Data collected Saturday during ground-penetrating radar (GPR) scans at 106 Coming St. will be processed within two weeks to inform the College of Charleston of what’s in the ground where the college wants to build a new dormitory, a college scientist said.
Dr. Scott Harris, the college’s associate professor of geology and environmental geo-sciences, towed a low-power GPR scanner behind a pickup truck over the asphalt and graveled parking lots that surround a building on the site that was once the headquarters of YWCA of Greater Charleston.
The college’s plan to construct a dorm on the site to house 1,000 students has raised some community concerns because the site is a former 18th-century burial ground where thousands of poor Whites, orphaned children and enslaved people are believed to be buried.
In response to the concern, the college formed a Community Engagement Council (CEC) that meets regularly with college officials. Three CEC members observed the GPR scanning on Saturday
Previous GPR testing done before the college purchased the property was inconclusive on whether human remains are in the ground, the college has said.
On Saturday, Harris said the three-dimensional scans can reveal objects in the soil at a depth of about seven feet, but it will not show human remains. The scans could detect grave shafts, if the soil conditions are good, he added. A grave shaft is the hole that is dug for a burial.
The results of the scans can guide archaeologists during future examinations of the site, said Harris, who also teaches archaeology.
Previous City Paper coverage
- 2/5/26: Burial site controversy continues for CofC dorm site
- 12/18/25: Native American group eyeing CofC dorm project
- 12/5/25:CofC, neighbors roiled in controversy over proposed dorm
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