Folklore surrounding an abandoned cemetery located in Johnson County, Arkansas (a part of the Louisiana Purchase) suggested that it was used by early settlers. Historical records were combined with several dating techniques to determine the approximate time periods that Cedar Grove Cemetery was established and abandoned. Cores extracted from trees located adjacent to or on graves provided evidence that the cemetery was abandoned in the 1920s. These results coincide with the last burial event in 1922. The approximate age of undated gravesites was determined using lichenometry. A lichen growth rate of 0.0685 cm/year was determined for lichens present on two gravestones with known dates. This growth rate was then applied to the undated graves to establish their approximate ages. Death dates from historical records of individuals buried in the cemetery matched the dates established by the lichen growth rate. Our results show that many of the unmarked graves date prior to the first documented private ownership of the land. The results of this study support local folklore passed down over several generations about the origin of the cemetery.

中文翻译：

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使用地衣计量学，树木年代学和历史数据来确定阿肯色州北部遗弃公墓的相对年龄

位于阿肯色州约翰逊县的一处废弃墓地周围的民俗（路易斯安那购买的一部分）表明，早期定居者使用了它。历史记录与几种测年技术相结合，确定了雪松林公墓的建立和废弃的大概时间。从紧邻坟墓或在坟墓上的树木中提取的岩心提供了该墓地在1920年代被遗弃的证据。这些结果与1922年的最后一次埋葬事件相吻合。使用地衣法测定未注明日期的墓地的大致年龄。确定存在于两个已知日期的墓碑上的地衣的地衣生长率为0.0685厘米/年。然后将这个增长率应用于未注明日期的坟墓，以确定其大致年龄。埋在墓地中的个人的历史记录中的死亡日期与地衣增长率确定的日期一致。我们的结果表明，许多未标记的坟墓的日期早于首次记录在案的土地私有权之前。这项研究的结果支持了有关墓地起源几代人的当地民间传说。