St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 – New Orleans, LA
St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 is the oldest surviving cemetery in New Orleans. Spanish colonial authorities established it by royal decree on August 14, 1789, after the older St. Peter Street Cemetery (inside the French Quarter) filled and the city expanded. The new ground sat on low, swampy land just beyond the city limits, roughly where Basin, Conti, St. Louis, and Tremé Streets meet today, a short walk from the French Quarter. Early burials were often in-ground; after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase and repeated flooding, above-ground tombs became the norm. A 1803 city ordinance encouraged the practice, and the distinctive “cities of the dead” style took hold. The cemetery occupies about one city block and contains roughly 700 tombs that have held the remains of well over 100,000 people through successive reuse of the vaults. It remains an active burial ground under the Archdiocese of New Orleans and has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1975.
Notable interments include Étienne de Boré (first mayor of New Orleans and a pioneer of granulated sugar), chess champion Paul Morphy, civil-rights plaintiff Homer Plessy, and architect Benjamin Latrobe (who died of yellow fever in 1820 while working on the city’s water system). Delphine LaLaurie, the notorious 19th-century slave owner, is also traditionally associated with a tomb here. In 2015 the cemetery was closed to unescorted visitors because of vandalism and trespassing; entry is now limited to guided tours or people with family members interred on the grounds.
The most famous burial is that of Marie Laveau (c. 1801–1881), the free woman of color widely known as the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans. Contemporary records, including the 1881 sexton’s entry and newspaper accounts, place her remains in the middle vault of the Glapion family tomb (marked “Famille Vve Paris née Laveau”). Offerings and marks left at the tomb date back well into the 19th century; the later practice of carving three Xs became widespread in the 20th century and caused serious damage, leading to restoration and stricter rules.
Above-ground tombs of St. Louis Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans.
Nicolas Cage’s pyramid tomb in the cemetery.
Reported Hauntings and Folklore
Stories of spirits in St. Louis No. 1 have circulated for generations. The most persistent concern Marie Laveau. Visitors and tour guides report seeing a woman in a red-and-white turban and brightly colored dress walking the narrow paths or near her tomb; some say she vanishes when followed. Other accounts describe cold spots, the sensation of being touched or pushed, or the sound of chanting. For decades people left flowers, coins, beads, and written requests at the Glapion tomb and marked it with Xs in the belief that Laveau would grant favors. Historians note that the X practice has no clear root in traditional Voodoo and that the tomb was repeatedly defaced; the Archdiocese and preservation groups have worked to stop it. Claims that Laveau appears as a black crow or on St. John’s Eve (June 23) also circulate, though they rest on anecdote rather than contemporary evidence.
Other reported figures include:
- Henry Vignes, a sailor who bought a tomb before a voyage and is said to return looking for it.
- Phantom funeral processions or figures in period clothing moving between the tombs.
- Occasional stories involving Delphine LaLaurie or unnamed Civil War-era soldiers.
These remain unverified personal accounts. The cemetery’s age, density of burials, above-ground architecture, and association with Laveau have made it a staple of ghost tours, but primary historical records do not document specific spectral events.
What is documented is a Spanish-era burial ground opened in 1789, the shift to above-ground tombs driven by the high water table, the resting place of many early New Orleans figures including Marie Laveau in the Glapion tomb, heavy 20th-century tourist traffic and vandalism, and the current guided-tour-only access policy.
Relevant links
NOLA.com: St. Louis Cemetery No. 1: Is Marie Laveau where they say she is? — burial records for Laveau
Wikipedia: Saint Louis Cemetery — overview of Nos. 1, 2, and 3 and notable burials
Save Our Cemeteries: St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 — history and visitor information
64 Parishes: St. Louis Cemeteries No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3 — concise historical summary
NOLA.com: A stroll through St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 and its history — local history and notable interments
The Official St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 Tour | New Orleans Cemetery
Find out more about St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 here.