CEDARVILLE — Cedar Cliff DAR Chapter recognized one of its members Feb. 13 for her work preserving local history during her restoration of Caesarcreek Baptist Church Cemetery in New Jasper Township.
Brenda Tolle, of Xenia, received the Excellence in Historic Preservation Award, including a certificate and medal.
Tolle has been working on a genealogy research project in which so far she has identified every person buried in the Caesarscreek Baptist Church Cemetery using plot maps from Greene County Archives’ history books.
“Families were re-connected to their ancestors by email,” Chapter Regent Linda Sears said.
Tolle then wrote Findagrave.com biographies for almost all 122 of them.
“Everyone has a story. I wanted to tell theirs,” Tolle said after a three-volley salute she organized in August at the cemetery. “I thought that was a good way to do it.”
The ceremony honored 13 Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War veterans — soldiers who had never received recognition before.
Tolle also discovered an unmarked grave of Revolutionary War veteran Patrick Killin (1755-1822), researched his service and military record, and provided a gravestone for him.
Her goal is to continue to clean up and restore the remaining nine defunct cemeteries in Greene County.
Cedar Cliff Chapter DAR Regent, Linda Sears, right, honors member Brenda Tolle, left, with the Excellence in Historic Preservation Award Feb. 13.
