How Cemetery Historiography Can Reinvent Cemetery Preservation in New Orleans or... 

Find your tomb, Research your tomb, Restore your tomb

The text below is excerpted from a recent presentation to the 2016 Annual Conference of the Louisiana Historical Association, presented by Emily Ford, MSHP, of Oak and Laurel Cemetery Preservation, LL

Metairie Cemetery, 1880. Detroit Publishing Company, Library of Congress.

New Orleans cemeteries are so unique that the simple mention of them creates a picture in one’s mind.  That picture is likely one of intricate aisles populated by stately, yet crumbling, above-ground tombs; long abandoned, anachronistic cities of the dead which offer up stories through their carved tablets. 

Traditional histories of New Orleans cemeteries have been static, and ever tied to their place in popular culture.  For example, Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 was founded in 1833 as part of what is now the Garden District.  Over the next century, families built above-ground tombs ranging in style from simple masonry structures to grand Classical revival masterpieces.  From this foundation, the interpretation of the cemetery usually branches into famous people buried therein, or a focus on specific architectural gems. 

These interpretations usually rely on a few primary sources.  Some cemetery records, selected newspaper articles, and general contemporary observations of the cemetery as it exists in the moment tend to dominate the narrative.  What few critical analyses of cemetery architecture exist tend to be repeated through numerous secondary sources.  This tends to amplify their subjects as singularly important.  For example, the excellent research of Patricia Brady on the stonecutter Florville Foy published in 1993 has been so revisited that the place of Foy among hundreds of other nineteenth century stonecutters appears paramount, as opposed to part of a larger craft community.[1]

Girod Street Cemetery just prior to its demolition, 1957. Photo by Robert W. Kelley LIFE Magazine Collection (Wikimedia Cultural Commons)

Beyond the few comprehensive histories relevant to New Orleans cemeteries lie the bulk of what is currently available – histories that focus on cemetery “residents” (for example, Marie Laveau or Colonel Harry T. Hays), high architecture, or the occult.  These histories rely on the basic historiographies previously mentioned and typically add curious second-hand stories or rehashed false reports.  For example, the translation of the tablet of André Valsin Labarre in St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 has been repeated incorrectly for more than a century, but never once has it been noticed that it is located in the wrong lot.[2]

Conversely, more dynamic and critical approaches to writing cemetery history will inevitably stumble upon landscapes which dramatically changed as their stakeholders did.  For example, the landscape of Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 was not always one of above-ground tombs.  The first stakeholders in this cemetery, predominately German and Irish immigrants, found above-ground burial to be perverse, and instead buried below ground.  It was not until the 1850s, when their assimilated children gained control of the family lot, that tombs were constructed to emulate the New Orleans ideal.[3]

Facts like this not only present a more accurate history of each cemetery, but also accentuate the changing uses each lot would see over time.  Sale of lots, demolition of tombs, changes in materials, adaptive reuse, abandonment, and changes in technology are a constant presence in the history of any New Orleans cemetery.  Consideration of these details empowers preservationists, stakeholders, and cemetery authorities to more appropriately care for these resources.  By shifting the view of cemeteries from that of static landscapes (“outdoor museums”) to one of functional cultural resources, their history and their preservation are dually served. 

Entrance to Metairie Cemetery, 1901. Detroit Publishing Company, Library of Congress.

Same view as above, 2016. Construction of I-10 shifted the configuration of the historic cemetery in the 1960s.

A critical approach to cemetery history combines a multifaceted catalog of primary resources.  Original records vary in their condition and availability.  With regard to tomb construction, cultures of craft typically focused on the final product and not on drawings, plans, or specifications. 
In order to piece together the history of a New Orleans cemetery, some creative and rigorous searching is in order.  By pairing what primary resources are available with thorough and educated examination of the landscape itself, it is possible to determine the life story of any city of the dead.
           
Original Cemetery Records
​There are between 32 and 46 historic cemeteries in New Orleans, depending on the criteria employed.  Each one is unique in age, architecture, and culture.  They also vary in terms of ownership and, thus, quality and location of records.  In general, there are four types of cemetery ownership –
 

• Religious:  Catholic, Protestant, or Jewish, typically owned by the respective congregation, but not always
• Municipal:  Today owned by the City of New Orleans (in most cases), but usually originating as municipal burial grounds for independent suburbs
• Fraternal:  Established by mutual benevolent or trade organizations for their members and families, i.e. Masonic Cemetery, Odd Fellows Rest, or Fireman’s Charitable Benevolent Association (Cypress Grove and Greenwood Cemetery)
• Private:  Cemeteries owned by private corporations and operated for profit.  The prime example is Metairie Lakelawn Cemetery

 
Records of cemetery burials, constructions, demolitions, or demographics were kept by the owning body of each cemetery.  Owning bodies vary in their methods of access, preservation, and retention of records.  

