My best guess is the water table.

I would think that it's either because of the water table or because the terrain is to rocky?

It's the same in Key West.

Similar to New Orleans. Can't put bodies below sea level and it would be too rocky to dig. Both reasons are right.

Well, you are all somewhat incorrect. Graves are dug 6 feet as elsewhere. People are buried. Some may have tombstones. When the main graveyard was full and folks wanted to be buried with their loved ones, a condo grave was invented. A tomb was built on top of the previous grave creating vaults. It then became fashionable and seemingly the only way to do it. You can go into the main graveyard and find single tombstones where nothing was added, but lately as they are building tombs, they have already made way for the next body!

Now, the new graveyard on the East end may be different. I have heard that they didn't quite do a geological survey, only to find the area is solid rock. I have seen some mausoleums being built there and I doubt anyone will be able to be 6 foot under there, but that is because of the topography there and not tradition.

RL

I love the cemetaries where the tombs are above ground..very neat. Darlene, did you get pics?

I think if I lived there, I'd just be cremated to save the island space. LOL

Sorry, no pics of that! Thanks for all the info! You know, curiosity! 🙂 I had never seen anything like that before.

It's also cheaper to bury above-ground.

I wonder,.. have the grave diggers unions figured that one out yet??

A taxi driver on STT was asked this and he said that it was similar to a "keeping up with the Joneses". The higher your grave was, the more important you were.
I think I like RL's answer better......

Corpse Condos?? That could get out of hand.

Just out of morbid curiosity, I suppose....but in New Orleans, the older vaults/mausoleums/whatever they are called were made so that after a period of time the body turned to ash and could be pushed out an opening into ... well, an ash pit, I suppose, and the new body went in and did whatever and you pushed that one out, and so on....Ronnie, I gather what you are talking about IS a Coffin Condo? Well, yuck on that.....so it's not the same principal as New Orleans?

I never really thought about it - I love a good cemetary and spent a lot of time wandering them on STX but didn't pay attention to the finer details...

You might check in at the 'Tombstone Towers'. but it's guaranteed you won't be checking out,..eh??

Mausoleum Manner?? Caribbean Crypts?

😀

Ron, I have another question about the graves there... I noticed while walking past the cemetary between downtown Cruz Bay and Gallow's Point that the tombstones have 3 dates on them. The first is obviously their birthdate and then it is followed by two dates that are usually only a few weeks or months apart. I wondered if one was the date of death and the other the date of burial or something??? Any idea?

That's a new one. Will look next time I am there. Burial is usually in a few days. Parked right there for the fireworks last week!
L

Interesting question!

Just guessing, but maybe it is the date of the death is followed by the date of the placement of stone if the date is shortly after the death - not unlike the "unveiling" a year later in the Jewish religion but that date is not put on the stone.
Key West has the same sort of "arrangement" for "condos" with newer residents replacing the longer inhabitants.

I have several pics of the cemetery in Charlotte Amalia - It may sound weird but I had to walk thru the cemetery after we shopped. I find it interesting, reading the names, etc. While we were there we met two little boys riding bikes, they asked us to take their picture - then we showed them on our digital. They were soooo cute!! If someone sends me the directions of how to post pics - I would be happy to share. Hubby is quite the photographer 🙂

Jen

I'd be anxious to know if there were three dates on the tombstones in CA like the ones I saw in Cruz Bay??? Just curious... it was just something that stuck with me after walking past the graves every night on the way back from dinner and we talked about it almost every time!