Old bones

Whose bodies are buried beneath the restaurant at Isaiah Tubbs Resort on West Lake? This question has been a mystery since the remains of a nine individuals were discovered over a decade ago underneath the corner of the restaurant now located on the site. The site was reported to the Registrar of the Cemeteries Act (Revised).

The Registrar, Michael D’Mello, has determined through archeological examination that this site was an intentional burial site of people of Euro-Canadian descent. It appears to have been used in the early part of the 19th century.

It seems likely that site was used by a single family, but D’Mello says there is no way of knowing for sure. In about a month’s time D’Mello will decide whether to declare the site as an “Unapproved Cemetery.” If that happens the landowner can seek to disinter the remains and bury them in regulation cemetery.

Before D’Mello can do this, however, he is required to provide two public notices (published in the Picton Gazette on Dec. 16 and 23) and give potential descendants an opportunity to step forward and act as representatives of the individuals buried on the Isaiah Tubbs property at the corner between the beach and the causeway road.

But why only two weeks to respond? And why give notice during the holidays?

For some, these questions just added more intrigue to a story of bodies buried under a restaurant. D’Mello says it is just standard practice.

“This process has been in place since 1992,” said D’Mello. “Besides, the two weeks is not carved in stone. If someone contacted me up until the day I prepare the declaration and said I’m a descendent of these people and I have documentation to support this claim—I would accept it.

“Usually there is something driving the schedule—a development or something going on at the site—which means the time period can’t be endless. Nine times out of ten the time line is sufficient. We’ve never had anyone come after the fact to say ‘I am a descendent and I didn’t know anything about this and now I want to be a representative’. It has never happened.”

The property was granted to James Blakely in 1808. But it would change hands many times over the next 90 years. But for more than 60 years the Tubbs family was owned all or part of the lot.

John Moore has compiled a very good history of Sheba’s Island and surrounding area as well as a brief history of the families who lived here. It can be downloaded here.

He also compiled a list of the landowners taken from the land registry that can be downloaded as a spreadsheet here.

Fred Weeks, the owner of the property, was unavailable for comment on this story.

If someone or several people are found to have ancestral links to the those buried on the site, they can earn standing as a representative in determining what happens to these remains. Typically the landowner will want to move the remains to avoid subjecting the property to rigid regulations governing cemeteries.

Before the landowner can move the remains they must come to a disposition agreement with the representative. If an agreement can’t be reached through negotiation, the landowner and representative must submit to an arbitration process to resolve the impasse.

If you think you know who is buried under the restaurant at Isaiah Tubbs and you want a say over the disposition of these remains you are invited to contact Michael D’Mello at 416-326-8393.