The Atlanta Cyclorama, Grant Park, and Oakland Cemetery
Summer in Atlanta brings oppressive heat that sucks moisture from your mouth and deposits it back on your dripping skin. On such a day, July 22, 1864, sweat glistened and blood caked on Georgia’s red clay as the pivotal Civil War Battle of Atlanta raged around the city. Recreated at the Atlanta Cyclorama, the clashes of Confederate and Union troops encircle visitor’s rotating seats in the middle of a 360 degree diorama depicting the battle. As if their passions cannot be contained, soldiers seem to pour off the painting onto a red clay set in the foreground. The chilling use of surround sound music, sound effects, and narration engage the imagination and senses. This battle led to the surrender of Atlanta on September 2, 1864. Soon afterwards, William Tecumseh Sherman, the Major-General commanding the Union troops, ordered Atlanta evacuated and burned.
Atlanta’s symbol is the Phoenix, a legendary bird of Egyptian mythology that rose from its own ashes with renewed strength and beauty. From the Atlanta Cyclorama, located only three miles from downtown, visitors look at the modern architecture of a shimmering skyline reflecting the fact that Atlanta did rise again.
Surrounding the Atlanta Cyclorama are the historical houses of Grant Park developed in the 1890’s. Grant Park’s Folk Victorian, Craftsman Bungalow, English Vernacular Revival, Shotgun/Double Shotgun, and Queen Anne homes suffered from disrepair and decay when people moved further from town. Efforts to save this charming neighborhood from becoming urban ashes began with renovations in the 1970’s and continue today.
Pay respects to the Civil War dead at nearby Oakland. A Confederate section includes the graves of five Confederate generals. In 1864, Confederate Commander John B. Hood stood on Bell Tower Ridge, the highest ground of Oakland, looking east over the frenzy of the Battle of Atlanta. Many famous citizens including Margaret Mitchell (author of Gone With the Wind) rest here. Elaborate gravestones and mausoleums display symbols such as doves (meaning messenger of God) that communicate the Victorian era’s use of icons as a language of grief.
