Marie Laveau: An Important Woman in New Orleans History

A sketch of Marie Laveau, the
famous Voodoo Queen of
New Orleans, Louisiana courtesy of
the Voodoo Museum.

My interest in Marie Laveau sparked the moment I read that she was a Voodoo Queen in the 19^th century.  In order to fully understand New Orleans and its culture today, I find it of the utmost importance to study and understand its past.  Marie Laveau lived in a controversial and divided time, where she stood out as a free person of color and a woman: two often crippling minorities.  In further attempting to understand her position as Voodoo Queen and who she was, I decided to do some research and found a short biography of her life on the Voodoo Museum’s website.  I found that there was little actual record of her existence, besides many accounts from people and that she was a liquor importer.  She was said to be a great help as a nurse during fever epidemics in 1853.  According to the Museum’s site, Laveau was very versatile, because she was also a shoemaker.  She was said to be very beautiful and rich, carrying a great presence.  She apparently ran a prostitution house and fixed court cases.  Now, she is said to be the cause for good and bad things that are unexplainable, where she has been compared to a Saint.  I think Marie Laveau started a new era in New Orleans.  She made Voodoo famous, essentially giving it the fame that it has now.  Voodoo built this woman, giving her a great presence in society and apparently making her very wealthy. She forever influenced the practice of Voodoo, melding it with Catholicism.  

Tourists outside of a Voodoo shop
in the French Quarter in
New Orleans, Louisiana courtesy of
Voodoo Authentica's site. 

I think that Marie Laveau is an exceptional example of a strong woman rising in New Orleans.  Marie Laveau made New Orleans what it is today.  She changed Voodoo in New Orleans to something very similar to what it is portrayed as today.  Voodoo is a dramatic aspect of New Orleans’ culture.  While it may no longer have an overwhelming presence in New Orleans, it still remains a large tourist attraction, where people make a living off selling Voodoo dolls in the French Market.  In all, I think that New Orleans culture was greatly influenced by Marie Laveau and her take on the practice of Voodoo. To fully understand New Orleans today and the applicability of Voodoo in New Orleans culture today, one must look at Marie Laveau and her great impact.