I received the following information from Martha Free of Duke Energy regarding my recent inquiry whether graves were moved when Lake Norman and Mountain Island Lake were created. Donna J. Johnson Charlotte, Mecklenburg Co., North Carolina, USA my url: <http://www.geocities.com/heartland/hills/1174> > Lake Norman was the first > of the Catawba-Wateree Project impoundments for which cemeteries were > relocated. Before 1959, the Federal Power Commission (now the Federal Energy > Regulatory Commission) did not require cemetery relocations for impoundments for > electrical generating facilities on navigable waters. For this reason, we have > no cemetery records for Mountain Island Lake, which was constructed during the > period circa 1920-1923. > > For the Cowans Ford/Lake Norman project (1959-1963), agents, under the aegis of > Duke Power Company's Real Estate Department, surveyed all known cemeteries in > the impoundment area. These surveys recorded cemetery grave marker > information; photographs were taken of the original grave sites. Duke then > disinterred and relocated the remains to new sites, usually at area churches. > (The records note the relocation site for each cemetery.) > > The Duke Energy Archives preserves these cemetery records, which are > electronically indexed by individual names. These records are available for use > by members of the public within the policies of the Duke Energy Archives. > Researchers may call the Corporate Archivist, Dennis R. Lawson at 704.382.0086 > to see if records exist for individuals for whom they are seeking information. > Researchers may also visit the Archives by appointment to use the original > records. > > The volume of these records precludes, I would think, their being posted on a > web site. Privacy issues may also be involved. Nevertheless, if the > Corporation decided the public would best be served by such a web site, I would > not object. > > Genealogists might also be interested to know that the Duke Energy Archives has > original land records dating to 1788 for some properties acquired along the > Catawba River, particularly in the Mountain Island Lake area. > > Martha Free > Customer Response Team