The Ghost of Marie Laveau: The Voodoo Queen
Photo taken from wikipedia.org
Marie Laveau is known as the voodoo queen of all New Orleans. She was born in the late 18th century and had started doing voodoo dances in New Orleans in the 1830s. The practice of voodoo is the combining of medical and religious practices which originated in Africa and then developed within the slave colonies of Louisiana. When she started to gain a reputation in voodoo, people started to visit her all the time for her potions and they claimed she had the answer to every problem in life.
She offered love potions, cures for diseases, weather controlling charms, and spells to prevent horrible things from happening. Marie was still seen well into the 1890s and people claimed that she still looked the same from 50 years ago from when she first started to get noticed. People believe now that she has transformed into a big black crow and hangs around the St. Louis Cemetery.
Her ghost has also been seen around the old French quarter. She is noticeable because of her distinct handkerchief that she bore around her neck. One man reported being slapped in the face by Marie for not recognizing who she was. Her final resting place is not known but believed to be one of the two unmarked tombs at St. Lois cemetery. Also, her house is still standing and it is said if you go near it and listen carefully, you will hear the voodoo queen and her followers still chanting their old rituals.
(Source: Cohen, Daniel. Hauntings and Horrors. 2002)
