Old Lorimier Cemetery

The Old Lorimier Cemetery in Cape Girardeau, Missouri was established between 1806 and 1808 by Louis Lorimier.^[2] The cemetery is located at 500 North Fountain Street overlooking the Mississippi River.^[3] There are believed to be more than 6,500 graves in the cemetery, most of them unmarked. A sidewalk serves as a north – south dividing line in the cemetery. It is said that Catholics are buried on the south and Protestants are buried on the north.^[4] The east slope is believed to be the burial grounds of African-American persons. It has been recorded that as many as 1,200 soldiers from the Civil War were buried there. The grave marker for the wife of Louis Lorimier says "The Noblest Matron of the Shawnee race."^[5][6][7]

Old Lorimier Cemetery
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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Location	500 North Fountain Street, Cape Girardeau, Cape Girardeau County, Missouri
Coordinates	37°18′43″N 89°31′13″W
Area	5 acres (2.0 ha)
Built	1808 (1808)
NRHP reference No.	05001091[1]
Added to NRHP	September 28, 2005

Dedicatory plaque at the Old Lorimier Cemetery

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.^[1]

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. Burials in Old Lorimier Cemetery, Cape Girardeau, MO, 1806–1983. Cape Girardeau County Genealogical Society (Jackson). 1994.
3. Archibald, Robert (2004). The New Town Square: Museums and Communities in Transition. Rowman Altamira. ISBN 978-0759102880.
4. Taylor, Troy (2013). The Big Book of Missouri Ghost Stories. Stackpole Books. ISBN 978-0811711494.
5. Earngey, Bill (1995). Missouri Roadsides: The Traveler's Companion. University of Missouri Press. ISBN 978-0826210210.
6. Christensen, Lawrence O.; Foley, William E.; Kremer, Gary (1999). Dictionary of Missouri Biography. University of Missouri Press. ISBN 978-0826260161.
7. Terri L. Foley and Brenda Schloss (February 2005). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Old Lorimier Cemetery" (PDF). Missouri Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved 2016-09-01.

External links

• Old Lorimier Cemetery at Find a Grave