This essay is from my first class back to school in many years. And one that got me really excited about studying Anthropology. This assignment explores two sections of Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta and highlights my observations. In full disclosure, I love this cemetery. I attend and enjoy a lot of the events they put on to support their historic preservation and education efforts.
Winter Semester, 2019
(5 minute read)
Oakland Cemetery and its gardens and graves are home to over 150 years of Atlanta history. I visited the cemetery on three separate occasions during the semester. Mostly to follow up on details from my field notes, and specifically to check my Hebrew.
Featured in this report are the Confederate Memorial Grounds and the Flat Jewish Section. Both areas were part of the cemetery’s expansion and completed in 1867. The cemetery guide (available at the visitor center) mentions that the Jewish Flat section was not annexed until 1892.
The Confederate Memorial Grounds is where many soldiers who died from battle wounds in hospitals in the area were buried. I observed this by the range of death dates on the headstones. All of which happened between 1862 and 1864 except for one. General John Brown Gordon, who survived the war and is buried with his wife in their family plot. The area around his grave showcases a large family monument and an enclosed seating area surrounded by hedges. In contrast, the soldiers lie in neat, uniformed rows in mostly open fields, sheltered by the occasional tree. This area of land also includes a few union soldiers. Noted by the US Army distinction.
One stark difference between the Confederate and the Jewish area is how physically close the plots are in the Jewish area. The Jewish family names are grouped and tend to be buried together. Almost all the jewish monuments (73%) mention relations. Either an endearing expression for the “beloved” or a simple declaration of “mother” or “father”. Most of the graves in the Confederate area are military stones. And in some cases list their rank (33%), company (40%) and infantry (67%). Where a few personalized monuments mark the graves, military stones are close by or hidden behind. I noted this additional information but it was not used to calculate the percentages.
A lot of the military stones were in various states of decay and covered in moss and dirt. Some had sunk deep into the ground. Other stones had been replaced or upgraded. There didn’t seem to be a logical plan for the replacements. I noticed them because of the differences in how the Southern Cross of Honor (a form of a Christian cross pattée with a wreath in the middle) was depicted on the headstones. Some included designs without circles (33%), those with just a hint of a wreath (13%) and those with a fully engraved wreath (7%). Granted this could be the use of different stone cutters, but the United States Department of Veterans Affairs controls the use of the emblem. The design’s evolution is most likely documented and further research may indicate when certain headstones have been replaced.
While the Southern Cross of Honor does have christian symbols and symbolizes the military, it does not necessarily dictate the soldier’s religious status. In contrast, the Hebrew writing (67%) and the Star of David (40%) engraved into the stones in the Jewish Flat section show a variety of heritage and religious symbolism. The guide specifically notes the section of stones from the Ahavath Achim Synagogue which are “mainly of Russian and Eastern European heritage” and show a difference in the way the plots are laid out from the primarily German areas of the section.
Walking through the Jewish Flat we see a sense of family, of place, of history, possible or inferred signs of wealth as well as connections to religion and affiliations – including one Mason symbol engraved into an observed stone in the Jewish Flat. In the Confederate Memorial Ground we do not know their religion, or much beyond their military service and in some cases not even that.
Most of the deaths in the Confederate Memorial Section happened during the civil war. 39 is the mean age of death. It skewed older because the General survived the war. Adjusting the mean by removing General Gordon gives a mean closer to age 33. Half of what we see in the Jewish Flat section where the mean age of death is 67. The Jewish Flat also has the outlier of a 3 year old boy, the adjusted mean would be 72. Noting that every observed marker in the Jewish Flat offered birth, death, or age details.
In contrast, only 40% of the markers in the soldier’s section offered such demographic details. The previously mentioned 3 year old’s stone stood out to this. His simple stone resembled that of the soldiers and was peculiar among the ornate monuments that surrounded it. Even in its simplicity it still offered the exact dates of his birth and death. Curiously one observed headstone in the Confederate Memorial Area was that of a woman, complete with noted infantry. This contrasts the Jewish Flat section where the observed monuments are 53% male and 47% female.
The contrast between the Confederate Memorial Grounds and the Jewish Flat were profound and outlined how we honor the contribution of fallen soldiers. But possibly not the life they lived and who they were outside a military career (or volunteer). I find that to be a bit sad. With a little research into the well documented battles, information from the headstones may offer more about the individual. And possibly similar information found on genealogical sites for those in the Jewish Flat, but in contrast there is so much more information available on the stones in this area. In some cases we know where they immigrated from, which congregation they belonged to, who their family members were. There is such a rich sense of the person. Many of the monuments (47%) had pebbles left on them. A symbol that someone visited the grave and were offering their respect.
Oakland Cemetery as a whole offers such a unique perspective into Atlanta history. And into the groups of people that lived and died here. Comparing these two areas specifically highlights how we honored and continue to honor live and death. And how culture and symbolism leaves clues for those that come to pay their respects.