Coffins found at Old City construction site

Work on construction of a PMC Property apartment building in Old City was put on hold earlier today when multiple coffins were uncovered at the site, CBS Philly first reported.

The exact number of coffins was not given at the time of the report, but there could be dozens.

As jarring as it might have been to find the graves, it’s not the first time crews have discovered bodily remains at the 218 Arch Street site. Last November, the Inquirer reported that a contractor for PMC dug up some bones and gravestones while working on the project’s underground parking.

Turns out the original site was likely the First Baptist Church Burial Ground, established in 1707 as one of the first cemeteries in the city.

Although PMC alerted various city departments about the bones, each agency said it lacked jurisdiction in this particular matter, so construction simply continued.

218 Arch Street was most recently a surface parking lot and shares the street with Little Boy’s Court, one of the oldest cobblestone streets in the city. PMC Properties is now building a 10-story, 180,000-square-foot apartment building with 116 residential units.

These new discoveries may cause some construction delays, but the project is expected to finish up in December 2017, according to a sign posted at the site.

• Coffins Discovered At Construction Site In Old City [CBS Philly]
• Old bones found—and nobody's in charge [Inquirer]