Historic Oakland Foundation

Name

Historic Oakland Foundation

Legal name

Historic Oakland Foundation

Website

https://oaklandcemetery.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Historic Preservation & Heritage Tourism

NAICS

Historical Sites (712120), Historical Sites (71212), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE)

Keywords

• Historic preservation services
• Cemetery management
• Heritage education programs
• Community cultural events
• Guided historical tours

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The foundation relies heavily on charitable donations from supporters. A critical restoration fund, established 7 years prior to 2013, is funded entirely through donations and has enabled restoration of hundreds of markers throughout the cemetery.
2. Membership Program: Annual membership program offering benefits including free tour tickets, member previews for plant sales, and other exclusive access. Individual, dual, and family membership tiers available.
3. Tour and Event Tickets: Revenue generated from guided walking tours, special topic tours, and event tickets including illumine, Capturing the Spirit of Oakland, and seasonal festivals.
4. Plant Sales: Annual spring and fall plant sales generate revenue for the gardens department. Member previews offer early access with reservation fees credited toward purchase.
5. Private Events: The cemetery offers unique event spaces including mausoleums and gardens for private events, generating venue rental revenue.
6. Oakland Store / Museum Retail: The Visitor Center houses the Oakland Store offering curated books, resources, and unique items celebrating Atlanta's history.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Historic Oakland Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that preserves, restores, enhances, and shares Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta. It operates guided walking tours, youth and family educational programs (camps, homeschool, field trips), annual cultural events (illumine, Capturing the Spirit, Sunday in the Park), seasonal plant sales, private event venue rentals, and a museum retail store, supported by a membership program and donations.

Product overview

Historic Oakland Foundation operates Oakland Cemetery as a multi-faceted heritage site offering a unified portfolio of visitor experiences, educational programs, and special events. Core offerings include daily guided cemetery tours and private event venue rentals centered around the newly opened (April 2025) Visitor Center. Youth and family programming includes Oakland Camps (summer, spring, fall, winter breaks), the Youth Landscape & Hardscape Team workforce program, Homeschool Programs, and school Field Trips. The annual event calendar is anchored by illumine (art and light experience), Capturing the Spirit of Oakland (Halloween tours), Sunday in the Park ft. Tunes from the Tombs (music festival), Run Like Hell 5K, Spring and Fall Plant Sales, Spring to Life Family Festival, Juneteenth Family Festival, and Holiday Spirit. The Oakland Store and Membership Program provide retail and loyalty functions. Together, these products position Oakland as an outdoor museum, classroom, botanical garden, and cultural gathering space.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Oakland Guided Tours 90-minute guided walking tours exploring Oakland Cemetery's history, Victorian gardens, and funerary art, led by knowledgeable guides. Daily tours and weekend special topic tours (e.g., We Shall Overcome, Art & Architecture, Fifty Ways to Die) are offered to individual visitors and small groups.
• Oakland Camps Week-long day camps for children ages 6-11 with themed tracks such as Eco-Explorers, Creative Canvas, Culinary Creators, DIY Dreamers, Garden to Table, and Future Earth Engineers. Includes summer, winter break, spring break, and fall break sessions.
• Youth Landscape & Hardscape Team (YLHT) Workforce development program for youth providing hands-on training in landscape and hardscape restoration work at Oakland Cemetery.
• Homeschool Programs Monthly Homeschool Day programs offering students place-based learning experiences about the diverse cultures and traditions of Atlanta through the cemetery's history, gardens, and architecture.
• School Field Trips Curriculum-aligned field trip programming for K-12 schools covering Atlanta history, Civil War studies, African American history, and Victorian culture, offered at the cemetery site.
• illumine Springtime art and light experience featuring illuminated installations, digital projections, and floral-inspired site-specific works by Atlanta artists. Curated by Cat Eye Creative. The 2025 theme 'What Remains' explored how the past lingers.
• Capturing the Spirit of Oakland Annual Halloween evening tours that bring to life stories of notable and notorious Oakland residents. In its 20th year, the experience allows visitors to tour the cemetery after dark.
• Sunday in the Park ft. Tunes from the Tombs Victorian tradition-inspired festival blending live music, history, and family fun. Oakland's iconic music festival in its 48th year.
• Run Like Hell 5K Evening race supporting preservation efforts while showcasing Oakland's gardens and history. In its 19th year in 2026.
• Spring Plant Sale Annual curated plant sale featuring trees, shrubs, perennials, edibles, and houseplants sourced from local small nurseries. Member previews include $15 reservation fee credited toward purchase. Major fundraiser for cemetery gardens.
• Fall Plant Sale Fall plant sale offering perennials, houseplants, annuals, trees, shrubs, and edibles with all proceeds supporting Oakland's gardens. Includes reserved and public shopping windows.
• Spring to Life Family Festival Free family festival celebrating spring with wildlife demonstrations, plant sale, family yoga, interactive kids activities, and garden tours.
• Juneteenth Family Festival Free annual celebration honoring Atlanta's African American pioneers and those still shaping the city, held on the cemetery grounds.
• Holiday Spirit Free two-day celebration featuring community tree lighting, holiday market, photos with Santa, live music, holiday guided tours, and family-friendly activities.
• Private Event Venue Rentals Venue rentals for weddings, corporate events, photography sessions, and private gatherings in unique cemetery spaces including mausoleums, gardens, and the new Visitor Center event space.
• Oakland Store Retail store located within the Visitor Center offering a curated selection of books, resources, and unique items celebrating Atlanta's history. Open 10AM-5PM daily.
• Membership Program Annual membership program with Individual, Dual, and Family tiers providing free tour tickets (1, 2, or 4 respectively), member previews for plant sales, exclusive event invitations, and discounts at the Oakland Store.
• Scavenger Hunts Self-guided scavenger hunts for visitors to explore Oakland Cemetery through interactive puzzles and clues at their own pace.

