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Midland
Cemetery Community
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Midland Cemetery was recently rescued from neglect by local historian Barbara B. Barksdale, who began the Friends of Midland organization. That organization is the best source of information on the cemetery. They can be contacted at the following address: Friends of Midland, P. O. Box 7442, Steelton, Pennsylvania 17113-0442. This is the second article about the people who make up the community served by Midland Cemetery. The first article profiled Clayton Carelock. |
![]() The photograph above is from a McKamey family album and is of George McKamey, a fireman with West Side Hose Company, Number 3, at the reins of a fire wagon at the borough Fireman's Parade. It is not dated. Click the image for a full-size picture. By 1897, Joseph McKamey was gone--he had passed away at age 73 the year before--and the address was occupied by his widow, Caroline. No mention is made of George McKamey. Mrs. Jennie McKamey is still listed, although she moved next door to 152 Ridge Street. Lee McKamey is still at 153 Adams Street, but instead of being listed as a contractor, his occupation is given as "laborer." Lee was married to Gertrude Strothers, and one of their children, John Henry, attended the local schools, most likely studying in the Hygienic School, which was newly established for the children of the African American community. John H. McKamey went on to study at Steelton High School, graduating in 1905. Three other African American students graduated that year, one of whom was Numa P. G. Adams. Adams would go on to study at Howard University, and then Columbia University, where he studied chemistry. After studying medicine at the University of Chicago, Adams established a medical practice, then later returned to Howard where he was appointed Dean of the Medical School, a position he held until his death in 1940. John McKamey, unfortunately, never had the chance to witness the accomplishments of his classmate, as he died suddenly about a year after his graduation from Steelton High School.
Members of the McKamey family fought in Europe in both World Wars, as witnessed by their tombstone inscriptions at Midland Cemetery. Charles Henry McKamey, a World War I veteran, was a member of the famed 368th Infantry in the 92nd Division, the first division in the AEF composed entirely of African American troops. A generation later, Eugene McKamey would serve his country in World War II. Another World War I veteran, Howard Leroy McKamey, is buried at William Howard Day Cemetery. The family business at about this time seemed to be driving and chauffeuring. All of the McKameys listed in the 1919 Steelton Directory list one of those jobs as their occupation. The family homesteads also remained pretty much the same, with Lee and Gertrude McKamey still living at 153 Adams Street with their ten-year-old daughter Philome, an address they shared only briefly with veteran Howard Leroy McKamey. George McKamey, age 49, with his sister Anna Goff, lived at 218 Bailey, the old address of Joseph and Caroline McKamey, both of whom had long passed on. Also at this address was Newton McKamey, his wife Mary and their two sons George and Raymond. Charles McKamey, freshly arrived home from the Great War, had settled at 166 Adams Street.
» A treasured photograph in the McKamey family, a handwritten note to this picture says "Essie, George, Aunt Ida McKamey Jackson, Annie on motorcycle." (click for a larger image) More McKamey family portraits: At left is Essie McKamey Armstrong, and right is Annie McKamey. Click either image for a full-sized image. Essie was the wife of Joseph L. Armstrong, a steelworker, and they lived at 115 Adams Street. Sources: Boyd's Harrisburg and Steelton Directory, 1887. |
Community of Midland Series: Clayton Carelock More Midland Photo Galleries: The
Civil War Burials at Midland |
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This page was updated March 13, 2023.