From Chauvin’s Sculpture Garden to Covington’s Giant Ronald Reagan Statue, Louisiana is home to countless quirky attractions that you need to see to believe. One of the strangest spots in the state just so happens to be a cemetery, but not just any cemetery. Let’s check it out.

Rayne is a charming town just outside of Lafayette that’s known for being the Frog Capital of the World.
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You’ll see several murals and statues peppering the town as you make your way through. At one point, Rayne was a large exporter of frog legs. While that’s not the case anymore, they still embrace their history with tons of quirky frogs everywhere.
St. Joseph Church has been a part of Louisiana Catholic history since 1872.
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Originally the church was built on a ridge near Pouppeville and Castille, but as Rayne’s popularity grew, it was decided to move the church. In 1872, they put the church on wooden wheels and with the help of about 120 oxen, moved the church about a mile down the road.
That alone is reason enough to visit the church, but there’s an even more bizarre story attached to this church, and it lies within the cemetery.
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At first glance, it looks like any other cemetery.
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Nicknamed the “wrong way cemetery,” the St. Joseph Cemetery is the only cemetery in the United States with graves that face the wrong direction.
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Traditionally, cemeteries face East-West, with the deceased’s head facing the west.
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This stems from the Christian belief that during the second coming of Jesus, Jesus would come from the East.
The reason for the askew placement in St. Joseph Cemetery is unknown, but it seems to boil down to just human error.
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Hey, we all make mistakes. The most commonly believed explanation is that when the cemetery was built in the 1800s, the grave digger accidentally started placing the graves in the wrong direction. By the time the mistake was realized, it was too late to fix it.

Have you ever visited this cemetery? Let us know in the comments! And while you’re there, you may want to check out Candyland Cottage, a charming sweets shop with all your favorite nostalgic candies, premium ice cream, treats, and more!

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St Joseph Catholic Church, 1802 Tulane Ave, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA