Oakland Cemetery Greenhouse Honors Beau Allen

By Pamela Henman
When it opens this fall, the forthcoming greenhouse at Oakland Cemetery will bear the name of Beaumont “Beau” Allen. He is one of the historic Victorian garden cemetery’s longtime supporters and leaders.
Historic Oakland Foundation (HOF) will host a ribbon cutting and dedication ceremony at the Beaumont Allen Greenhouse on Thursday, November 19. The private event will include remarks from HOF Executive Director David Moore, a representative from the city of Atlanta, Buckhead Men’s Garden Club (BMGC) President Richard Dunville, and Beau Allen’s widow Sally Allen.
“Our new greenhouse will ably serve Oakland Cemetery every day. It will serve as a fitting, long-lasting memorial to Beau’s work at this treasured landmark that he loved so much,” said David Moore, executive director of HOF.
Allen, the youngest son of former Atlanta mayor Ivan Allen, Jr. and Louise Richardson Allen, served as HOF board chairman from 2004 to 2005. He was also on the organization’s board of directors and board of advisors for more than 10 years. Allen died in August 2014. He was laid to rest next to his parents at Oakland Cemetery.
This fall, after more than four decades, Oakland Cemetery will once again have a functioning greenhouse, thanks to the BMGC, the Atlanta History Center (AHC), and other partners. The last greenhouse at Oakland Cemetery was demolished in the early 1970s. BMGC was required to remove its greenhouse when the Atlanta Cyclorama announced its relocation to the AHC. The greenhouse was offered to HOF and the 50-foot by 30-foot aluminum and tempered glass structure was a perfect fit at the ruins of Oakland’s former greenhouse.
For more details on the history of greenhouses at Oakland Cemetery, please visit www.oaklandcemetery.com/projects/greenhouse.