At Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, four grave markers sit beside an active runway. The unusual sight is a remnant of the land’s earlier life as the Dotson family farm, not a recent burial or an airport memorial created for visitors.
How the graves came to be there
The airport’s history traces the change to 1942, when the federal government leased land from the City of Savannah for wartime aviation operations. As Chatham Field expanded, the government acquired additional acreage that included the Dotson family cemetery. Airport records say the family’s descendants arranged for all but four ancestors to be moved to Bonaventure Cemetery.
Richard and Catherine Dotson, along with relatives Daniel Hueston and John Dotson, remained. When the runway was extended west during World War II, the family asked that the graves stay where they were. The markers are now beside the airport’s east–west runway.
A historic site beside a working runway
The airport says the cemetery once held an estimated one hundred or more graves. Today, the four remaining markers recall the Dotson family and the farm known as Cherokee Hills. They are part of a working airport landscape: aircraft continue to use the runway nearby, while the graves remain undisturbed.
The story is often described as “two graves on a runway,” but the airport’s account names four people and explains how the family’s wishes shaped the decision. That detail matters: this is not simply an airport curiosity. It is a small, visible piece of local history preserved through a family’s request during a major expansion.
What visitors should know
The graves are on airport property, alongside an active runway. They are not a public walking site. Travelers should follow airport access and safety rules, and can read the airport’s official account for the family history and location details.
Source: Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport: Dotson Family Cemetery.
