Central State Hospital Cemetery
Last Friday my mom and I attended a very special memorial service at Central State Hospital in Pineville, LA. Central is a hospital for the mentally ill. It no longer has the number of patients that it once did and most of the buildings are being used by other state agencies, but there are still people living there.
Back in the 80’s Mr. Ray Moreau was walking through an overgrown patch of land on the grounds looking for a place to put a vegetable garden when one of the patients said, “We’re walking in the cemetery”. Mr. Moreau did some checking and found out, yes it was a cemetery. There are over 2000 patients buried there. Some didn’t have a family and some families didn’t have the money to have the patients brought back home. Sadly, some were just thrown away because of their illness. Back then there was a stigma about the mentally ill. It was something to be ashamed of and not spoken of outside the family. So these people were buried with no markers, only a concrete slab over their grave and under the surface bearing their patient number. It is my understanding that a fire destroyed many of the records.
Since finding the cemetery, Mr. Moreau has worked to improve the situation. The land has been cleared and a beautiful monument has been place at the site. It is now a well kept peaceful place and considered sacred ground. Mr. Moreau and his wife, “Lady” had been instrumental in bringing about the memorial service. Not many people attend but each year the number grows. They have also given the families the opportunity to place a marker at the site for their family member. You are not able to place it on the actual grave yet but hopefully that will happen soon. The goal is to have a marker on every grave in the cemetery.
The Moreau’s and many others, I am sorry I don’t know their names, have worked very hard to bring all this about. They should be commended for their generous work. I will continue to write about the cemetery and the progress that is being made. I hope to get someone to write a short history about all that has taken place over the years.
