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.
The vaults are in fact more due to French and Spanish tradition than they are to water table problems.
Cemeteries #1 and #2 are included on the Louisiana African American Heritage Trail.
Read more about Saint Louis Cemetery: Saint Louis #1, Saint Louis #2, Saint Louis #3
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And keeps the gate of hell!”
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“Each has his own tree of ancestors, but at the top of all sits Probably Arboreal.”
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“The cemetery of the victims of human cruelty in our century is extended to include yet another vast cemetery, that of the unborn.”
—John Paul II (Karol Wojtyla)