Marie Laveau
Encyclopedia
Marie Laveau was a Louisiana Creole
practitioner of Voodoo
renown in New Orleans. She was born free in New Orleans.
Her daughter Marie Laveau II (1827 — c. 1895) also practiced Voodoo, and historical accounts often confuse the two. She and her mother had great influence over their multiracial following. "In 1874 as many as twelve thousand spectators, both black and white, swarmed to the shores of Lake Pontchartrain
to catch a glimpse of Marie Laveau II performing her legendary rites on St. John's Eve
(June 23–24)."
of New Orleans, Louisiana
, about 1794, the daughter of a white planter and a free Creole woman of color
. On August 4, 1819, she married Jacques (or Santiago, in other records) Paris, a free person of color who had emigrated from Haiti
. Their marriage certificate is preserved in Saint Louis Cathedral in New Orleans. The marriage mass was performed by Father Antonio de Sedella, the Capuchin
priest known as Pere Antoine.
Jacques Paris died in 1820 under unexplained circumstances. He was part of a large Haitian immigration to New Orleans in 1809 after the Haitian Revolution
of 1804. New immigrants consisted of French-speaking white planters and thousands of slaves as well as free people of color. Those with African ancestry helped revive Voodoo and other African-based cultural practices in the New Orleans community, and the Creole of color community increased markedly.
Very little is known with any certainty about the life of Marie Laveau. Her surviving daughter had the same name and is called Marie Laveau II by some historians. Scholars believe that the mother was more powerful while the daughter arranged more elaborate public events (including inviting attendees to St. John's Eve
rituals on Bayou St. John
). They received varying amounts of financial support. It is not known which (if not both) had done more to establish the voodoo queen reputation.
Of Laveau's magical
career there is little that can be substantiated. She was said to have had a snake she named Zombi
after an African god. Oral traditions suggested that the occult
part of her magic mixed Roman Catholic beliefs, including saint
s, with Africa
n spirits and religious concepts. Some scholars believe that her feared magical powers of divination were actually based on her network of informants which she developed while working as a hairdresser in households of the prominent. As she visited her clients (mostly white) she listened closely to their gossip. Some assert that she ran her own brothel
and cultivated informants in that way as well. She appeared to excel at obtaining inside information on her wealthy patrons by instilling fear in their servants whom she either paid or "cured" of mysterious ailments.
On June 16, 1881 the New Orleans newspapers announced that Marie Laveau had died peacefully in her home. This is noteworthy if only because people claimed to have seen her in town after her supposed demise. Again, some claimed that one of her daughters also named Marie (many of the daughters had Marie within their names due to Catholic naming practices) assumed her name and carried on her magical practice, taking over as the queen soon before or after the first Marie's death.
According to official New Orleans vital records, a certain Marie Glapion Lavau died on June 15, 1881, aged 98. The different spelling of the last name as well as the age at death may result from the casual 19th Century approach to spelling as well as conflicting accounts of Laveau's birth.
Marie Laveau was reportedly buried in Saint Louis Cemetery
#1 in New Orleans in the Glapion family crypt (see External Links below for clickable tomb map.) This fact is in dispute, according to Robert Tallant, a journalist who has used her as a character in historical novels. The tomb continues to attract visitors who draw three "x"s (XXX) on its side, in the hopes that Laveau's spirit will grant them a wish. Some self-styled researchers claim that Laveau is buried in other tombs, but they may be confusing the resting places of other voodoo priestesses of New Orleans.
Although some references to Marie Laveau in popular culture refer to her as a "witch", she is properly described as a 'Voodoo priestess'.
The French Quarter
hotel The Historic French Market Inn has a bar named the 'Marie Laveau Lounge' on Decatur Street.
Louisiana Creole people
Louisiana Creole people refers to those who are descended from the colonial settlers in Louisiana, especially those of French and Spanish descent. The term was first used during colonial times by the settlers to refer to those who were born in the colony, as opposed to those born in the Old World...
practitioner of Voodoo
Louisiana Voodoo
Louisiana Voodoo, also known as New Orleans Voodoo, describes a set of underground religious practices which originated from the traditions of the African diaspora. It is a cultural form of the Afro-American religions which developed within the French, Spanish, and Creole speaking African American...
renown in New Orleans. She was born free in New Orleans.
