HARRISONBURG, VA (Rocktown Now) — A major preservation project is underway at one of the area’s most historic African American cemeteries.

A ground-penetrating radar survey is now underway at Newtown Cemetery in Harrisonburg.

Officials believe many more people may be buried there than previously thought, with about 30 percent of graves believed to be unmarked.

Using a grant from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, specialists are mapping the cemetery without disturbing the ground.

The cemetery is listed on the National Register of Historic Places