Panama City's 127-year-old Oakland Cemetery closer to gaining national historic designation
PANAMA CITY — Historic Oakland Cemetery is one step closer to receiving national recognition.
City commissioners have approved the preliminary application to the Florida Department of State's Division of Historic Preservation to list the cemetery on the National Register of Historic Places.
By adding the 127-year-old cemetery to the register, officials said it can generate community interest in important sites and give credibility to local efforts to preserve historic resources.
In October, city officials and the Bay County Historical Society recognized the cemetery as an important site in local history with an official Bay County Historical Marker.
City Manager Mark McQueen said officials are grateful to seek out the national recognition for Panama City's history.
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"Certainly this is a way to honor (those buried there) by putting it on the National Historic Registry. By doing that, it also allows us to have access to additional funds to be able to make sure that we're maintaining the headstones and all of the grounds and the fencing and those types of things," McQueen said.
Oakland Cemetery, at the intersection of Balboa Avenue and 11th Street, was officially established in 1908 by George Mortimer West, 13 years after the first graves were dug in 1895. West, a founding father of Panama City, farmed and plotted the land himself. Along with West, many other notable Panama Citians such as Belle Booth McKenzie, are buried at the cemetery.
McQueen spoke of the vision West had for the area, saying he was doing urban planning before it was officially urban planning.
"He was a very visionary entrepreneur that had a vision for how St. Andrews should be laid out. He was the one that laid it all out, laid out the whole community, laid out the gardens and everything," McQueen said. "He wanted to maintain the natural resources and preserve the beauty that we have along the water's edge, while also being very forthright with how he was designing neighborhoods."
McQueen said by placing the cemetery on the list, it would shine a much-needed spotlight on Panama City and its history.
"There are a lot of tourists, there are a lot of people that go around and look at the National Historic Registry items and places because they're in pursuit of history and knowledge," McQueen said. "And I think this is going to add to that, we would anticipate that people will also come and visit our cemeteries to be able to understand Mr. West, who he was, and what he did for our community."
This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Panama City wants Oakland Cemetery named national historic place
