Oakland Cemetery Preservation Archive

As the PRO Team has grown by one, it’s time to reintroduce the team and share a little about ourselves! Starting with our Director of Preservation… Ashley Shares “I’ve been with the historic Oakland foundation for over a decade. The focus of my role is on care and conservation of Oakland cemetery’s historic built environment. My responsibilities include managing staff and contractors, mentoring volunteers and interns, historic research, and conducting hands-on conservation projects(my favorite part!). It’s hard to pick a favorite cemetery other than Oakland, but a few of my favorites include Graceland cemetery in Chicago, Oconee Hill Cemetery in Athens, Georgia, and Zion cemetery in Smyrna Georgia. In my free time, I enjoy working at cemeteries all over the southeast and hanging out with my horse, Al and my Dog, Wiz.”

Might of thought we were done but we have our newest and freshest to the crew… Bethany Joy Girard Preservation Technician “I’ve been with the Historic Oakland Foundation for officially 2 months and I was also the 2024 summer intern. My responsibilities include preserving and repairing historic monuments, resetting tombstones, markers, and walkways. Doing simple repairs to assisting with more complex restoration projects, as well as working with volunteers and helping where needed during events. My favorite cemetery other than Oakland is Rose Hill cemetery in Macon, Georgia. I moved to Macon back in 2015 to assist in training and developing a team to open a new Chipotle location (my job of 12 years prior to starting at Oakland). After moving to Macon I adopted a dog, her and I spent many afternoons walking around Rose Hill. The cemetery over looks the Ocmulgee River, it’s a beautiful place. In my free time, I enjoy listening to audio books, tending to my plethora of house plants and spending time with my dogs, Doodle and Stanley. “

If you’ve been here long enough you’ve definitely ran into our preservation specialist! Michael Wettlaufer Preservation Specialist “Before my over a decade at Oakland I was in the road business. From bridges, grading, paving, coverts, road widening/leveling to storm drains. At Oakland my job is to preserve all hardscape at Oakland along side training new employees, working with interns, making sure tools and supplies are ordered, and working with the volunteer group. In my free time I like doing anything water related, camping with my friends, and golfing.”

Thank you to everyone that has supported and engaged with our page for the past 9 years. We look forward to continuing to share our work and engage with you at @oaklandcemetery ! Follow Oakland to follow the Preservation team. With love, Oakland PRO Team ⚒️❤️🪦 P.S. Fret not, dear followers: this page will not be deleted, just archived.

The @preserveatl #PhoenixFlies tour of Historic @oaklandcemetery ROCKED! So many knowledge nuggets dropped on this guided journey Behind the Stones 🪦

This week wraps up Ashley Shares’ Behind the Stones Preservation Tours @oaklandcemetery where stones were the focus! 🪨 In partnership with @preserveatl Phoenix Flies and @atlscifest Annual Festival she completed a total of six tours for the month of March to share the science related to cemetery materials and the preservation and conservation treatments used to maintain them! Thank you to everyone that attended! . . . . Also if you didn’t make it, there are opportunities for you to attend a Preservation Tour! Check out Special Topic Tours via @oaklandcemetery website! #historicpreservation #oaklandcemetery

Do women run the world? 👀 Well here at the PRO Team we are woman-led and in honor of Women’s History Month we wanted to highlight the many women that have had the opportunity to work on the PRO Team and leave their mark to preserve @oaklandcemetery ! 🪦⚒️ So enjoy a slideshow of many past interns and Bethany, Preservation Tech! #historicpreservation #oaklandcemetery #womenofoakland #womenshistorymonth

Here is Bethany, our preservation tech talking through a recent project she completed with Mike! 🪦 This headstone has been a little problematic with having several breaks over the course of a few years but our team thought of ways to repair and mitigate any further damage. Hear the process from Bethany and see the steps in the photo slide. #historicpreservation #conservation #cemeteries #oaklandcemetery #atlantahistory

Thought we’d hop on the trend and show you who’s working on the grounds @oaklandcemetery ! Featuring the PRO and Gardens Team! ⚒️🪴

Since celebrating Black history is a daily occurrence at Oakland, we’re excited to share our recent blog post for the Century Club - The Black Side Edition! “𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙎𝙞𝙙𝙚” is borrowed from genealogist and historian of Oakland’s African American burial section, Dr. D.L. Henderson, noting how culturally rich the section of Oakland is as a repository of Black life in Atlanta. Many of Oakland’s centenarians are Black residents, whose ages speak to varied successes, triumphs, trials, and tribulations. Black centenarians in Oakland are a diverse group of Atlantans who demonstrate exceptional courage, resilience and perseverance throughout their lives and can further provide a culturally informed perspective of Atlanta history. The burial records reveal over thirty centenarians were buried in Potter’s Field, a section of the Cemetery denoted for pauper and unassigned burials. Due to their names and sometimes the barest biographical data being recorded in the burial records, we know very little about most of these individuals. Celia Davis is a rare case, where we have her headstone that was once located in Potter’s Field, and accompanying newspaper articles that give us a glimpse into the life she lived. Head to our "Digging Deeper" blog to read more about the 100 year life of Celia Davis - call for us to reflect about Potter’s Field and the souls that rest there. 🪦 #centuryclub #oaklandcemetery

Ended the year with our Volunteer Appreciation Day and it was a success, certificates for everyone, including gifts for the folks with the highest earned hours this year! Ended it off with coffee and pastries and Trivia: PRO Team Edition, which gave us a run for our money! We will see you all in the new year and can’t wait to share all things preservation @oaklandcemetery ! Happy Holidays from the PRO Team! 🎄🥂

Earlier this month, our Gardens and Preservation teams visited Cobb-Bethel AME Church Cemetery to lend a hand with their ongoing work to beautify and restore the grounds—removing invasive plants, clearing fallen trees, and resetting headstones. 🍂🪦 Thanks for having us @cobbbethelcemetery ! 📸 @swestaxo