Know your Louisiana history: Voodoo Queen

Marie Laveau, better known as the Voodoo Queen, was noted to be one of the most powerful and beautiful colored women in New Orleans history. Laveau held many titles such as: a mother, grandmother, priestess, prison worker, healer, counselor. Laveau’s legend continued throughout the South, for she has been worshipped far more after death than while alive.
Born in New Orleans, Louisiana on September 10, 1801 to Charles and Marguerite Laveau, Marie was born as a free colored person. Laveau grew to be a considerably beautifully intelligent woman—a jack-of-all-trades. In her early teenage years, Laveau volunteered as a nurse for American men injured in the Battle of New Orleans, which allowed her to learn skills that to benefited her later in life.
On August 4, 1819 Laveau married Jacques Paris, and the two had two daughters who both lived short lives. Jacques’s, who was followed Haitian practices influenced Laveau, who began to practice her voodoo rituals, some inspired by the Hairtian practices. After a few years of marriage Jacques disappeared and left her with the name of “Widow Paris”.
After a failed marriage, Laveau began a career in hairdressing where she quickly accumulated a plethora of clients. During her time as a hairdresser a reputation developed that she was a healer tied to divine powers—ultimately leading to her voodoo. Laveau soon after found romance again, this time with a man named Louis Christophe Dominic Duminy de Glapion. During their time together she experienced the death of five children with her new husband.
Although Marie Laveau is associated with dark ways, she was actually a very gentle and generous woman. When the yellow fever epidemic struck the city of New Orleans, Marie’s nursing skills and herbal remedies helped to nurse many back to health. In addition to her nursing and healing ways, Marie also spent time advocating against the death penalty. She often visited the parish prison to comfort and pray for the men on death row to show her support for the men facing the death penalty. More of her generosity was shown through kind acts of taking in those in, in need of shelter. Marie also collected funds to set up security bonds for women of color who were facing difficulties.
Sadly on the night of Wednesday, June 15, 1881 Marie laid her head to rest and never arose again. Days later large crowds gathered at the New Orleans St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 to honor the life of the city’s ‘Voodoo Queen’. Marie Laveau is noted to be one of the most powerful and beautiful colored women in New Orleans history—whose name never goes forgotten.