Newspaper Page Text
New era for Oakland’s historic bell tower
PERSPECTIVES IN
ARCHITECTURE
Melody Harclerode
The Oakland Bell Tower is ringing
in new energy at historic Oakland
Cemetery in Southeast Atlanta. The 48-
acre cemetery on the National Register
of Historic Places was established in
1850 and designated as a City of Atlanta
Park in 1932. Built at the site of the
demolished Death House in 1899, the
Bell Tower held space for the cemetery
sexton to manage burials and conduct
record-keeping at one of the largest
cemetery greenspaces in Atlanta.
Over 70,000 Georgians rest eternally
at Oakland Cemetery, including Mayor
Maynard Jackson, legendary golfer Bobby
Jones, 25 Atlanta mayors, and country
singer Kenny Rogers. With more than
100,000 annual visitors at the Victorian
garden-style cemetery, Historic Oakland
Foundation, the nonprofit organization
in charge of managing the property
since 1976, had expanded uses for the
two-story, Romanesque Revival building
to serve as a visitor center, Foundation
offices, and meeting space for corporate,
civic, and educational groups.
Cramped and drab interior spaces,
lack of accessibility, and overuse of
the Bell Tower led Historic Oakland
Foundation to hire Atlanta-based Smith
Dalia Architects for the rehabilitation
of the 2,800-square-foot building. A
longtime visitor to the cemetery, Smith
Dalia Architects Principal Greg Cross
has centered the project on preserving,
refreshing, and modernizing the Bell
Tower; adding more accessibility; and
creating revenue-generating opportunities
The renovated ™
interior of the
historic Bell
Tower. (Courtesy
Historic Oakland)
for the Foundation.
Historical building elements, such as
exterior windows and the belfry structure
housing the bell, have been restored.
The renovated vault in the basement,
once used to store deceased bodies, now
functions as the sexton’s office. Removal
of walls constructed during ad hoc
renovations has resulted in a new lobby
that doubles as event space for private,
public, and school groups. Cross notes,
“We had to remove non-sympathetic
components to demonstrate the greatest
standard of care for the building and
visitors.”
New building elements are
distinguished from existing ones through
the use of contrasting materials to express
the design evolution of the building.
In the lobby, metal finishes on a new
stairway and elevator stand in contrast
to the gypsum wall finish and original
wood floors and trim. The addition of a
stairway and elevator adds accessibility
to the second floor featuring a meeting
room and two newly restored porches.
Enclosed in the 1970s as offices
for the Foundation, restoration of the
second-story porches for outdoor use
allows visitors to see the cemetery’s
gardens and ornamental memorials, new
developments nearby, and the Atlanta
skyline. As a site for funerals, public
programs organized by the Foundation,
and public relaxation, panoramic views
from the Bell Tower help guests to see
how the city’s oldest and first public
greenspace serves a myriad of needs for
Atlanta.
For more information about the Bell Tower,
tune into the Uplifiing Places podcast on
Spotijy hosted by Melody Harclerode with
guest Smith Dalia Architects Principal Greg
Cross and Historic Oakland Foundation
Executive Director Richard Harker.
101 MAY 2023
RoughDraftAtlanta.com
