Baton Rouge Cemeteries
Baton Rouge Cemeteries

Author: Faye Phillips

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 130

ISBN-13: 073859184X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

For many immigrants to Baton Rouge, being buried in the highlands of their European homes was a dream. Recognizing that this desire was unlikely to come to fruition, they christened the bluff above the Mississippi River south of the town as "Highland" and established Highland Cemetery in 1819. The military fort had a burial ground; churches established cemeteries; owners, family members, and slaves were buried on the plantations; towns offered municipal cemeteries and paupers' plots; and families distant from towns created family cemeteries. Magnolia Cemetery was established for white citizens in 1852. Sweet Olive and the Lutheran Cemeteries were for free people of color and slaves. St. Joseph's Catholic Cemetery, established in 1826, did not discriminate on race but on religious affiliation, as did the Jewish cemetery. Civil War Union soldiers were separated from Confederates buried in Magnolia Cemetery and interred in the Baton Rouge National Cemetery. In 1921, Roselawn Park Cemetery represented the beginning of cemeteries as business. Beautiful statuary, elaborate tombstones and memorials, unique monuments to the departed, and lush gardens accentuate Baton Rouge's cities of the dead.

Historic Magnolia Cemetery
Historic Magnolia Cemetery

Author: Chip Landry

Publisher: Arcadia Publishing Library Editions

Published: 2019-07-22

Total Pages: 130

ISBN-13: 9781540239570

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

New settlements require proper resting places for their dead. Around 1763, British troops officially gained control of Baton Rouge and established a small fort on the Mississippi River there. However, since 1719, soldiers and white explorers had been buried near Native American mounds. Baton Rouge citizens were buried in the military cemetery near the fort, which accommodated Protestants; on private property; in Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Cemetery, opened in 1792; and in Highland Cemetery, so named in 1819. These downtown cemeteries had overflowed by 1850. A municipal, nondenominational cemetery was critically needed. Land on the eastern edge of town, dotted with magnolia trees, was purchased by the government, and Magnolia Cemetery easily became its name. Families of all races, religious affiliations, and economic status rest in Magnolia. Confederate and Union soldiers died there on August 5, 1862, and some became permanent residents. Historic Magnolia Cemetery's subterranean graves are accentuated by plain or elaborate headstones or simple footstones, sarcophagi, and numerous statues.

Fragile Grounds
Fragile Grounds

Author: Jessica H. Schexnayder

Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi

Published: 2017-09-22

Total Pages: 430

ISBN-13: 1496814339

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Recipient of a 2018 Preserve Louisiana Award and a 2018 Coastal Stewardship Award Fragile Grounds compiles stories and photographs of endangered cemeteries throughout Louisiana's coastal zone and beyond. These burial places link the fragile land to the frailty of the state's threatened community structures. The book highlights the state's vibrant diversity by showing its unique burial customs and traditions, while it also identifies the urgent need for ongoing documentation of cultural elements at risk. Cemeteries associated with the culturally rich communities of Louisiana reflect the history and global settlement patterns of the state. Yet many are endangered due to recurring natural and man-made events. Nearly 80 percent of the nation's coastal land loss occurs in Louisiana. Coastal erosion, sinking land, flooding, storm surge, and sea-level rise have led to an inland migration that threatens to unravel the fabric of Louisiana and, by association, hastens the demise of its burial places. As people are forced inland, migrants abandon, neglect, or often overlook cemeteries as part of the cultural landscape. In terms of erosion, when the land goes, the cemetery goes with it. Cemeteries fall prey to inland and coastal flooding. As cities grow outward, urban sprawl takes over the landscape. Cemeteries lose out to forces such as expansion, eminent domain, and urban neglect. Not only do cemeteries give comfort for the living, but they also serve as a vital link to the past. Once lost, that past cannot be recovered.