Landing on Runway 10 at Georgia’s Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport might seem uneventful.
Until you learn it involves flying over two graves.
This bustling airport was built on what was once Dotson family farmland, where a burial site once held about 100 graves.
Resting Places on An Airport
During World War II, the airport expanded and most of the graves were relocated to Bonaventure Cemetery.
But the Dotson family resisted the calls for relocation.
The family said that Richard and Catherine Dotson would have wanted to remain on the land they had cultivated.
Today, their graves lie at the edges of Runways 10 and 28, marked with poignant inscriptions: Richard’s reads “At rest,” while Catherine’s says “Gone home to rest.”
Two other family graves—those of Daniel Hueston and John Dotson—can be found in nearby brush.
The Doston’s graves are the only graves embedded within a functioning 9,350-foot runway.
Family members can visit, with airport escorts, though leaving flowers isn’t allowed for safety reasons.
