Why this is one of my favorite cemeteries!
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The famous and infamous El Campo Santo cemetery in Old Town is often on the to-do list for both San Diego locals and out-of-town visitors to see the graves of its’ permanent residents! At least 4 of the graves hold prisoners that were executed based on court orders originating from the courtroom in the nearby Whaley House. Although the cemetery is not in the original Old Town residential area, it is an easy, flat walk from Old Town.
As you can read on the historical marker sign, the El Campo Santo cemetery opened in 1849. It accommodated burials of European settlers, primarily Catholic, that died in the area of the emerging town of San Diego. There are a few Native American graves as well.
Graves of executed prisoners
If you are familiar with the Whaley House, you know that one of the larger rooms was used as the county court. A few of the prisoners that were sentenced to death were executed nearby and buried in El Campo Santo. Signs near the graves in El Campo Santo show the location of 4 of those prisoners.
Antonio Garra Sr. was executed by firing squad while standing next to his grave
One of the more infamous graves in El Campo Santo because the ghost of “Yankee Jim” is still thought to haunt the Whaley House, built over his execution site
City expansion led to “alteration” of the cemetery
As the city grew, the cemetery location became prime property. The construction of a new street and rails for a trolley shrunk the size of the cemetery’s West boundary. Some graves were moved, but others were not.
In the 1990s, a ground-penetrating radar survey of the cemetery indicated that multiple bodies were paved over. Round metal disks were then implanted into the asphalt and concrete to mark those “forgotten” graves. Metal signs are displayed on the outer side of both the West and East brick walls near the entrances to show the locations of the graves that were covered by the road or sidewalk:
El Campo Santo: Second Oldest Cemetery in San Diego – Old Town San Diego
The grave of the El Campo Santo grave digger
As you can see on the sign by the grave, Rafael was suspected of killing his wife. His guilt led him to beg the Catholic Church for forgiveness, leading to his assignment to become the grave digger for El Campo Santo cemetery.
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