New Orleans is known as one of the most haunted places in America. With its rich history and questionable stories there is no wonder that so many believe that evil lurks in dark corners. One cannot mention ghost stories and New Orleans and not mention the legend of Madame LaLaurie.
Madame LaLaurie’s legend is one of the most famous stories in New Orleans. American Horror Story made her infamous worldwide. Madame LaLaurie was born Marie Delphine Macarty in 1780 to a wealthy family in New Orleans upper crust. She is more popularly known as Delphine LaLaurie. She was a popular New Orleans Creole socialite known amongst her peers as captivating and kind. She was famous for her lavish parties at her extravagant mansion.
Madame LaLaurie and her third husband Dr. LaLaurie purchased an extravagant home located at 1140 Royal Street. The home was one of the largest structures in New Orleans at the time LaLaurie lived there. The three-story home’s beauty and grace matched those of its owner. No one would have guessed the horrible secrets that were kept inside.
Rumors of Madame LaLaurie’s cruelty towards her slaves had started to surface, but those who saw her interact with her slaves claimed she was always kind. One of Madame LaLaurie’s neighbors was said to have witnessed Madame LaLaurie chase a slave girl onto the roof and the child fell to her death. She is believed to be buried on the grounds of the mansion.
On the evening of April 11,1834 rumors of cruelty turned into horrible realities. A fire broke out in the LaLaurie Mansion. Legend has it that a kitchen slave was chained to the stove in the kitchen and started the fire out of fear for her life. Further investigation led authorities to find unspeakable images of slaves kept chained in the attic. Some stories say that Madame LaLaurie tortured and mutilated the slaves. Other said she used them as medical experiments. There was speculation of slaves being held in cages and human body parts scattered all over the attic. While theories may differ all are the same in stating that the slaves were kept chained and held in deplorable conditions.
The night of the fire residents started to hear what was happening at the mansion and a mob formed outside of the LaLauries' door. Madame LaLaurie manage to flee with her family. It is assumed that she fled to France and never returned to New Orleans.
Today, the beautiful home still sits at the corner of Royal Street, making it one of the most sought after locations in New Orleans. No one has lived inside the Mansion after Madame LaLaurie for longer than five years. It is considered to be one of the most haunted locations in the French Quarter. Some say that bodies were found buried on the grounds of the elaborate mansion and under the floorboards in a makeshift graveyard long after LaLaurie had left. People claim to hear screams in the middle of the night, and most owners described mysterious events taken place while they inhabited the home. No matter what version of the events you believe, the home located at 1140 Royal Street and its most famous occupant is stuff that true horror stories are made of.
