Being America’s most haunted city, it only seems natural that many of New Orleans’ Cemeteries are considered haunted. For hundreds of years, ghosts and phantoms have been talked about and seen in these historic Cemeteries. While we do not visit most of these cemeteries on our tours, they are important parts of New Orleans’ folklore and haunted history. Our ghost tours do not visit any cemeteries, no ghost tours in New Orleans visits them. During the day, you can join us on our Cemetery Tours at 11am (or 10AM on Sundays), if you’d like to learn more about the Cemeteries of New Orleans.
Haunted Cemeteries always bring about a mental imagery of creepy settings and feelings of dread. When people think of haunted locations, cemeteries are probably a close second to haunted houses. Personally, I find haunted cemeteries interesting for a number of reasons. Most of all, we can wonder, why are there ghosts in the Cemeteries? After all, if after death, we had to choose a place to haunt, why would it be a cemetery? Wouldn’t you choose a place more welcoming, a place that made you feel closer to those that you loved when you were alive? Perhaps, when we die, if we become a ghost we don’t have a choice in where our soul haunts. Our maybe the ghosts of those buried inside simply stay there because of the people who come to visit the Cemetery. I don’t know that anyone will ever know why Cemeteries are haunted.
Here in New Orleans, there are many famous Cemeteries. Names like St. Louis Cemetery, St. Roch Cemetery and Lafayette Cemetery are well known to not only locals in New Orleans, but visitors to our city as well. These historic Cemeteries are very old by American standards. Dating back to the 1800’s and earlier, these cemeteries have had a long time to collect their fair share of ghosts and hauntings.
Today, whether, through the retelling of urban legends and folklore, or people telling their own personal paranormal experiences at New Orleans’ Cemeteries, the idea of haunted cemeteries in New Orleans is alive and well.
We have listed a number of haunted cemeteries in New Orleans.
Perhaps the most famous, historic, and most haunted in all of New Orleans, St. Louis Cemetery #1 has had ghost stories told about it for over 200 years. Perhaps the most famous ghost of New Orleans, Marie Laveau, is said to haunt this famous cemetery.
Since you can’t take a ghost tour of St. Louis Cemetery #1 we have included much of the haunted stories and folklore associated with St. Louis Cemetery #1.
Read more about the Ghosts of St. Louis Cemetery #1
One of the least visited of New Orleans’ Cemeteries, St. Roch is certainly one of the strangest Cemeteries in New Orleans. Built in 1874, St. Roch Cemetery is named after Saint Roch, the patron saint of dogs and preventions against epidemics.<
Being named after the Patron Saint of Dogs might help explain the ghost dog which has been seen in the cemetery, among other ghosts.
Read more about the Ghosts of St. Roch Cemetery
Metairie Cemetery is one of the grandest cemeteries in New Orleans, and it also seems to be one of the most haunted cemeteries in New Orleans as well. For over 100 years people have reported seeing ghosts haunting Metairie Cemetery.
Today, any visitor to New Orleans should make plans to spend a few hours exploring this historic and haunted Cemetery.
Read more about the Ghosts of Metairie Cemetery
Located in the Garden District, Lafayette Cemetery is one of the most historically significant cemeteries in New Orleans. It also happens to be one of the most haunted.
Since the founding of Lafayette Cemetery, an untold number of people have reported seeing ghostly figures walking through the Cemetery. No list of the most haunted cemeteries in New Orleans would be complete without Lafayette Cemetery.
Read more about the Ghosts of Lafayette Cemetery
Throughout New Orleans you'll find office buildings, parks, even a football stadium built on top of locations which were formerly cemeteries. Progress has cost New Orleans many of her cemeteries and burial spots.
We took the time to track down many of these abandoned cemeteries - and detailing their history and stories.
Read more about New Orleans' Abandoned Cemeteries