Her daughter Marie Laveau II (1827 — c. 1895) also practiced Voodoo, and historical accounts often confuse the two. She and her mother had great influence over their multiracial following. "In 1874 as many as twelve thousand spectators, both black and white, swarmed to the shores of Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain
Lake Pontchartrain is a brackish estuary located in southeastern Louisiana. It is the second-largest inland saltwater body of water in the United States, after the Great Salt Lake in Utah, and the largest lake in Louisiana. As an estuary, Pontchartrain is not a true lake.It covers an area of with...
to catch a glimpse of Marie Laveau II performing her legendary rites on St. John's Eve
St. John's Eve
The evening of June 23, St John's Eve, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of St John the Baptist. The Gospel of Luke states that John was born about six months before Jesus, therefore the feast of John the Baptist was fixed on June 21~24, six months before Christmas...
(June 23–24)."
Early life
Marie was believed to have been born free in the French QuarterFrench Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
of New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, about 1794, the daughter of a white planter and a free Creole woman of color
Creoles of color
The Creoles of Color are a historic ethnic group of Louisiana, especially the city of New Orleans.-History:During Louisiana’s colonial period, Creole referred to people born in Louisiana with ancestors from elsewhere; i.e., all natives other than Native Americans. They used the term to separate...
. On August 4, 1819, she married Jacques (or Santiago, in other records) Paris, a free person of color who had emigrated from Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. Their marriage certificate is preserved in Saint Louis Cathedral in New Orleans. The marriage mass was performed by Father Antonio de Sedella, the Capuchin
Order of Friars Minor Capuchin
The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin is an Order of friars in the Catholic Church, among the chief offshoots of the Franciscans. The worldwide head of the Order, called the Minister General, is currently Father Mauro Jöhri.-Origins :...
priest known as Pere Antoine.
Jacques Paris died in 1820 under unexplained circumstances. He was part of a large Haitian immigration to New Orleans in 1809 after the Haitian Revolution
Haitian Revolution
The Haitian Revolution was a period of conflict in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, which culminated in the elimination of slavery there and the founding of the Haitian republic...
of 1804. New immigrants consisted of French-speaking white planters and thousands of slaves as well as free people of color. Those with African ancestry helped revive Voodoo and other African-based cultural practices in the New Orleans community, and the Creole of color community increased markedly.
Career
After Paris's death Marie Laveau became a hairdresser who catered to wealthy white families. She took a lover, Christophe (Louis Christophe Dumesnil de Glapion), with whom she lived until his death in 1835. They were reported to have had 15 children including Marie Laveau II, born c. 1827, who sometimes used the surname "Paris" after her mother's first husband.Very little is known with any certainty about the life of Marie Laveau. Her surviving daughter had the same name and is called Marie Laveau II by some historians. Scholars believe that the mother was more powerful while the daughter arranged more elaborate public events (including inviting attendees to St. John's Eve
St. John's Eve
The evening of June 23, St John's Eve, is the eve of celebration before the Feast Day of St John the Baptist. The Gospel of Luke states that John was born about six months before Jesus, therefore the feast of John the Baptist was fixed on June 21~24, six months before Christmas...
rituals on Bayou St. John
Bayou St. John
Bayou St. John is a bayou within the city of New Orleans, Louisiana.The Bayou as a natural feature drained the swampy land of a good portion of what was to become New Orleans into Lake Pontchartrain...
). They received varying amounts of financial support. It is not known which (if not both) had done more to establish the voodoo queen reputation.
