The Harrisburg Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) presented Barbara Barksdale with the NSDAR Historic Preservation Medal and Certificate on Oct. 12.

The award recognizes and honors a person who "has done extraordinary volunteer work over a long period of time in establishing a historic district, preserving a local landmark, restoring or preserving objects of historic cultural significance or establishing or participating in oral history projects, youth leadership and education as it pertains to historic preservation, at the regional, state and/or national level." Fewer than 30 of these awards are presented each year throughout the United States.

Barksdale is a historian, as well as the founder and president of the Friends of Historic Midland Cemetery and founding member and current chair of Pennsylvania Hallowed Ground (PAHG). PAHG aids caretakers, historians, students and all who care for and restore African American cemeteries and supports conservation, documentation, education and training.

Barksdale has spent decades restoring Midland Cemetery in Steelton, where African American veterans from the Buffalo Soldiers, U.S. Colored Troops, Montford Point Marines and World War I and World War II are buried. It is also the final resting place for enslaved people and citizens who formed churches and served as civic leaders and steel workers.

Founded in 1795, Midland had succumbed to neglect. The property had in fact been condemned and slated for development. However, thanks in large part to Barksdale, whose work began with a family flower-laying tradition on Memorial Day, it is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The NSDAR was founded in 1890 with the mission of promoting historic preservation, education and patriotism. The Harrisburg Chapter, founded in 1894, continues at the local level to preserve the legacies of the Founding Fathers and the patriots who fought for the independence of the United States of America.

For additional information, contact Jennifer Stratton at jennifer.m.stratton@outlook.com or visit http://www.harrisburgdar.org.