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All the United States Louisiana New Orleans Saint Roch Chapel

Saint Roch Chapel

A 19th-century shrine covered with prosthetic body parts as votive offerings.

New Orleans, Louisiana

Added By
Laetitia Barbier
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  Joanna Ebenstein
  Joanna Ebenstein
The cemetery in 2015   Allison / Atlas Obscura User
The exterior of the shrine in 2015   Allison / Atlas Obscura User
The shrine in 2015   Allison / Atlas Obscura User
  Joanna Ebenstein
  Joanna Ebenstein
  Joanna Ebenstein
  Joanna Ebenstein
St Roch Chapel cures.   Michael Brownlee
Gorgeous ironwork   griffindennis / Atlas Obscura User
Heartbeat   Star Wolf / Atlas Obscura User
Caution   Star Wolf / Atlas Obscura User
St Roch Capel   jusTodd / Atlas Obscura User
Final Mortgage   Star Wolf / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Beginning in 1817, a wave of yellow fever struck the gulf coast, taking more than 40,000 lives in half a century just in New Orleans alone.

In 1867, during a desperate attempt to protect his parish members from the scourge, Reverend Peter Thevis decided to dedicate his prayers to Saint Roch, Patron Saint of Good Health.

Born circa 1348, Saint Roch ministered to plague victims, and was said to have saved many lives from the pestilence. His legend grew after he himself contracted the black death in Piacenza, Italy and was banished from the parish. He went into hiding in the nearby forest, where a dog that belonged to a local noble frequently visited him and took to bringing him bread to sustain him. According to the tale, the dog licked his wounds and healed him, after which the nobleman discovered him and became a disciple.

Reverend Thevis' community miraculously suffered no losses during the yellow fever epidemic, and on September 6, 1875, St. Roch Cemetery No. 1 was dedicated and the cornerstone of the Gothic-style St. Roch Chapel was laid, in honor of Saint Roch's intercession.

The locals continued to revere Saint Roch for graces of welfare and remission. For decades, believers have been leaving their polio braces, glass eyes, dental plates and other parts of their prosthetic selves (as well as a few less obviously meaningful objects like a can of corn, keys, and a small Ronald McDonald doll) when their health was recovered.

The resulting bric-a-brac of anatomical ex votos, vintage medical artifacts and religious iconography has made the Saint Roch Shrine one of the most unusual in America.

Update February 2020: the chapel is closed due to termite damage and structural issues. Restoration efforts, led by New Orleans Catholic Cemeteries, are currently underway. 

Related Tags

Relics And Reliquaries Sacred Spaces Catacombs And Crypts Catacombs Shrines Relics Cemeteries

Community Contributors

Added By

Laetitia Barbier

Edited By

kelseylyates, Eric C, JonnieDangerously, Slpeters0...

  • kelseylyates
  • Eric C
  • JonnieDangerously
  • Slpeters0
  • hveneziano
  • Allison
  • Meg
  • jusTodd
  • griffindennis
  • Star Wolf

Published

January 29, 2013

Edit this listing

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Sources
  • http://narrative.ly/stories/i-left-my-leg-in-st-roch-cemetery/
  • http://www.saveourcemeteries.org/st-roch-cemeteries-no-1-and-2/
  • http://www.neworleanschurches.com/stroch/stroch.htm
  • http://www.neworleanshistorical.org/items/show/506
  • https://nolacatholiccemeteries.org/st-roch-cemetery-1
Saint Roch Chapel
1725 St Roch Ave
New Orleans, Louisiana, 70117
United States
29.975421, -90.052488
Visit Website
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