Of Laveau's magical
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
career there is little that can be substantiated. She was said to have had a snake she named Zombi
Zombi (African god)
Zombi is the name of a snake-deity in some cults of West African Vodun and Haitian Vodou . Zombi is a Creole word, thought to be derived from Nzambi, supreme god of the Bacongo people of Angola. The deity is connected with water and appears in different impersonations, one being Zombi-Damballah,...
after an African god. Oral traditions suggested that the occult
Occult
The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus , referring to "knowledge of the hidden". In the medical sense it is used to refer to a structure or process that is hidden, e.g...
part of her magic mixed Roman Catholic beliefs, including saint
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
s, with Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n spirits and religious concepts. Some scholars believe that her feared magical powers of divination were actually based on her network of informants which she developed while working as a hairdresser in households of the prominent. As she visited her clients (mostly white) she listened closely to their gossip. Some assert that she ran her own brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
and cultivated informants in that way as well. She appeared to excel at obtaining inside information on her wealthy patrons by instilling fear in their servants whom she either paid or "cured" of mysterious ailments.
On June 16, 1881 the New Orleans newspapers announced that Marie Laveau had died peacefully in her home. This is noteworthy if only because people claimed to have seen her in town after her supposed demise. Again, some claimed that one of her daughters also named Marie (many of the daughters had Marie within their names due to Catholic naming practices) assumed her name and carried on her magical practice, taking over as the queen soon before or after the first Marie's death.
According to official New Orleans vital records, a certain Marie Glapion Lavau died on June 15, 1881, aged 98. The different spelling of the last name as well as the age at death may result from the casual 19th Century approach to spelling as well as conflicting accounts of Laveau's birth.
Marie Laveau was reportedly buried in Saint Louis Cemetery
Saint Louis Cemetery
Saint Louis Cemetery is the name of three Roman Catholic cemeteries in New Orleans, Louisiana. All of these graves are above ground vaults; most were constructed in the 18th century and 19th century....
#1 in New Orleans in the Glapion family crypt (see External Links below for clickable tomb map.) This fact is in dispute, according to Robert Tallant, a journalist who has used her as a character in historical novels. The tomb continues to attract visitors who draw three "x"s (XXX) on its side, in the hopes that Laveau's spirit will grant them a wish. Some self-styled researchers claim that Laveau is buried in other tombs, but they may be confusing the resting places of other voodoo priestesses of New Orleans.
Although some references to Marie Laveau in popular culture refer to her as a "witch", she is properly described as a 'Voodoo priestess'.
The French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
hotel The Historic French Market Inn has a bar named the 'Marie Laveau Lounge' on Decatur Street.
In modern fiction
- A character in the short story "One Night in New Orleans," by Scott A. JohnsonScott A. JohnsonScott A. Johnson is an American author in the genre of horror.His first novel, An American Haunting, was released in 2004 by Harbor House Books. He currently serves as the Literary and Paranormal Studies Editor for Dread Central, where he pens "Cold Spots", an article series about real haunted...
, published in Horror Author's United magazine in January, 2008, urinates on Marie Laveau's grave, unleashing the wrath of a Vodoun demon called a Sousson Pannon. The character has to wash the tomb and appease her spirit with rum and cigars. - Marie Laveau is one of the inspirations for Michael John LaChiusaMichael John LaChiusaMichael John LaChiusa is an American musical theatre and opera composer, lyricist, and librettist. He is best known for complex, musically challenging shows such as Hello Again, Marie Christine, The Wild Party, and See What I Wanna See...
's musical Marie ChristineMarie ChristineMarie Christine is a musical written by Michael John LaChiusa. It opened on Broadway in 1999. Set in 1890s New Orleans and then 5 years later in Chicago; the story is loosely based on the Greek play Medea, and uses elements of voodoo rituals and practices...
, based also on EuripidesEuripidesEuripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
' MedeaMedea (play)Medea is an ancient Greek tragedy written by Euripides, based upon the myth of Jason and Medea and first produced in 431 BC. The plot centers on the barbarian protagonist as she finds her position in the Greek world threatened, and the revenge she takes against her husband Jason who has betrayed...
. - Marie Laveau appears as a character in numerous novels, especially those that touch on the occult. New Orleans journalist Robert Tallant featured Laveau in a fictionalized biography: The Voodoo Queen: A Novel and in his nonfiction book Voodoo In New Orleans.
