PBS Presents SECRETS OF THE DEAD: THE WOMAN IN THE IRON COFFIN

Secrets of the Dead: The Woman in the Iron Coffin follows forensic archaeologist Scott Warnasch and a team of historians and scientists as they investigate the remains of a young African American women who died in the first half of the 19th century. By piecing together the woman's story and the time in which she lived, the film explores a vivid picture of what life was like for free African American people in the North and their connection to the AME church.

The Woman in the Iron Coffin premieres nationwide on Wednesday, October 3, at 10 p.m. on PBS (check local listings). The film will be available to stream the following day online at pbs.org/secrets and on PBS apps.

On October 4, 2011, construction workers were shocked to uncover human remains in an abandoned lot in the Elmhurst neighborhood of Queens, New York. So great was the level of preservation, witnesses first assumed they had stumbled upon a recent homicide. Forensic analysis, however, revealed a remarkably different story. Buried in an elaborate and expensive iron coffin, the body belonged to a young African AMERICAN WOMAN who died in the first half of the 19th century, before the Civil War and the federal abolishment of slavery. But who was she? Secrets of the Dead: The Woman in the Iron Coffin follows forensic archaeologist Scott Warnasch and a team of historians and scientists as they investigate this woman's story and the time in which she lived, revealing a vivid picture of what life was like for free African American people in the North.

Notable Talent

• Scott Warnasch - Forensic Archaeologist
• Kevin Karem - Associate Director for Laboratory Science, CDC
• Prof. Carla Peterson - Author, Black Gotham
• Prof. Clarence Taylor - Historian, Baruch College
• Dr. Jeffrey Kroessler - Historian, John Jay College
• Prof. Jerry Conlogue - Diagnostic Imaging, Quinnipiac University
• Prof. Rhonda Quinn - Anthropologist, Seton Hall University
• Rev. Kimberly Detherage - Pastor, Saint Mark AME Church
• John B. Houston - Funeral Director, Cushnie-Houston Funeral Home
• Joe Mullins - Forensic Imaging Specialist

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Impossible Factual.