St. Louis Cemetery No. 1: Founded in 1789, St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 on Rampart Street is the oldest existing cemetery in the city. There you will find the purported tomb of Voodoo queen Marie Laveau. New Orleans Cemetery tours are given by various groups, but an especially knowledgeable one is conducted by the group Save Our Cemeteries on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. Meet at 621 Royal Street. The Cemetery is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and on Sunday from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon.
St. Louis Cemetery No. 2: St. Louis No. 2, established in 1823, is located in what is presently a more dangerous area of town. It is open the same hours as No. 1. Cemetery tours are available, although difficult to find, but it is highly recommended that visiting this cemetery be done only in guided tour groups.
St. Louis Cemetery No. 3: At 3421 Esplanade, the St. Louis #3 cemetery is probably the most accessible as well as the largest of the St. Louis group. Established in 1854, it contains the outstanding Byzantine tomb of the Hellenic Orthodox Community and the final resting place of Storyville photographer Ernest Belloq. Many tour buses go here, but you can safely wander through alone, and enjoy a self-guided cemetery tour. Take a photo tour.
Lafayette Cemetery No. 1: Lafayette No. 1 is the cemetery most often used in films made in New Orleans, and is across the street from the famed Commander's Palace Restaurant in the Garden Distict. It was the burial grounds for what was once the City Of Lafayette. Open Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Save Our Cemeteries conducts cemetery tours Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Take a photo tour.
St. Roch Cemetery: At 1725 St. Roch Avenue, this cemetery is off the beaten track. The most famous feature here is the Chapel built by Father Thevis in thanksgiving for deliverance from one of the frequent yellow fever epidemics of the 19th century. Recipients of favors have placed various souvenirs in the chapel, such as old leg braces, or replicas of body parts, to represent favors granted. Guided cemetery tours are recommended. Take a photo tour.
Metairie Cemetery: Located at 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd. and founded in 1872, Metairie is entered in the National Register of Historic Places. It contains diverse cemetery architecture, including a Roman temple, an Egyptian Revival tomb, and the memorials of the Army of Tennessee and the Army of Northern Virginia. Open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily, it can be safely toured. Go to the funeral home office for information.
Cypress Grove Cemetery: Sometimes called the Fireman's Cemetery, this cemetery was founded in 1840. Numerous graves and vaults commemorate deceased firemen, and there are several unusual tombs such as that of the Chinese association Soon On Tong. Located at 120 City Park Avenue near the convergence of Canal Street, there are several other cemeteries to tour in the area.
Greenwood Cemetery: At 5242 Canal Blvd., Greenwood is home to the Protective Order of Elks Society tomb, as well as to other society tombs of varying groups. Writer John Kennedy Toole ("A Confederacy of Dunces") is buried here.
Hebrew Rest Cemetery: Located at 2100 Pelopidas St., Hebrew Rest was founded in 1872. The beautiful gates were made for the World's Industrial and Cotton Centennial in 1884 and are the only existing structures from that event.
Gates of Prayer Cemetery: The oldest extant Jewish cemetery in New Orleans was founded in 1846. Located at Canal and Bernadotte Streets, it contains many older tombstones with Hebrew inscriptions. There is also a tomb in the form of a lighthouse commemorating a merchant who dedicated his life to the Lighthouse For The Blind.
