Entry No. 8 — the New Orleans file — filed under: haunted
The Mortuary
An 1872 Grand Victorian mansion that the P.J. McMahon & Sons undertaking firm ran as a funeral home from 1923 until 2004 — more than 20,000 funerals passed through its parlors — complete with an embalming and autopsy room and a crematorium in the basement catacombs. It sits at the edge of Mid-City's Canal Street 'Cities of the Dead,' ringed by some of the densest cemeteries in America, where tombs are stacked like a skyline. Since 2007 it has operated as a haunted attraction and event venue, but the bones of a real funeral parlor are still in the building.
The story
Before anyone hung prop cobwebs or rigged animatronics inside 4800 Canal Street, the dead were coming through the front door for real. Built in 1872 as a Grand Victorian mansion, the property was purchased by the P.J. McMahon & Sons undertaking firm in 1923 and operated as a full-service funeral home for eight decades. More than 20,000 funerals passed through its parlors before the business finally shut down in 2004, leaving behind a basement complete with embalming tables, autopsy facilities, and a crematorium.
What makes the building inherently strange isn't just its interior—it's the geography. The mansion sits at the threshold of Mid-City's Canal Street 'Cities of the Dead,' surrounded by a hyper-dense cluster of historic cemeteries where stone tombs stack up like a miniature city skyline. Since 2007, it has been run as a commercial haunted house and event space, but no amount of theatrical fog can change the fact that you're walking through a genuine 19th-century house of death.
What it's like
If you go during October peak season, prepare for massive crowds and lines stretching down Canal Street that can easily top 45 minutes—go on a weeknight if you want to avoid the worst of it. The attraction relies on classic haunted-house tropes with maze-like hallways, jump scares, and actor sets, occasionally pivoting to seasonal off-beat themes like holiday haunts featuring evil elves. The real payoff comes after you navigate the run: step out front onto the sidewalk and linger where the grand Victorian facade stares directly across the street at the cemetery walls.
The move: Go through the haunted-house run together in October, then linger out front where the mansion faces the cemetery wall across Canal.
📍 Before you go Primarily a seasonal haunted attraction around Halloween; otherwise an events venue, so check the calendar before going.
- 📍 Mid-City
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 4800 Canal St, New Orleans, LA 70119
Hours: Added 2026-06-22 — confirm current hours before you go.
⚠ Seasonal or scheduled — always check before you go.
Pair it with
- Holt Cemetery — Pair a commercialized Victorian funeral mansion with this raw, folk-art potter's field less than half a mile away, where families hand-craft graves out of PVC and wood.
- Metairie Cemetery (Lake Lawn Metairie) — Head less than a mile up the road to trace where many of New Orleans' wealthiest citizens were entombed in massive marble mausoleums.
- Bayou St. John / Magnolia Bridge (Cabrini Bridge) — Trade theatrical scares for historic ritual grounds by taking a short drive over to the iron bridge on Bayou St. John.
- The Singing Oak — Decompress in nearby City Park beneath a 125-year-old live oak strung with massive black wind chimes.
Good to know
Was The Mortuary actually a real funeral home?
Yes. It was an operating funeral parlor run by P.J. McMahon & Sons from 1923 to 2004, handling over 20,000 funerals before closing.
Is it open year-round?
No. It primarily operates as a haunted house around Halloween, along with occasional seasonal ticketed events or cocktail pop-ups. Outside of those times, it operates as a private event space, so you need to check their calendar beforehand.
Where is it located in New Orleans?
It sits at 4800 Canal Street in Mid-City, right at the edge of the city's famous cluster of historic above-ground cemeteries.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site · fox8live.com · explorelouisiana.com · saveourcemeteries.org · Reddit · Yelp
last checked: 2026-06-22