Current Surveys and Studies

Learn about the current Heritage Surveys & Context Studies being conducted by The Miami-Dade County Office of Historic Preservation.

The Office of Historic Preservation is conducting a Context Study about the Migrant Farmworker Community, funded by an Underrepresented Communities Grant (URC) from the Historic Preservation Fund administered by the National Park Service, Department of the Interior. Recognizing that Miami-Dade County’s agricultural heritage is far-reaching and has been at the core of its growth and development since its initial settlement, the project will explore the history and places associated with Migrant Farmworker communities.

This project hopes to expand understanding of the history and important places related to the experiences of the migrant farmworker community with the goal to share a fuller history representative of the lasting impact this community has had on the growth and change of Miami-Dade County.

The Migrant Farmworker Context Study is the third phase of dynamic progression of work led by the Office of Historic Preservation in its ongoing effort to raise awareness of historic resources associated with historically excluded groups, and to increase support research of historically significant locations across Miami-Dade County’s to support preservation of its built environment. OHP recognizes the need for more in-depth research into the impact and contributions of migrant farmworker community and its past and present built environment.

This is a chance to share memories of places, events centering on the history of the migrant farming community county-wide to recognize places that are important to you. These may be sites that are significant to individuals and the community's history, including houses, churches, playgrounds, schools, cemeteries, businesses, and other locations linked to the history and diverse heritage of the migrant farmworker community.

Original structures need not be standing at the present for you to share them as part of the study. If a site was the location of a significant event or the previous location of a structure that holds historic significance but is no longer there, we encourage you to share its story with us.

Tell Your Story

The Office of Historic Preservation is launching a Context Study focused on the Migrant Farmworker Community. We invite you to share stories about historic buildings, sites, landmarks, and people important to you and this community, whether these places still exist or not. This effort hopes to recognize and preserve sites that highlight the Migrant Farmworker community’s impact on the history and growth. We are interested in all types of places, such as:
- Houses
- Churches
- Cemeteries
- Stores
- Community centers
- Parks
- Playgrounds
- Schools
- Restaurants
We welcome learning about all types of places important to your community. We would love to hear from anyone with stories or experiences to share.
- Share your Migrant Farming Story With Us
The Burial Grounds Context Study will provide insight into the cemeteries and burial grounds throughout Miami-Dade County, illustrating the connections between their establishment and the growth and change of our communities. Through the research gathered, field studies and community outreach, the project aims to expand research on traditions and cultural heritage linked to burial traditions as well as to highlight and rediscover the unique stories associated with the sites uncovered through dialogue, documentation and employing a forward-thinking approach that weaves traditional perseveration methodology with new technology and community engagement as core elements.

The study will enable further preservation and retention of historic burial grounds and associated resources to support a fuller understanding of their creation, and the connections they may have to broader elements of Miami-Dade’s history from early settlement, through struggle for equality, recovery from devastating environmental disasters and more.

The social and political dynamics that led to the establishment of many post-war cemeteries and those that predate that period and their ongoing roles in our communities today will illustrate a broader narrative of the cultural traditions that have shaped the identities of our communities and also demonstrate societal and political changes that have impacted the location, design and preservation of cemeteries throughout the county.

With an overarching goal of the project to provide a focused assessment of known cemeteries and burial grounds, the project will also illuminate cultural traditions that resonate through burial practices with the incorporation of markers, foliage and even specific burial vault styles that distinguishes cultural heritage and traditions unique to some burial sites.

To that end, a dynamic element and ongoing methodology of our survey work vital to this study is community engagement. The community outreach incorporated into this study and the activities created for community participation will provide an opportunity for the relatives and descendants of interred individuals, interested community members, and cemetery owners, funerary industry professionals and volunteers to reconnect with these burial sites and support preservation and retention of their history.
- Share your Story With Us