- She is the main character in novels Marie Laveau (1977) by Francine ProseFrancine ProseFrancine Prose is an American writer. Since March 2007 she has been the president of PEN American Center. She graduated from Radcliffe College in 1968 and received a Guggenheim fellowship in 1991....
and Voodoo Dreams (1993) by Jewell Parker RhodesJewell Parker RhodesJewell Parker Rhodes is an American novelist.Rhodes is professor of Creative Writing and American Literature and former Director of the Master of Fine Arts Program in Creative Writing at Arizona State University. Rhodes is the Artistic Director for Global Engagement and the Piper Endowed Chair of...
, and is mentioned in Isabel Allende's ZorroZorro (novel)Zorro is a 2005 mock biography and the first origin story of the pulp hero Zorro, written by Chilean author Isabel Allende. It is a prequel to the events of the original Zorro story, Johnston McCulley's 1919 novella The Curse of Capistrano...
(2005). - Laveau figures in works of science fiction including Kathleen Ann GoonanKathleen Ann GoonanKathleen Ann Goonan is an American science fiction writer. Several of her books have been nominated for the Nebula Award. Her debut novel Queen City Jazz was a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and her novel In War Times was chosen by the American Library Association as Best Science...
's Crescent City Rhapsody, Neil GaimanNeil GaimanNeil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
's American GodsAmerican GodsAmerican Gods is a Hugo and Nebula Award-winning novel by Neil Gaiman. The novel is a blend of Americana, fantasy, and various strands of ancient and modern mythology, all centering on a mysterious and taciturn protagonist, Shadow. It is Gaiman's fourth prose novel, being preceded by Good Omens ,...
, The ArcanumThe Arcanum (novel)The Arcanum is a 2005 novel by Tom Wheeler. Set in 1919 it concerns the last case of occult-busters; Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Harry Houdini, H. P. Lovecraft, and voodoo queen Marie Laveau.-Origins:...
by Thomas WheelerThomas WheelerThomas Wheeler was a colonial soldier of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and writer. He emigrated from England to the North American colonies in 1642. In 1644 he was living in Fairfield, Connecticut...
, and Midnight Moon by Lori Handeland,among others. - She appears in Eric Flint'sEric FlintEric Flint is an American author, editor, and e-publisher. The majority of his main works are alternate history science fiction, but he also writes humorous fantasy adventures.- Career :...
alternate history novel 1824: The Arkansas War1824: The Arkansas War1824: The Arkansas War is a 2006 alternate history novel by American writer Eric Flint.-Plot summary :The story, takes place in 1824–25, ten years after 1812: The Rivers of War...
. (2006) She relocates to the Arkansas Confederacy (an amalgamation of voluntarily relocated Indian tribes as well as freed blacks and runaway slaves independent from the United States) and marries Henry Crowell, a black former teamster turned banker who was castrated by a mob in the AlgiersAlgiers, LouisianaAlgiers is a neighborhood within the city of New Orleans. It is the portion of Orleans Parish on the West Bank of the Mississippi River.Algiers is also known as the 15th Ward, one of the 17 Wards of New Orleans.-History:...
incident five years before the events of the novel. - As a character, Marie Laveau appears in other genres as well, including children's literature, comic books, and short stories. She is portrayed as an enemy of both Doctor StrangeDoctor StrangeDoctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was co-created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, and first appeared in Strange Tales #110 ....
and Nico MinoruNico MinoruNico Minoru , is a fictional comic book character in the Marvel Comics award-winning series, Runaways. Created in 2003 by writer Brian K. Vaughan and artist Adrian Alphona, the character first debuted in Runaways vol. 1 #1 with most of the other main characters...
in Marvel ComicsMarvel ComicsMarvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
. - In the Italian comic book ZagorZagorZagor is an Italian comic book created by editor and writer Sergio Bonelli and artist Gallieno Ferri. Zagor was first published In Italy by Sergio Bonelli Editore in 1961.-Character:...
, Marie Laveau is a powerful voodooLouisiana VoodooLouisiana Voodoo, also known as New Orleans Voodoo, describes a set of underground religious practices which originated from the traditions of the African diaspora. It is a cultural form of the Afro-American religions which developed within the French, Spanish, and Creole speaking African American...
witch, and former member of Jean LafitteJean LafitteJean Lafitte was a pirate and privateer in the Gulf of Mexico in the early 19th century. He and his elder brother, Pierre, spelled their last name Laffite, but English-language documents of the time used "Lafitte", and this is the commonly seen spelling in the United States, including for places...
