Land of the Lost

Holt Cemetery in New Orleans was established in 1879 and is still currently accepting new arrivals. It’s one of the only cemeteries in the city that consists of mostly below ground burials – most of the dead in New Orleans aren’t actually “buried” due to the marshy ground. And because of the proximity of ground water here, the residents are only buried 4 1/2 feet deep. A plot here costs the family $450, and as long as they maintain it they can keep putting fresh bodies in that same spot forever. Burials have to be a year apart, but because of quick decomposition, they don’t just pile up. Some of the homemade headstones we saw had over 10 names on them. This is considered sort of a “Potters Field” which is where they bury the unclaimed, indigent and sometimes prisoners without families to speak of. Obviously a lot of these souls’ families could probably barely afford the $450, so the handmade crosses and graveside accents don’t have the same aesthetic as the fancy marble sculptures at Metairie Cemetery, just blocks away. However, I have to agree with other descriptions I’ve read – it’s that same aesthetic that makes this a truly unique New Orleans “city of the dead”; and just because it’s not fancy doesn’t mean that this place isn’t overflowing with love… and sometimes bones.

A vial of what appears to be blood, hanging from a tree in Holt Cemetery, New Orleans.