Church Street Graveyard: Mobile's Resting Place of History

Church Street Graveyard, acquired by the City of Mobile in 1820, replaced the older Campo Santo burial ground. The earliest burials date back to 1819, with many early interments being victims of yellow fever. The graveyard was divided into sections for Catholics, Protestants, and a section for strangers. Masons, Odd Fellows, veterans, and the indigent were also interred in the western section. The cemetery was closed to new burials in 1898, though exceptions have been made by city resolution. Many gravestones are significant examples of stone carving from New England and the Gulf Coast in the early 19th century. The cemetery also features early examples of wrought and cast iron work. Notable people buried here include Joe Cain, a key figure in the history of Mobile's Mardi Gras, and Eugene Walter, an actor and author. Other notable interments include Don Miguel Eslava, an early Spanish official, Dominique Louis Dolive, an early French settler, and James Roper, the builder of Oakleigh. The Church Street Graveyard Preservation Foundation was formed in 1993 to restore the graveyard. The graveyard tells the story of Mobile's historical development and the people who contributed to its heritage through its tombs, markers, and monuments. Visitors are sometimes surprised to find that the graveyard was never racially segregated.