrating radar done,’” she said. “I gave Tammy Cook-Searson a call and asked if I can pass along the information about Mike. She was very happy to accept that information.”

Riese called the discovery of a mass grave of children in British Columbia an embarrassing part of Canadian history. She said it’s a painful part of history not many people are aware of and ground penetrating radar has proven horrific acts have occurred.

In 2018, residents came together to clean up La Ronge’s historical cemetery. A video can be viewed here.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno