Seven thousand souls rest here. In Lafayette Cemetery Number 1. A city block holds them. Family tombs stand tall. They are almost 1100.
This is Lafayette Cemetery Number 1. The oldest of New Orleans’ seven municipal cemeteries. It’s nestled in the heart of the Garden District. Between Washington Sixth Prytania and Coliseum streets it stands. A non-segregated space. A place for all faiths.
Opened in 1833 Lafayette Cemetery Number 1 was designed by Benjamin Buisson. He was the city surveyor. Buisson laid it out. He created two center aisles. A cruciform pattern. Trees line the paths. It’s like a park a peaceful garden. Originally shell paved avenues. They accommodated funeral processions.
Imagine the people buried here. Immigrants from over 25 countries. Natives from 26 states. They were working-class people. Wealthy cotton factors and merchants. The Irish and German immigrants are here. So are the Southern Yankees.
Society tombs stand as testaments to groups. Volunteer firemen. The Odd Fellows. The German Presbyterian Community. There’s even a tomb for destitute orphan boys. The New Orleans Home for Incurables also has a tomb here.
Judge Ferguson is here. He was a defendant in Plessy versus Ferguson. Brigadier General Harry T. Hays rests here. He led the 1st Louisiana Brigade. The Brunie family is buried here. They were famous jazz musicians.
Lafayette Cemetery Number 1 has another claim to fame. It’s fictional residents. Anne Rice’s Mayfair witches have a tomb. She even had a jazz funeral procession. It was to promote her book Memnoch the Devil. Lestat’s tomb from Interview with the Vampire is possibly inspired by the Karstendiek tomb. Many films have been made here.
Nearly 500 wall vaults line Washington Avenue. Many plaques are un-engraved. Some tombs are filled. Families may have sold their plots. Closure tablets show many names. The Smith-Dumestre tomb has 37 names. Ten more may be added.
Yellow fever ravaged New Orleans. Thousands died. Lafayette Cemetery Number 1 filled rapidly. Victorian times saw people buried with soil from their homelands. It’s a poignant detail. It reveals the longing for home. Even in death.
Walk among these tombs. Reflect on the lives lived here. Lafayette Cemetery Number 1. A piece of New Orleans’ history. It’s a haunting beautiful place. A place to remember.