About Oakdale Cemetery

By Janet Seapker

Photo by Eric Kozen

Oakdale was part of the Rural Cemetery Movement that swept the US in the mid-Nineteenth Century. Rural cemeteries converted large tracts of land into garden settings. As families purchased lots, they mixed ornamental plants in with the native vegetation, making Oakdale one of the city’s most beautiful spots. The cemetery is resplendent with blooming plants all year around, but especially so in the spring.
In 1852, prominent Wilmington businessmen purchased 65 acres for a new cemetery to be located beyond the town limits, which was 8th Street. The cemetery became known as Oakdale and was NC’s first rural Cemetery. The first burial occurred on February 5, 1855—Annie DeRosset, the six-year old daughter of the cemetery president, Dr. Armand John DeRosset.
Oakdale Cemetery contains the graves of the movers and shakers of Wilmington, NC. The eloquent epitaphs and symbolic funerary art tell stories of those who lie beneath and bring them to life for the living. The graves represent veterans from all wars and all branches of service, politicians, mayors, congressmen, artists, architects, writers, developers, merchants, planters, fraternal order members, insurance men, exporters, immigrants, victims of Yellow Fever epidemics, wives, mothers, infants and children, and a female Confederate spy.
Oakdale is an active cemetery conducting burials and selling lots. The Board of Directors of the non-profit Oakdale Cemetery Company oversees the development of land and future planning for the cemetery.

A Rural Cemetery

During the 19th Century, the rural Cemetery Movement emerged as an alternative to crowded urban, generally church graveyards. Oakdale exemplifies this movement. In the romantic spirit of the Victorian era, the rural cemetery generally was located on hilly terrain and featured winding paths, large shade trees, flowers and shrubs, and appealing vistas. It was meant for the living as well as departed loved ones—just like Oakdale today. The rural Cemetery concept was a forerunner of public park development in America.
Rural cemeteries began in 1831 with the opening of Mount Auburn in Cambridge, near Boston, Massachusetts. A succession followed, among which were:

• Laurel Hill, Philadelphia, 1836
• Greenmount, Baltimore, 1838
• Spring Grove, Cincinnati, 1844
• Allegheny, Pittsburgh, 1845
• Hollywood, Richmond, 1847
• Elmwood, Detroit, 1849
• Magnolia, Charleston, 1850
• Oakland, Atlanta, 1850
• Calvary & Rosehill, Chicago, 1859
• Cedar Hill, Hartford, 1863

Oakdale Cemetery History

Of Oakdale Cemetery, a 1911 pamphlet stated, “ . . . nature seemed to have molded the ground for that purpose and left it for man to beautify.” If nature’s contribution defines its beauty, the monuments and sculptures contained within enhance Oakdale’s reputation as a place of history and wonder. Ornate inscriptions, stained glass and massive mausolea contrast with simpler monuments and markers, all of which together relate the story of a city and its people. Finely crafted monuments alternate with the flora that tower high above. Oakdale is truly an outdoor museum and arboretum. Still an active cemetery, these hallowed grounds still today offer comfort and inspiration to the living.

Photo courtesy of New Hanover County Library by Louis T. Moore

Oakdale Cemetery was chartered on December 27, 1852 by the General Assembly of North Carolina. The founders purchased 65 acres for $1,100. The acreage now has grown to 165 acres of natural beauty. Created during the era of the Rural Cemetery Movement in the US, Oakdale was the first in the state, only fitting for the most populous city in the state at the time. It was five blocks beyond the town boundaries.

Confederate Day

Poor Nance

Oakdale Cemetery