Saint Louis Cemetery is the name of three Roman Catholic cemeteries in New Orleans, Louisiana. All of these graves are above ground vaults; most were constructed in the 18th century and 19th century.
Doug Keister, author/photographer of Going Out in Style: The Architecture of Eternity states that
The custom of above-ground burial in New Orleans is a mixture of folklore and fact.[1]
The vaults are in fact more due to French and Spanish tradition than they are to water table problems.[2]
Cemeteries #1 and #2 are included on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail.
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St. Louis Cemetery No. 1
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| Location: | Bounded by Basin, St. Louis, Conti, and Treme Sts., New Orleans, Louisiana |
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| Built: | 1789 |
| Architect: | Foy,Florville; Monsseaux,P.H. |
| Architectural style: | Neo-Classical |
| Governing body: | Private |
| NRHP Reference#: | 75000855[3] |
| Added to NRHP: | July 30, 1975 |
St. Louis Cemetery #1 is the oldest and most famous. It was opened in 1789, replacing the city's older St. Peter Cemetery (no longer in existence) as the main burial ground when the city was redesigned after a fire in 1788.
It is 8 blocks from the Mississippi River, on the north side of Basin Street, one block beyond the inland border of the French Quarter. It borders the Iberville housing project that was built over what was formerly Storyville. It has been in continuous use since its foundation. The nonprofit group Save Our Cemeteries and commercial businesses offer tours for a fee.
Famous New Orleanians buried in St. Louis #1 include Etienne de Boré, wealthy pioneer of the sugar industry and the first mayor of New Orleans; Homer Plessy, the plaintiff from the landmark 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson Supreme Court decision on civil rights; and Ernest N. "Dutch" Morial, the first African-American mayor of New Orleans.
The renowned Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau is believed to be interred in the Glapion family crypt. Other notable New Orleanians here include Bernard de Marigny, the French-Creole playboy who brought the game of craps to the United States; Barthelemy Lafon, the architect and surveyor who allegedly became one of Jean Lafitte's pirates; and Paul Morphy, one of the earliest world champions of chess. Delphine LaLaurie is also believed to lay in rest here.
The cemetery spans just one square block but is the resting place of over 100,000 dead.[4] A Protestant section (generally not vaulted) lies in the north-west section.
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St. Louis Cemetery No. 2
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| Location: | Bounded by Claiborne, Robertson, St. Louis, and Iberville St., New Orleans, Louisiana |
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| Built: | 1823 |
| Architect: | Multiple |
| Architectural style: | Greek Revival, Exotic Revival, Gothic Revival |
| Governing body: | Private |
| NRHP Reference#: | 75000856[3] |
| Added to NRHP: | July 30, 1975 |
St. Louis #2 is located some 3 blocks back from St. Louis #1, bordering Claiborne Avenue. It was consecrated in 1823. A number of notable jazz and rhythm & blues musicians are buried here, including Danny Barker and Ernie K. Doe. Also entombed here is Dominique You, a notorious pirate Jean Lafitte who assisted in the defense of the city against the British in the Battle of New Orleans. Andre Cailloux, African-American hero of the American Civil War is also buried here.
The cemetery received minor flooding during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and its tombs seemed virtually untouched by the storm when the water went down, aside from the brownish waterline visible on all structures that were flooded.
There are many notable citizens of 19th and 20th century New Orleans laid to rest here. For example the tomb of Blessed Mother Henriette DeLille, who is a candidate for sainthood by the Catholic Church, Jean Baptiste Dupeire (1795–1874) prominent citizen of New Orleans, among others.
It was listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
Politicians interred or entombed here:
St. Louis #3 is located some 2 miles (3.2 km) back from the French Quarter, some 30 blocks from the Mississippi, fronting Esplanade Avenue near Bayou St. John. It opened in 1854. The crypts on average are more elaborate than at the other St. Louis cemeteries, including a number of fine 19th century marble tombs. Those entombed include ragtime composer Paul Sarebresole and photographer E. J. Bellocq.
St. Louis #3 also includes a Greek Orthodox section. The cemetery was heavily flooded during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, but its tombs escaped relatively unscathed. There was some plaster damage from debris.
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