www.discoverdunwoody.com/listings/historic-oakland-cemetery/255/

  The Oakland Cemetery was founded in 1850 as a burial ground for a city whose population was rapidly growing. It has been through several names, including “Atlanta Graveyard” and “City Burial Place” and in 1872, was renamed The Oakland Cemetery. It is one of the largest green spaces in Atlanta. It is also hailed for being a striking example of a Victorian style cemetery. It reflects the attitudes towards death in the 19th century, and the “Garden Cemetery” movement. The Garden Cemetery movement was a movement that reflected the changing feelings towards burial in urban areas. These cemeteries were placed away from the city, and designed to provide the living a beautiful place in which to visit the deceased. A benefit of this was that the health concerns of regular cemeteries were remedied with the new design. This movement led to cemeteries being used for public use and recreation. The changing attitudes towards death also aided the change of burial plot designs which led to the historical significance of monuments and mausolea. 

  The cemetery is split into several sections including, The Confederate Section, The Jewish Section, Potter’s Field and The Black Section. Between 1877 and 1878, the original Black section was unearthed, and relocated to The Potter’s Field in order to sell their plots to white families. Antoine Graves owns the only Mausoleum in the Black Section.  The confederate section is significant historically, because about 6,900 soldiers are buried there. Some of the most historically significant soldiers are from Sherman’s March to the Sea. The Oakland Cemetery is a noteworthy record of Atlanta’s interesting history. 

“Oakland Cemetery (Atlanta).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 7 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_Cemetery_(Atlanta).

  The Oakland Cemetery reminded me of The Spa Fields Burial Ground in Bleak House. The Oakland Cemetery is also cited in Gone With the Wind. Both of these are books that are significant to literature and society as a whole. The 19th century was important to both of these resting places, even though Spa Fields was founded in the 17th century. Oakland and Spa Fields both held other names. Before settling on “The Spa Fields Burial Ground,” the burial ground was “Clerkenwell Fields” and “Ducking-Pond Fields.” Another similarity to The Oakland Cemetery is the rich history. The Spa Fields Burial Ground was a gathering place for organizing, and was founded in a now major city. Spa Fields was the inciting place for a political movement, and The Oakland Cemetery was witness to a large political event as well in Sherman’s March to the Sea. Their differences are significant as well. Where The Oakland Cemetery was created to combat overcrowding and hygiene concerns, Spa Fields was infamous for overcrowding and hygiene concerns. Spa Fields also has a sordid history surrounding deaths in its pond, but The Oakland Cemetery has no such history. They are also similar because they have both been labeled nonconformist. The Oakland Cemetery is known for its Garden Cemetery design. Spa Fields Burial Ground was nonconformist for being privately owned, and then in public use and for being eclectic in it’s collection of monuments. 

London's Spa Fields, Deceased Online Contributor, 29 May 2014, deceasedonlineblog.blogspot.com/2014/05/londons-spa-fields.html.

“Oakland Cemetery (Atlanta).” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 7 Oct. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oakland_Cemetery_(Atlanta).

  These comparisons are significant because they show the way that attitudes towards death have developed and changed. The sanitary concerns around cemeteries has shifted to vitally important, as well as attitudes about burial plots and headstones, as well as extravagant things like monuments and mausolea. The Victorian era was significant to both of these cemeteries, for completely different reasons even though they were not both founded in the 19th century. The history of places like this is significant to understanding historical events. Since these places have political significance for their times, comparing what was important on one side of the world to what was important on the other, helps understand where people’s minds and attitudes were in these times, and what drew authors to them.