American Folk Figure. Known to history and popular lore as a legendary “Voodoo Priestess”, the details of her life have proven to historians as elusive and ambiguous. In the nineteenth century, she was the single most storied figure in the substantial New Orleans, Louisiana “voodoo” milieu. Though her birthdate is unknown, there are reports of a young Laveau leading Voodoo ceremonies in Congo Square (now Louis Armstrong Park) as early as 1830, and it is generally thought that she was born in 1794. Her house on St. Ann Street where she worked as a hairdresser was a popular destination for supplicants of all ethnicities who bought her charms and potions to inspire love and protect from (or cause) harm. Perhaps her most celebrated mystic feat was the alleged rescue of a Frenchman from the gallows early in her career. In some versions of the story, she invoked a great storm that caused the noose to slip from the convict's neck. In more elaborate tales, she is said to have magically influenced a New Orleans magistrate to set the accused free. The date of Laveau's death is also a matter of some dispute, with some reports having her performing ceremonies as late as 1890 (although these later appearances are generally thought to have been by her daughter). Some Voodoo adherents believe that Marie Laveau is still alive, but there is a folk consensus that she died in 1881 (as reported in local newspapers) and is interred in an unmarked Greek revival tomb in New Orleans' Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1. To this day, the tomb is the object of adoration and the site of Voodoo offerings, with many visitors marking their pilgrimage by adorning the tomb with at least one large "X".
American Folk Figure. Known to history and popular lore as a legendary “Voodoo Priestess”, the details of her life have proven to historians as elusive and ambiguous. In the nineteenth century, she was the single most storied figure in the substantial New Orleans, Louisiana “voodoo” milieu. Though her birthdate is unknown, there are reports of a young Laveau leading Voodoo ceremonies in Congo Square (now Louis Armstrong Park) as early as 1830, and it is generally thought that she was born in 1794. Her house on St. Ann Street where she worked as a hairdresser was a popular destination for supplicants of all ethnicities who bought her charms and potions to inspire love and protect from (or cause) harm. Perhaps her most celebrated mystic feat was the alleged rescue of a Frenchman from the gallows early in her career. In some versions of the story, she invoked a great storm that caused the noose to slip from the convict's neck. In more elaborate tales, she is said to have magically influenced a New Orleans magistrate to set the accused free. The date of Laveau's death is also a matter of some dispute, with some reports having her performing ceremonies as late as 1890 (although these later appearances are generally thought to have been by her daughter). Some Voodoo adherents believe that Marie Laveau is still alive, but there is a folk consensus that she died in 1881 (as reported in local newspapers) and is interred in an unmarked Greek revival tomb in New Orleans' Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1. To this day, the tomb is the object of adoration and the site of Voodoo offerings, with many visitors marking their pilgrimage by adorning the tomb with at least one large "X".
Bio by: Stuthehistoryguy
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