St. Louis Number One - History
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St. Louis Number One in the 1940s. Compare the condition of the pyramid-shaped Varney tomb in this photo with its present condition.
St. Louis Number One was built in 1789. It is the oldest cemetery in the metro New Orleans area. Its location, on what is now Basin Street between Conti and St. Louis Streets was actually outside of the city at the time it was built (figure 1). Like most cemeteries, it was built just out of town, but the town eventually overtook the cemetery. The neighborhood around the cemetery became known as Faubourg Treme, then later it was known as the infamous “Storyville� red-light district. Built and consecrated in 1789, St. Louis Number One is the cities oldest cemetery still standing. It is not, however the first cemetery built in New Orleans. The original cemetery bounded Rampart, Toulouse, St. Peter, and Burgundy. This cemetery (I have found no reference to its name; if anyone knows, please e-mail me with a
source.) was abandoned after the 1788 fire. It was decided to build the new St. Louis cemetery outside the existing city walls. The northern limit of New Orleans was Rue Rampart at the time; that is why the street is so named. Notice the wall in the map (below).
Colonial New Orleans, 1715-1803. The star outside the city rampart indicates the location of St. Louis Cemetery Number One
By the 1820s, however, it was obvious that the city would need additional cemeteries. In spite of family and benovelent society tombs and the walls of “oven� niche tombs, the cemetery was filling up. A growing population combined with outbreaks of yellow fever led to the construction of St. Louis Number Two two blocks behind Number One, and the Girod Street Cemetery over on the American" side of town. The Girod Street Cemetery was the city's first Protestant-owned cemetery. Prior to its opening, Protestant New Orleanians were buried in the back section of St. Louis Number One, in what is known as the “Protestant section.�
All three of the St. Louis Cemeteries (as well as most of the other cemeteries named after saints) are owned and operated by the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Although some the tombs in St. Louis Number One have fallen on hard times, the archdiocese's perpetual care funds keep the cemeteries clean and neat. As funds come available, work is done to restore some of the older tombs (particularly those with historical merit).
Safety Warning!If all this has you ready to head out and visit St. Louis Number One, please read our page on cemetery safety. The cemetery is in a potentially dangerous neighborhood, and you need to be aware of this before going there.
Researching St. Louis Cemetery Records
Cemetery records are an obvious primary source for those doing geneaological research. Unfortunately, the Archdiocese of New Orleans is not on-line, but you can contact their archivist at the following address:
ARCHDIOCESAN ARCHIVES
Archdiocese of New Orleans
1100 Chartres St.
New Orleans LA 70116-2596
504-529-2651, fx: 504-529-2001
Charles Nolan, Archivist; by appointment.
The archives has four main sections: sacramental and cemetery records (1718 - ca. 1900); archdiocesan historical records (Spanish colonial period - present); several manuscript collections (e.g. Baudier Collection); and a small research library. The archives serves as the archdiocesan records management office.
