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Lansdale Officials Hope To Solve Mystery Of 120-Year-Old Headstone

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- Officials in Lansdale, Montgomery County  are trying to solve a mystery that is 120 years in the making. A headstone dated 1895 was found during an excavation in the backyard of a property along Main Street.

Authorities say the headstone is from a little girl just shy of her third birthday.

"This is uncharted waters for our borough," said police sergeant Alex Kromdyk.

Kromdyk says the police department is working with the Lansdale Historical Society to try to figure out why the headstone was there. The local newspaper, The Reporter, existed back then, but has no record of the young girl's death.

"Around that same time of the child's passing there was a story about an illness that was going around," Kromdyk explained, "and also the proper burial procedures."

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The headstone was found on West Main Street near Valley Forge Road. It's unclear how the property was used in 1895. The current owner has stopped the work as they try to learn more.

Kromdyk says they don't want to release the name on the headstone until they figure out if there are surviving family members.

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