Category: History

Like Recoleta Cemetery, the Cementerio de San José de Flores took its name from the adjacent church (originally located between Avenida Rivadavia & Ramón Falcón). What better place to ensure a divine afterlife? In 1807, Flores had yet to be incorporated into the city limits of BA so the town’s early residents were buried there. Moved in 1830 & again in 1867, the cemetery was enlarged to 27 hectares in 1979. Not as big as Chacarita Cemetery but certainly big enough.

The first thing that struck me about this cemetery was its location… up on a hilltop. There are so few hills in Buenos Aires that you notice when you’re on top of a big one. Only a small portion of the site had mausoleums so it was really nonstop graves as far as the eye could see.

One modern section is similar to the underground catacombs of Chacarita, but I spent most of my time checking out the architecture. The fancy entrance gate from 1868 by Juan Buschiazzo (same architect who constructed the entrance of Recoleta Cemetery) & the mausoleum section seem out of place after the cemetery’s expansion, now completely surrounded by graves. At least the gate was not demolished:

Something else that’s a bit out of place because no doubt it has been moved from its original location is the Flores family tomb. They founded the town & were its most illustrious residents. At least they have a great view now:

An interesting detail here that isn’t found as often in Chacarita or Recoleta is personal references. These nameplates can be found above the main door where the family name would be:

There were some collective mausoleums as in Chacarita. The second one is for the Navy… complete with steamship design:

My personal favorite was the monster concrete crosses on the mausoleum for staff of the Obras Sanatarias de la Nación:

A few more for the Instituto del Buen Pastor, a group of monks in a small Neogothic castle & a little late Art Nouveau:

There wasn’t much in the way of sculpture, but the following piece stood out:

Finally, a few tombstones were mixed in with the mausoleums. I know this is difficult to read but it’s for an immigrant from the Lower Pyrenees in France who died in 1871. The inscription is touching:

So if you’re in the neighborhood for Korean food, pop in for quick walk around & enjoy the view. You’ll likely be the only one wandering around the mausoleums.

Originally published on 19 Sep 2007 in our sister site, Endless Mile.

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Other Buenos Aires cemeteries: Cementerio del Sur • Chacarita • San José de Flores • Cementerio de los Disidentes • Cementerio Británico • Cementerio Alemán

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Much like the creation of Recoleta Cemetery, the Cementerio de la Chacarita owes its location to land confiscated from a religious order. In this case it was the Jesuits —not the Recoletos— who were expelled in 1767. The area took its name from a diminutive form of the word “chacra” or “chácara,” meaning small farm or plantation, & refers to its original use.

City officials had no urgent need to occupy the land until the devastating 1871 yellow fever outbreak. Recoleta prohibited the burial of victims of any epidemic, while the smaller Cementerio del Sur could not cope with the estimated 14,000 dead. Drastic measures needed to be taken & the massive, 70-block Chacarita Cemetery was born. Trolley lines nearby helped handle increased traffic.

Due to its size, the creation of of a cemetery in Chacarita made its predecessor in Recoleta more exclusive. To this day, Chacarita is for burials of the common man while Recoleta is typically for those who are better off. But that isn’t to say that there’s nothing elegant about Chacarita… quite the contrary.

Split into many sectors, decorative vaults congregate around the main entrance while niches are off to the side & underground in the center. Scattered around are collective mausoleums, either based on profession (burial included as part of union dues) or by association membership (sports clubs or beneficiary societies, for example). Take note: visiting or photographing these mausoleums is prohibited by non-members even if doors are open… caretakers are fairly zealous about that.

A large portion of the cemetery is occupied by plots which are constantly recycled. Social benefits in Argentina include free burial… but not forever. If family does not pay for basic maintenance past a certain number of years, the casket is removed, cremated & the ashes are scattered at the ossuary along the eastern wall. Hundreds of plaques adorn this spot, making it one of the most moving in the cemetery.

One way of looking at Chacarita is that its eclectic architectural mix is a response by the middle class to emulate the over-the-top styles in Recoleta… often with interesting results:

Are there famous people buried inside the confines of Chacarita Cemetery? Certainly. Probably the most recognized person is Carlos Gardel, but several other tango legends keep him company like Tita Merello & Celedonio Flores. Juan Domingo Perón was once buried there as well, his hands removed with a saw & stolen, but since 2006 he rests in relative peace in his former estate in San Vicente. Perón’s rival while in exile, Augusto Vandor, is easily visible from the entrance as is aviator Jorge Newbery. Popular saints like Hermanita Irma, sporting a chihuahua, & Madre María receive thousands of visitors each year. The Roverano family even left Recoleta Cemetery & moved the family plot to Chacarita.

The best part about Chacarita is that there is literally something to discover around every corner. Unfortunately there is no blog about the cemetery… enough material certainly exists. But a webpage maintained by Hernán Santiago Vizzari does a nice job of presenting Chacarita Cemetery’s history & unique character (Spanish only).

Some content originally published as a series of several posts in June 2008 on an older version of my blog, Endless Mile.

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Other Buenos Aires cemeteries: Cementerio del Sur • Chacarita • San José de Flores • Cementerio de los Disidentes • Cementerio Británico • Cementerio Alemán

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With the foundation of Recoleta Cemetery in 1822, Buenos Aires obtained its first public cemetery. But as decades passed & population increased, the need for another cemetery became apparent. Local leaders debated its size & location throughout most of the 1860s. One big complication stemmed from the fact that the city’s limits restricted expansion & further development. In 1867, Buenos Aires acquired land from San José de Flores to the west, extending the city to the current streets of Boedo/Sáenz. In December that same year, the Cementerio del Sur (also referred to as the Cementerio del Sud) opened to receive a number of cholera epidemic victims.

Land purchased by the city government—the equivalent of one modern city block—previously formed part of the Carlos Escalada estate. It had been acquired by José Antonio de Escalada… father of San Martín’s wife, Remedios de Escalada. Although no definitive proof exists, legend claims that she passed away on this very spot in 1823.

The Cementerio del Sur only remained in operation for four years, closing definitively in 1871. A yellow fever epidemic swept through Buenos Aires that year & killed an estimated 14,000 people—10% of the city’s population—in the span of a few months. The Cementerio del Sur could not receive such a large number of burials & prompted the opening of a much larger cemetery to the west of the city: Chacarita.

Just after the epidemic, celebrated Uruguayan artist Juan Manuel Blanes painted a famous work depicting the horror of the times. His painting shows a baby clutching the breast of its dead mother, a victim of the epidemic, while city health officials inspect the scene. On display in the Teatro Colón, it immediately struck a chord with all porteños.

Although not receiving new burials, the Cementerio del Sur continued to remain open so family members could visit their deceased loved ones. But the city government failed to maintain the site. In 1889 a monument which can still be seen today was erected to commemorate those who had died during the yellow fever epidemic & includes a replica of the Blanes painting:

In the 1890s, the entrance gate was removed when this area was reassigned to become a public park. A small number of exhumations took place, but most of the 18,000 people buried in the Cementerio del Sur remain underground to this day. Currently known as Parque Ameghino in the neighborhood of Parque Patricios, it is filled with jacarandá trees & is often used by dogwalkers… probably unaware of an important part of the city’s history beneath them.

For a detailed account of the cemetery’s history, more information can be found in an article researched & published by Luis O. Cortese  (Spanish only).

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Other Buenos Aires cemeteries:  Cementerio del Sur • Chacarita • San José de Flores • Cementerio de los Disidentes • Cementerio Británico • Cementerio Alemán

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