RIDGEFIELD, Conn. (AP) — Human skeletal remains possibly belonging to Revolutionary War soldiers have been discovered under an 18th-century house being renovated in Connecticut, according to a published report.
The Connecticut Office of State Archaeology was notified by the medical examiner’s office of bones found under the basement of the Ridgefield home onDec. 2, The News-Times of Danbury reported Wednesday.
Subsequent excavations by state archaeologist Nicholas Bellantoni yielded two more skeletons.
All three were “robust adult men lying in an east-west orientation in ground that appears to be haphazardly dug,” Bellantoni said.
The bone size indicates they were probably men, he said. One of the other reasons Bellantoni and his team believe the bones belong to Revolutionary War soldiers is that they found five buttons. No weapons were found.
The town is the site of the Battle of Ridgefield in April 1777.
If confirmed, the discovery would be the first time that Revolutionary War-era soldiers from the field of battle have been recovered in Connecticut, he said.
The original house was built around 1790, according to Sharon Dunphy, president of the the Ridgefield Historical Society.
Several additions were made to the home over the years, one of which was built over the burial site.