Quantifiable outcome

• Visitor Center ribbon cutting drew more than 200 attendees including Atlanta Mayor and Parks Commissioner
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered major, core and minor.

• Smith Dalia ArchitectsmajorTechnology or Integration · 3 April 2025Architecture firm responsible for designing the new Visitor Center opened April 3, 2025. The facility features a spacious atrium, store, courtyard garden, staff offices, and versatile event space.
• Invest AtlantamajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 April 2025Economic development authority that partnered with the Historic Oakland Foundation and City of Atlanta on the Visitor Center project. Featured as a key partner in the public-private partnership model highlighted by Mayor Dickens at the ribbon cutting ceremony.
• Atlanta Department of Parks and RecreationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 April 2025Commissioner Justin Cutler attended and spoke at the Visitor Center ribbon cutting ceremony. Longstanding partnership through Memorandum of Understanding for cemetery management and maintenance.
• Cat Eye CreativecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Gallery and creative agency founded in 2019 that curated illumine 2025, Oakland Cemetery's major spring arts and light experience. Selected artists from Cat Eye Creative's roster to create site-specific installations for the event.
• Son & SonsmajorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Atlanta-based branding agency led by Wade Thompson that developed Historic Oakland Foundation's 2025 brand refresh and new logo. Design strategy focused on capturing Oakland's 'multiplicity' - a cemetery AND a park, AND a botanical garden, AND a museum.
• City of Atlanta Department of Parks and RecreationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOakland Cemetery is a City of Atlanta park managed in partnership with the Department of Parks and Recreation. HOF staff works collaboratively with the city to fulfill the organization's mission of preserving, restoring, enhancing, and sharing historic Oakland Cemetery. Sexton Sam Reed manages a crew of city employees responsible for publicly maintained areas and buildings through a Memorandum of Understanding.
• Trees AtlantaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service. Collaboration on tree planting and urban forestry initiatives.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Forest Lawn Memorial-Parks & Mortuaries: Large commercial cemetery and mortuary operator in Southern California with museum-quality art collections, public events, and educational programming. Much larger scale but demonstrates the commercial precedent for cemetery-as-cultural-attraction models.

Regional players

• Atlanta History Center: Atlanta-based nonprofit operating historic house museums, exhibitions, and educational programming. Comparable Atlanta heritage nonprofit serving similar family, school, and history enthusiast segments.
• National Center for Civil and Human Rights: Atlanta-based nonprofit cultural institution with overlapping education programming and Atlanta civil rights heritage focus. Director of Education previously worked here, indicating direct talent and mission overlap.

Emerging players

• Magnolia Plantation and Gardens: Charleston-area heritage site combining historic preservation, botanical gardens, and educational tours. Comparable "historic site + gardens + education" positioning, though commercially operated rather than nonprofit.

Direct peers

• Laurel Hill Cemetery: Philadelphia nonprofit historic cemetery with public tours, special events, and preservation programming. Comparable scale and mission to Oakland as a small-team operator of a nationally significant historic site.
• Mount Auburn Cemetery: Nonprofit Cambridge, MA cemetery and arboretum operating as the first "garden cemetery" in the U.S. Combines historic preservation, horticulture, and public programming; structurally and operationally similar to Oakland.
• Congressional Cemetery: Washington DC nonprofit historic cemetery offering tours, events, and public programming. Similar revenue mix and community engagement model.
• Green-Wood Cemetery: Nonprofit historic cemetery operator in Brooklyn, NY managing 478 acres with a comparable mix of tours, public events, educational programming, and restoration work. Closest peer in scale, mission, and revenue model.
• Spring Grove Cemetery & Arboretum: Cincinnati nonprofit operating one of the largest garden cemeteries in the U.S. with comparable tours, horticultural programming, and event-driven GTM. Similar nonprofit historic cemetery business model.

Others

• Save America's Treasures (National Trust for Historic Preservation): National nonprofit grant program funding preservation of historic sites. Relevant as a funder/ecosystem partner for cemetery restoration work that HOF pursues.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/oaklandcemetery
• Facebookfacebook.com/OCATL
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/historic-oakland-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/oaklandcemetery

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Historic Oakland Foundation