's pirate crew. - In The Southern Vampire MysteriesThe Southern Vampire MysteriesThe Southern Vampire Mysteries, also known as The Sookie Stackhouse Novels, is a series of books written by bestselling author Charlaine Harris that were first published in 2001 and now serve as the source material for the HBO television series True Blood...
series by Charlaine HarrisCharlaine HarrisCharlaine Harris is a New York Times bestselling author who has been writing mysteries for over twenty years. She was born and raised in the Mississippi River Delta area of the United States. She now lives in southern Arkansas with her husband and three children...
, a late-night visit to the mausoleum of Marie Laveau plays a part in a vampireVampireVampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
's murder. This tale is featured in the novel Definitely DeadDefinitely DeadDefinitely Dead is the sixth book in Charlaine Harris's series The Southern Vampire Mysteries.-Plot summary:After surviving a Were attack while attending a play in Shreveport with her new boyfriend John Quinn, Sookie Stackhouse goes to New Orleans to sort out the affairs of her cousin Hadley, a...
as well as in the short story "One Word Answer," published in the anthology A Touch of DeadA Touch of DeadA Touch of Dead is a collection of short stories from Charlaine Harris's series The Southern Vampire Mysteries. This title was released on October 6, 2009...
. - In the film Cry of the WerewolfCry of the WerewolfCry of the Werewolf, also known as Daughter of the Werewolf, is a 1944 film starring Nina Foch, based on a story by Griffin Jay and directed by Henry Levin.-Plot summary:...
, Marie Laveau is the ancestress of a werewolfWerewolfA werewolf, also known as a lycanthrope , is a mythological or folkloric human with the ability to shapeshift into a wolf or an anthropomorphic wolf-like creature, either purposely or after being placed under a curse...
. - The character of Queen Mousette in the film Blues Brothers 2000Blues Brothers 2000Blues Brothers 2000 is a 1998 American musical comedy film that is a sequel to the 1980 film The Blues Brothers. Directed by John Landis, the film featured Dan Aykroyd and John Goodman, with cameos by many musicians.-Plot:...
was modeled after Laveau. - In the book by Seth Grahame-SmithSeth Grahame-SmithSeth Grahame-Smith is an American best-selling author, screenwriter, and producer of film and television. He is best known as the author of The New York Times best-selling novels Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter, both of which are being adapted as feature films...
titled Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter the character Abe stays at Marie Laveau's boarding house in New Orleans - In the book by Neil GaimanNeil GaimanNeil Richard Gaiman born 10 November 1960)is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels, audio theatre and films. His notable works include the comic book series The Sandman and novels Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
titled American Gods the character Mama Zouzou teaches Marie Laveau African magic. - Marie Laveau is spoken of at length in Gabriel Knight: Sins of the FathersGabriel Knight: Sins of the FathersGabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers is a point-and-click adventure game developed and published by Sierra On-Line, Inc....
, a 1993 PC game developed by Sierra On-Line and designed by game designer Jane JensenJane JensenJane Jensen is the game designer of the popular and critically acclaimed Gabriel Knight adventure games and author of the novels Judgement Day and Dante's Equation....
. - Marie Laveau appears as the ghoul queen in the Night Huntress Novels of Jeaniene FrostJeaniene FrostJeaniene Frost an American fantasy author, known for her work on the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Night Huntress series and the Night Huntress World novels. Foreign rights for her novels have sold to fourteen different countries. Frost lives in Florida with her husband...
having her quarters underneath the tomb in New Orleans. - Marie Laveau is a minor character in several books of the "Benjamin January"-series by Barbara HamblyBarbara HamblyBarbara Hambly is an award-winning and prolific American novelist and screenwriter within the genres of fantasy, science fiction, mystery, and historical fiction...
. - Marie Laveau's mausoleum is mentioned in the fourth installment of the Immortals After Dark series by Kresley ColeKresley ColeKresley Cole is a bestselling, award-winning author of paranormal and historical romance novels.-Biography:Before becoming a writer, Cole was a world-ranked athlete, coach, and graduate student...
