A crowd gathered in Oakland Cemetery in Dallas on a cool, damp morning several weeks ago to unveil the cemetery’s new historical marker. The weather did not dampen their enthusiasm, though. They weren’t just celebrating the marker—they were celebrating a new life for the 134-year-old cemetery.
There weren’t many reasons to celebrate just a few years ago. The cemetery had suffered decades of neglect, and in 2019 a sign on the locked gates announced the cemetery had ceased operations. The longtime board was aging and operating funds were practically nonexistent. Oakland was on the brink of becoming yet another of the 5,000 historic cemeteries in Texas that have been abandoned.
Fortunately, the Dallas community would not accept that fate. Volunteers from across the city stepped up to breathe new life into the cemetery’s caretaker organization. The old board dissolved, and an entirely new generation of community members took positions on the Oakland Cemetery Lot Owners Association’s board of directors. Other volunteers created Friends of Oakland Cemetery, now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Oakland Cemetery had new stewards. And those stewards got to work.
The board of directors explored new fundraising strategies and revenue streams. Volunteers began helping with the physical tasks of reclaiming headstones from years of tangled overgrowth in the 47-acre cemetery. Other volunteers dove deep into the site’s history, gathering research and historic documentation of the site that was used to successfully obtain the Historic Texas Cemetery designation in 2022 and then the marker.
These new stewards know that the full restoration and future security of Oakland Cemetery will require building a broad new base of support from the community. They understood that securing official State recognition of the site’s importance and significance could help them raise that much-needed public awareness and support. (Although, truth be told, resident canine mascot Rusty is the real pro at catching the public’s attention.) They also began hosting public events to introduce people to the fascinating stories of Dallas history that can be told by learning about the 27,000 people buried in Oakland.
The board and volunteers have made significant strides in restoring respect and dignity to this sacred burial ground. As with any historic cemetery, there’s still lots of work to do, but the stewards of Oakland Cemetery are committed to the ongoing preservation and interpretation of one of Dallas’ most significant cultural assets.
Read more coverage of the marker dedication ceremony in the Dallas Morning News.