Holt Cemetery, Potter's field cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana, US

Holt Cemetery is a potter's field cemetery in New Orleans, Louisiana, located next to Delgado Community College behind the right field fence of Kirsch-Rooney Stadium. Its 7 acres hold nearly all in-ground burials, most with markers made by families rather than professionals.

Holt Cemetery was established in 1879 as a potter's field for the city's poor and indigent residents, and it is named after Dr. Joseph Holt, an official of the New Orleans Board of Health. The original 5.5-acre grounds were expanded to 7 acres in 1909. Ownership of each grave passed to the family for the cost of digging it and later upkeep.

Holt Cemetery is named for Dr. Joseph Holt, a New Orleans Board of Health official tied to Storyville health issues, who formally established it. Families still dig and maintain their own plots, and graves show fresh visits and offerings. Blues and jazz musicians Babe Stovall, Jessie Hill and Buddy Bolden lie here, and the grounds have drawn ghost hunters and reports of Voodoo and Santería rituals.

Holt Cemetery lies behind the right-field fence of Kirsch-Rooney Stadium at Delgado Community College, so enter from the college side. The grounds cover 7 acres of mostly in-ground graves; paths are unpaved and plots are uneven, and some graves show exposed remains. New burials still take place, so visitors may encounter mourners.

Holt Cemetery is a potter's field: graves were sold to families for the cost of digging, and most markers were made by relatives rather than professionals. The city spent $450,000 on repairs in 2013 and 2014, yet many plots remain neglected, with human remains visible. New burials still take place.