. - Laveau is mentioned in the Laurell K. HamiltonLaurell K. HamiltonLaurell Kaye Hamilton is an American fantasy and romance writer. She is the author of two series of stories. Hamilton is known for her New York Times-bestselling Anita Blake series, featuring a professional zombie raiser/supernatural consultant for the police as the protagonist in a world where...
Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series, being that Blake, a necromancer, is often referred to by other characters as a practitioner of vaudun/voodoo because of her ability to raise the dead. - On the SyfySyfySyfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
show Warehouse 13Warehouse 13Warehouse 13 is an American fantasy television series that premiered on July 7, 2009 on the Syfy network.Executive-produced by Jack Kenny and David Simkins, the dramatic comedy from Universal Media Studios has been described as borrowing much from 1980s television series Friday the 13th: The...
, a crucifix belonging to Laveau is mentioned as being stored in the Warehouse. Its exact properties are never discussed, but it is referred to as a "living death artifact."
Biographies
- Long, Carolyn Morrow. A New Orleans Voudou Priestess: The Legend and Reality of Marie Laveau, Gainesville: University Press of Florida (2006), (ISBN 9780813029740).
- Ward, Martha. Voodoo Queen: The Spirited Lives of Marie Laveau, Oxford: University of Mississippi Press (2004) (ISBN 1578066298).
In music
- "Marie Laveau," recorded by the famous jazz coronetist Papa CelestinPapa CelestinOscar "Papa" Celestin was an American jazz bandleader, trumpeter, cornetist and vocalist.-Life and career:...
and his New Orleans Band in 1954. - "Marie Laveau", song by New Orleans blues singer Dr. JohnDr. JohnMalcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. , better known by the stage name Dr. John , is an American singer-songwriter, pianist and guitarist, whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.Active as a session musician since the late 1950s, he came to wider...
. - She is the subject of the song "Marie Laveau", co-written by Baxter TaylorBaxter TaylorBaxter Taylor is an American folk singer and teacher.-Timeline:*August 28, 1940, Born Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and raised in Dallas, Texas.*1959- Original member: The Nightlighters, Oklahoma City, OK...
and Shel SilversteinShel SilversteinSheldon Allan "Shel" Silverstein , was an American poet, singer-songwriter, musician, composer, cartoonist, screenwriter and author of children's books. He styled himself as Uncle Shelby in his children's books...
and made famous by Bobby BareBobby BareRobert Joseph Bare is an American country music singer and songwriter. He is the father of Bobby Bare, Jr., also a musician.-Early career:...
. - The group RedboneRedbone (band)Redbone is a Native American rock group that was most active in the 1970s. They reached the Top 5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1974 with the million-selling gold-certified single, "Come and Get Your Love".-History:...
wrote their 1972 hit single "The Witch Queen Of New Orleans" in her honor. - "Marie Le Veaux" is the title and subject of a song performed by Cathy Winter on her 1984 album, Breath On My Fire.
- "Marie Laveaux" is the title and subject of a song by Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show.
- Laveau is the subject of "Voodoo Queen Marie" by the Holy Modal Rounders.
- She is the subject of "Like A Hurricane (Ghost of Marie Laveau)" by Chris Thomas King.
- "Dixie Drug Store" by Grant Lee Buffalo uses Laveau's ghost as the subject matter of the song.
- "Poison" by Grayson Capps contain lyrics about Marie Laveau.
- "Marie Laveau" is the title of an instrumental track of the album Boogie with Canned Heat, by Canned Heat.
- "Marie Laveaux" by the Swedish band Taiwaz.
- Laveau is mentioned in Jimmy Buffett's song "I Will Play for Gumbo."
- "Gris Gris Satchel" by The Band of Heathens is inspired by Marie Laveau.
External links
- Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, Skeptical Briefs newsletter : Dec 2001, Investigative Files, Secrets of the Voodoo Tomb by Joe Nickell
- Clickable map of Tombs at St. Louis #1 (Click on Tomb #347 on map.)
- NY Times archived article from 1881 regarding Marie Laveau's death
- Haunted New Orleans Wish Spell
- Marie Laveau, Voodoo Queen & Faith Healer