And the sea gave up the dead which were in it: drought exposes lost cemetery in Texas lake

Some of the discoveries have attracted interest from local historians, and looters also have scavenged for pieces of history. More than two dozen looters have been arrested at one site. “In an odd way, this drought has provided an opportunity to view and document, where appropriate, some of these finds and understand what they consist of,” said Pat Mercado-Allinger, the Texas Historical Commission’s archeological division director.

And the sea gave up the dead which were in it: drought exposes lost cemetery in Texas lake

November 23, 1011 — BLUFFTON, Texas — In a passage seemingly straight of the Book of Revelation 20:13- one of the largest drought-stricken lakes in Texas has exposed its dead. Johnny C. Parks died two days before his first birthday more than a century ago.

His grave slipped from sight along with the rest of the tiny town of Bluffton when Lake Buchanan was filled 55 years later. Now, the cracked marble tombstone engraved with the date Oct. 15, 1882, which is normally covered by 20 to 30 feet of water, has been eerily exposed as a year-long drought shrinks one of Texas’ largest lakes. Across the state, receding lakes have revealed a prehistoric skull, ancient tools, fossils and a small cemetery that appears to contain the graves of freed slaves.

“Most people in Texas probably didn’t realize what was under these lakes.” Texas finished its driest 12 months ever with an average of 8.5 inches of rain through September, nearly 13 inches below normal. Water levels in the region’s lakes, most of which were manmade, have dropped by more than a dozen feet in many cases. Tour guide Tim Mohan stands on the concrete foundation of an old cotton gin in the old town of Bluffton, Texas.

The vanishing water has revealed the long-submerged building foundations of Woodville, Okla., which was flooded in 1944 when the Red River was dammed to form Lake Texoma. A century-old church has also emerged at Falcon Lake, which straddles the Texas-Mexico border on the Rio Grande. -MSNBC