Search for unmarked graves set to resume at site of former Camsell Hospital

Excavation work is set to resume Thursday at the site of the former Camsell Hospital, the Edmonton facility that for decades was used to treat Indigenous people with tuberculosis — and where some of those patients are believed to have died and been buried on the grounds.

The Inglewood-neighbourhood area near the hospital, located at 128th Street and 114th Avenue, has been slated for the construction of residential properties.

This summer, the developer initiated a ground-penetrating radar search; crews dug up 11 areas that were flagged but only found debris.

But only a portion of the property was searched in that first phase. Over the next few days, crews will excavate 21 anomalies detected along its eastern side.

"There have been reports and stories over the years about people that were at the Camsell that passed away being buried on-site, specifically in the southeast corner of the property," Chief Calvin Bruneau of the Papaschase First Nation said Wednesday.

Papaschase elders will again be present to observe the work, he said. If remains are found, Bruneau said next steps will require input from multiple treaty areas.

Indigenous people from across the Northwest Territories and northern Alberta were sent to what was then called the Charles Camsell Indian Hospital, a federally run hospital until 1944 when it was taken over by the province. It closed in 1996.

For decades, former patients shared accounts of people being buried at the hospital. 

There are reports of physical, mental and sexual abuse, accounts of forced sterilization, shock therapy and experiments with tuberculosis vaccines on patients without their consent

The area is part of the traditional lands of the Papaschase people, who have been fighting for years to regain recognition as an official First Nation.

Bruneau said supporting the effort to help find any possible remains is part of being a steward for the city.

"If they died there then they were just buried and without any proper respect or ceremony," he said.

"And so it's about respecting our people and our loved ones and then trying to bring closure to families."