Boschong Subscribers, Here is an interesting article that I want to share. John Landes came from York County, Pennsylvania and we know that the Bushongs married in to this family. ----------------------------- The News Virginian Sunday, 5 December 2010 WEYERS CAVE -- The sloping pasture land near Weyers Cave in northern _Augusta County_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/provinceorstate/tags/augusta-county/ ) contains centuries-old family mysteries that could be fully explained by a technology developed during the Vietnam War. On Saturday, _James Madison University_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/organization/tags/james-madison-university/) _geophysics_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/technology/tags/geophysics/) student _Tim Charlton_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/tim-charlton/) spent several hours using a _radar device_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/industryterm/tags/radar-device/) mounted on wheels, resembling a lawnmower, to look for graves in the _Landes Cemetery_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/facility/tags/landes-cemetery/) . Many of the graves from the 1800s have been submerged under ground by decades of erosion and runoff. Headstones were also moved or broken by cattle on the farm amid which the cemetery sits. Descendants of _John Landes_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/john-landes/) rediscovered the site, inundated with three feet of weeds, based on a picture on a _family web site_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/industryterm/tags/family-web-site/) . Relatives and researchers have visited often, but Saturday's effort brought a newer technology to the historic study. Descendants want to reestablish the cemetery headstones in proper locations, determine the number of burials and construct a fence. The _JMU_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/organization/tags/james-madison-universi ty/) _radar device_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/industryterm/tags/radar-device/) sent waves penetrating into the ground. Data feed back into a computer atop of the device. _Anna Courtier_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/anna-courtier/) , a professor of _geophysics_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/technology/tags/geophysics/) at _JMU_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/organization/tags/james-madison-university/) , said the data collected Saturday will be analyzed over the coming months to determine how many graves are underground. _Courtier_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/anna-courtier/) said _the ground radar technology_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/technology/tags/ground-radar-technology/) was first used in the Vietnam War to look for tunnels. “We will see the depth,’’ said _Courtier_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/anna-courtier/) , who said the university's _lab software_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/industryterm/tags/lab-software/) will also offer color coding that could indicate grave headstones. Kim Garrison of _Arlington_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/city/tags/arlington/) is one of the descendants of _John Landes_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/john-landes/) , the first person buried in the cemetery in 1819. Her research has shown that _Landes_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/john-landes/) was a Mennonite who did not believe in bearing arms. She and her first cousin, _Marta Hudson_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/marta-hudson/) , began looking for the cemetery in 2007. Working through the _Massanutten Chapter_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/organization/tags/massanutten-chapter/) of the Archaeological Society of _Virginia_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/provinceorstate/tags/virginia/) , Garrison came in touch with _JMU_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/organization/tags/james-madison-university/) _archaeology and geography professor_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/position/tags/archaeology-and-geography-professor/) _Carole Nash_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/carole-nash/) . The _Landes Cemetery_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/facility/tags/landes-cemetery/) is one of hundreds small family cemeteries in the area, _Nash_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/carole-nash/) said. Many burials happened in the middle of the 1800s and continued until the early 1900s. _Nash_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/carole-nash/) , whose students have visited the site a number of times, said at least five people died and were buried in the cemetery in 1849 and 1850. She said the cause could have been a catastrophic illness. On Saturday, _Nash_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/carole-nash/) and her students were augmenting the work of _Courtier_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/anna-courtier/) and _Charlton_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/tim-charlton/) by using _GPS_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/technology/tags/gps/) and surveying equipment to map the site. The use of surface methods by _Nash_ (http://www2.newsvirginian.com/topics/types/person/tags/carole-nash/) and her students can ultimately be matched with the radar data. “That's the beauty of working across the disciplines,’’ she said. Garrison said she and other descendants are eager to learn more. “Of course we want to learn the total number of burials,’’ she said. ------------------------- Copied and Submitted by Gloria Bushong