Holt Cemetery is a

potter's field A potter's field, paupers' grave or common grave is a place for the burial of unknown, unclaimed or indigent people. "Potter's field" is of Biblical origin, referring to Akeldama (meaning ''field of blood'' in Aramaic), stated to have been pur ...

cemetery in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

. It is located next to

Delgado Community College Delgado Community College (DCC) is a public community college in Louisiana, with campuses throughout the New Orleans metropolitan area. Its current campuses are in New Orleans (Orleans Parish) and in Jefferson Parish. The original City Park Camp ...

, behind the right field fence of the college's baseball facility, Kirsch-Rooney Stadium. The cemetery is named after Dr. Joseph Holt, an official of the New Orleans Board of Health (famously involved with city health issues concerning Storyville, the

Red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex industry, sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light district ...

of New Orleans) who officially established the cemetery in the 19th century. Holt Cemetery is one of the Historic Cemeteries of New Orleans. The cemetery was established in 1879 to inter the bodies of poor or

indigent Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse

residents of the city. Funeral processions to Holt Cemetery were generally around, rather than through, the city. The original cemetery was 5.5 acres, and it was expanded in 1909 to 7 acres. Nearly all of the tombs are in-ground burials. As established, ownership of the graves at Holt Cemetery were given to the families of the deceased for the cost of digging the grave and subsequent maintenance of the plot. Most of the graves and tombs at Holt Cemetery were not commercially or professionally produced but were instead fabricated by families of the deceased, giving the cemetery a strong personal touch. The cemetery contains the remains of early blues and jazz musicians including Babe Stovall, Jessie Hill and Charles "Buddy" Bolden. The battered remains of

Robert Charles Robert Charles (1865–1900) was an African-American living in New Orleans who took part in a gunfight after being assaulted by a police officer, leading to the death of four police and two civilians, and the wounding of over 20 others. The event ...

, at the center of the 1900 New Orleans race riot were briefly interred there, then dug up, and incinerated. Later, in 1973, four victims of the UpStairs Lounge arson attack, Ferris LeBlanc and three unidentified males, were buried in a mass grave at the cemetery.The Upstairs Fire – June 24, 1973 – 25th Anniversary Memorial Service
/ref> Over the years, Holt Cemetery has been a destination of ghost hunters, with frequent incidents of

grave-robbing Grave robbery, tomb robbing, or tomb raiding is the act of uncovering a grave (burial), grave, tomb or crypt to steal Grave goods, commodities. It is usually perpetrated to take and profit from valuable artefact (archaeology), artefacts or person ...

and reports of

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and

Santería Santería (), also known as Regla de Ocha, Regla Lucumí, or Lucumí, is an African diaspora religions, Afro-Caribbean religion that developed in Cuba during the late 19th century. It arose amid a process of syncretism between the traditional ...

rituals. In one notable case, a neopagan witch named Ender Darling took bones from Holt Cemetery for use in magic, posting an offer on a

Facebook group Facebook Platform, Facebook is a Social network, social-network service website launched on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg. The following is a list of software and technology features that can be found on the Facebook website and mobile ...

for neopagan witches to sell the bones for the cost of shipping. The post quickly attracted controversy on Facebook and

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, leading to Darling's investigation and arrest, the collapse of the Facebook group the offer was posted on, and a new state law strengthening penalties for trafficking in human remains. The city of New Orleans conducted $450,000 in repairs and upgrades to Holt Cemetery in 2013 and 2014. However, the graves and tombs themselves remain in a state of significant neglect, with human remains being evident. New burials continue at Holt Cemetery, and the graves show evidence for frequent visits and various cultural materials.

References

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External links

Holt Cemetery
on Find a Grave Cemeteries established in the 1870s Cemeteries in New Orleans 1879 establishments in Louisiana