All Saints Days; only in New Orleans

For All Saints Day in New Orleans, traditions new and old

Published: Sunday, October 30, 2011, 9:00 PM

By Annette Sisco, The Times-Picayune NOLA.com

The line between the present and the past blurs in New Orleans, and it seemed to vanish altogether one day off congested Claiborne Avenue in St. Louis Cemetery No. 2. "Just drive on in,” Anna Ross had urged.

View full sizeThe Times-Picayune ArchiveSt. Louis Cemetery No. 2 was established in 1823 and is the oldest cemetery in New Orleans.

The cemetery, established in 1823, is crowded with some of the oldest and most historic tombs in the city. Inscriptions in French go back almost 200 years. Yet above us roared traffic on the Claiborne Avenue overpass.
Ross, a preservationist and member of Friends of New Orleans Cemeteries, was there with her daughter, Heather Twichell, to spruce up the Duval family tomb for All Saints Day, which is Tuesday. The tomb was in the spotlight a couple of years ago when Ernie K-Doe, legendary local musician and a family friend, was buried there; later, his wife, Antoinette, and his mother-in-law joined him.
Antoinette K-Doe’s daughter, Betty Fox was also there. The trio gathers every All Saints Day in the cemetery, along with friends and other families with loved ones buried nearby.
The old custom has gotten an update at St. Louis No. 2. On Tuesday at noon, a second-line will come over from nearby St. Louis No. 1, the city’s oldest burial ground, said Rob Florence of Friends of New Orleans Cemeteries.
St. Louis No. 1 on Basin Street will be the site of an event called “Dearly Departed,” billed as “a cemetery exploration with costumed historical characters,” on Tuesday from 10 a.m. to noon. Among the famous figures buried in St. Louis No. 1 are 19th-century developer Bernard de Marigny and, of course, voodoo queen Marie Laveau. Call 504.583.7309.
Meanwhile, from 9 a.m. to noon, the preservation group Save Our Cemeteries will staff information tables at St. Louis No. 1 and St. Louis No. 2, as well as Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, 1400 Washington Ave. in the Garden District. There will be a tour of St. Louis No. 2 at 10 a.m. Reservations are required. Call 504.525.3377.
Even if you don’t have family there, Tuesday is a good day to visit the cemeteries.
For the living, admission is always free. And the past never seems so present.