Founded as Atlanta Cemetery in 1850 on six acres (2.4 hectares) of land southeast of the city, it was renamed in 1872 to reflect the large number of oak and magnolia trees growing in the area.

Because of its age and location, the cemetery directly reflects the history and changing culture of the City of Atlanta and the significant events it has seen.

Being the oldest grave in Oakland since its designation as a city cemetery, Nissen's headstone is nearly completely worn away by the passage of time and the elements.

Back towards the main gates of Oakland on a plot donated by the City of Atlanta lies Martha Lumpkin Compton.

Therefore, one story describing the creation of his statue notes that when the artist sculpted him wearing a cravat, Smith refused to pay until the offending item had been chiseled off.

The immediate area surrounding Jones' grave is adorned by all eighteen flower-bearing plants that are the namesakes of the holes on the Augusta National course.

Shortly after the war ended, a few thousand fallen soldiers from the Atlanta Campaign who were previously buried in battleground graves were moved to the Confederate grounds in Oakland.

This 65 foot (20 m) tall obelisk is made from granite quarried from Stone Mountain and was dedicated on April 26, 1874, the anniversary of Joseph E. Johnston's surrender to William Sherman.

[4] The lion, which guarded a field containing the remains of unknown Confederate dead, was commissioned by the Atlanta Ladies Memorial Association and carved by T. M. Brady in 1894 out of the largest piece of marble quarried from north Georgia up to that time.

In contrast to this cultural blending are the resting places of members of the Ahavath Achim Synagogue, to which the Benevolent Congregation sold some of the plots.

Beyond the outer wall bordering the field is the former Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill (since renovated into loft apartments) and Cabbagetown, both constructed by Jacob Elsas, who is buried in the new Jewish section.

Potter's Field makes a significant contribution to the number of residents at Oakland, as indicated by a 1978 archaeological survey conducted by Georgia State University that revealed the entire area to be occupied by an estimated 17,000 persons.

One striking feature that visitors will notice is that the black section, similarly to the adjoining Potter's Field, lacks a great deal of headstones, monuments, and grave markers in general.

These markers have succumbed to the passing of time and as a result have rendered a large portion of the grave sites in the black section unknown.

Despite the social difficulties that had to be overcome by African-Americans living in the Southern states at the time, there are several outstanding black figures buried at Oakland who made significant contributions to the history of Atlanta.

Some of these include Bishop Wesley John Gaines, Reverend Frank Quarles (an early benefactor of Morehouse College), Carrie Steele Logan, and Antoine Graves, the owner of the only mausoleum in the black section.

In 1998 the Bell Tower building saw extensive restoration and now serves as the offices of the Historic Oakland Foundation as well as the cemetery's visitor center.

As with most cemeteries of comparable size and age, Oakland contains numerous monuments and mausolea that are often outstanding examples of art and symbolism, or are of great historical significance.

Their activity, which is supported by donations, grants, and special events, continues today as they maintain and restore the cemetery as well as provide guided tours of the grounds.