Records of tomb purchases, Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, 1840. From microfilm, New Orleans Public Library.

​Historic Images
What cemetery records cannot contribute to the preservation and documentation of cemeteries is often accessible in a variety of traditional and non-traditional photographic resources.

The use of historic photographs in the identification of property and the preservation of individual tombs has not been frequently visited.  Furthermore, many photographs which can prove crucial to preservation efforts are difficult to find.  When located, however, these photographs can tell the story of an entire cemetery, save a tomb from demolition, or re-unite a family with their property.

The photographs of Clarence John Laughlin are an excellent example.  Recently digitized by the Historic New Orleans Collection, the photographs date from the 1930s through the 1970s.  Laughlin’s prolific hauntings through New Orleans cemeteries prove to be time capsules without compare. 

Identification of precise location of photographs yields not only histories of specific structures but also entire landscapes.  For example, a 1920s postcard showing St. Roch Cemetery and a 1907 photograph of Holt Cemetery show an overwhelming prevalence of wooden markers.  Comparison with present-day landscapes indicates enormous changes in the use of cemeteries over time – notably, the industrialization of the monument industry by mid-twentieth century.  

St. Roch Cemetery No. 1 and Chapel, 1895. Photograph by Mugnier (Wikimedia Commons)

Same view, 2016.

This shift overwhelmingly transformed cemeteries from highly individualized properties maintained by families to largely mono-stylistic landscapes maintained by cemetery staff – or not maintained at all. 

As we move into the twenty-first century, the presence of Hollywood in New Orleans cemeteries has created a new type of historiography. 

Productions like Easy Rider, Love Song for Bobby Long, NCIS, and dozens of others with scenes taking place in New Orleans cemeteries inadvertently document them. Easy Rider is a significant example.  Fortunately for historians and preservationists, Peter Fonda’s place in the arms of the statue of “Italia” provides an image taken only years before a heavy-handed “restoration” permanently damaged it. 

Screen shots from the film Easy Rider, showing the face of the statue of Italia, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1

Statue of Italia, 2016. The statue shows surface loss, pitting, and discoloration consistent with treatment via bleach and pressure washing.

Ephemera and Oral Histories
Numerous resources exist beyond photographs and scant cemetery records.  These require some amount of supporting evidence, and are best paired with observations of the built environment itself.

Some ephemeral records were produced by the purchasers of the tombs themselves.  Tomb deeds, once a common part of family papers, are rare, but those that do exist show that many tombs have a chain of title.  Such evidence is also present in the notarial archives of tomb builders like Hugh McDonald, Paul Monsseaux, and James Hagan.

The full potential of all of these resources is reached when paired with on-site examination of the landscape.  This is achieved through painstakingly inspection of tombs for alterations, materials, and inscriptions.  Larger-scale data collecting also proves fruitful.  For example, while primary resources suggest stonecutter Anthony Barret predominately served a German-speaking market, database compilations of his signed work in Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 confirm the breadth of his presence in the German community.  These conclusions are additionally supported by oral histories and interviews with the ever-dwindling community of cemetery craftsmen and caretakers, whose potential has rarely been formally tapped.

Database table of craftsman-signed tombs in Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 which relate to German heritage. From "The Stonecutters and Tomb Builders of Lafayette Cemetery No. 1," by Emily Ford

​In conclusion, the hidden historical record of New Orleans cemeteries reveals dynamic landscapes that were specific to their community, and constantly shaped by that community.  By resurrecting these histories, which highlight stewardship, family involvement, and participation with cemetery authorities, these values can be preserved.  Through these means, we can more accurately represent New Orleans heritage and community agency for those who take interest in it and are inheritors of it.
 
Have questions about cemetery interment research or architectural histories of cemetery properties?  Contact Oak and Laurel Cemetery Preservation, LLC.

​[1] Patricia Brady, “Florville Foy, F.M.C.: Master Marble Cutter and Tomb Builder.” Southern Quarterly 32, no. 2 (Winter 1993):  9-20.
[2] Emily Ford, “André Valsin Labarre:  Victime de Son Imprudence,” http://www.oakandlaurel.com/blog/andre-valcin-labarre-victime-de-son-imprudence (January 9, 2016).  Based on in situ investigation, Archdiocese records, and 1930s WPA Index (housed at NOPL), this well-known tablet has travelled from Labarre’s actual resting place.
[3] “History and Incidents of the Plague in New Orleans,” Harper’s New Monthly Magazine 7 (June-Nov. 1853), 798; Bennet Dowler, Researches upon the necropolis of New Orleans, 22; George Edwin Waring and George Washington Cable, History and Present Condition of New Orleans, Louisiana, and Report on the City of Austin, Texas (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1881), 58; John Frederick Nau, The German People of New Orleans, 1850-1900, 15.  Architectural histories within the landscape of Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 confirm this progression from below-ground burials to above-ground tombs and (eventually) copings.