La Chacarita Cemetery

Cementerio de la Chacarita in Buenos Aires, Argentina, is known as the National Cemetery and is the largest in Argentina.

Location

The cemetery is in the barrio or district of Chacarita, in the western part of Buenos Aires. Its main entrance is on Avenida Guzmán.

History

The cemetery owes its existence to a yellow fever epidemic in 1871, when existing cemeteries were strained beyond capacity (the upscale La Recoleta Cemetery refused to allow the burial of victims of the epidemic). Students of the College of San Carlos appropriated 5 hectares (12 acres) in the adjoining Colegiales area for this purpose, but had their facility closed by the city in 1886. The New Chacarita Cemetery began to function in 1887 and was formally designated as such in 1896.

Chacarita Cemetery has designated areas for members of the Argentine artistic community, including writers, prominent composers and actors. The late Justicialist leader and former President Juan Perón was buried here until his remains were relocated in 2006 to a mausoleum in his former home in San Vicente.

British and German Cemeteries

In the 19th century a large number of Britons came to Argentina to work in the many areas of the economy in which England then had extensive interests. At first the British Cemetery was founded beside the Socorro Chapel (started 1821 - authorized on 22 February 1822). In 1833 the cemetery had to move to what was then called Victoria Cemetery (today the "Plaza 1° de Mayo") until November, 1892, when they were asked by the Municipality to move. Section 16 of the Chacarita Cemetery was given in exchange for the Victoria Cemetery. Eventually in 1913 the Cementerio Británico (English: British Cemetery) (or so called "De Disidentes or Corporación del Cementerio Británico de Bs. As.") was divided into the German and the British cemeteries as we know them today, because the two local communities had grown since the beginning of the 19th century.

The British Cemetery and the German Cemetery are today not managed by or part of Chacarita Cemetery.

Notable interments in Chacarita Cemetery

People buried in the chacarita cemetery include:

• Carlos Acuña (1914–1999), tango singer, composer
• Aída Alberti (1915-2006), actress
• Alfredo Alcón (1930-2014), actor
• Oscar Alemán (1909-1980), jazz musician
• José Alonso (trade-unionist), (1917–1970)
• José Amalfitani (1894-1969), president of the Vélez Sarsfield football team
• Manuel Argerich (1835–1871), physician, philosopher, lawyer
• Alberto Anchart (1931-2011), actor
• Cosme Argerich (1758–1820), doctor and pioneer of military field medicine
• Guillermo Battaglia (1899-1988), actor
• Nelly Beltrán (1925-2007), actress
• Paquita Bernardo (1900–1925), musician, tango composer
• Antonio Berni (1905-1981), painter
• Eduardo Vicente Bianco (1892–1959), tango composer and bandleader
• Eladia Blázquez (1931-2005), tango vocalist and composer
• Alejandra Boero (1918-2006), actress
• Oscar Bonavena (1942–1976), heavyweight boxer
• Ángel Borlenghi (1904-1962), trade-unionist and Peronist politician
• Sofía Bozán (1904-1958), actress and tango vocalist
• Alfredo Bravo (1925-2003), Socialist politician
• Alicia Bruzzo (1945-2007), actress
• Clemar Bucci (1920–2011), race car driver
• Enrique Cadícamo (1900–1999), author, tango lyricist
• Francisco Canaro (1888-1964), tango bandleader and composer
• Evaristo Carriego (1883–1912), poet, journalist
• Adolfo Castelo (1935-2004), news anchorman
• Alberto Castillo (1914–2002), tango singer
• Orestes Caviglia (1893-1971), stage director and actor
• Cátulo Castillo (1906–1975), musician, composer, poet, boxer
• Gustavo Cerati (1959-2014), rock singer, songwriter, composer, producer
• José Cibrián (1916-2002), stage director and actor
• Pascual Contursi (1888-1932), tango composer
• Carlos Cores (1923-2000), actor
• Juan d'Arienzo (1900–1976), orchestra leader
• Julio de Caro (1899-1980), tango bandleader and composer
• Juan de Dios Filiberto (1885-1964), tango composer
• Julio de Grazia (1929–1989), actor, director
• Alejandro De Michele (1954–1983), rock singer
• Carlos di Sarli (1903-1960), tango bandleader
• Guido di Tella (1931-2001), former Foreign Minister
• Torcuato di Tella (1892-1948), industrialist
• Edgardo Donato (1897-1963), tango composer
• Vito Dumas (1900-1965), navigator
• Ulises Dumont (1937–2008), actor
• Samuel Eichelbaum (1894-1967), writer
• Homero Expósito (1918-1987), tango lyricist
• Ada Falcón (1905-2002), tango vocalist
• Edelmiro Farrell (1887-1980), President of Argentina
• León Ferrari (1920-2013), conceptual artist
• Roberto Firpo (1884-1969), tango composer
• Norma Fontenla (1930-1971), prima ballerina
• Osvaldo Fresedo (1897-1984), bandoneónist and tango composer
• María Rosa Gallo (1925–2004), actress
• Leopoldo Galtieri (1926-2003), former President of Argentina
• Óscar Alfredo Gálvez (1913–1989), race car driver
• Ricardo Gamero (1938–1999), ventriloquist known as "Mister Chassman"
• Carlos Gardel (1890–1935), iconic tango singer, actor
• José María Gatica (1925–1963), boxer
• Carlos Enrique Gavito (1942–2005), tango dancer
• Severino Di Giovanni (1901–1931), Italian anarchist
• Enrique Gorriarán Merlo (1941-2006), founder of ERP terrorist group
• Roberto Goyeneche (1926–1994), tango singer
• Paul Groussac (1848–1929), French-born writer, historian
• Bernardo Houssay (1887–1971), Nobel Prize in Medicine
• José Ingenieros (1877-1925), physician and philosopher
• Maurice Jouvet (1923–1999), French-born actor
• Ángel Labruna (1918–1983), soccer player
• Lydia Lamaison (1914-2012), actress

• Juan Carlos Lectoure (1936-2002), boxing promoter
• Inda Ledesma (1926–2010), actress
• Alfredo Le Pera (1900-1935), tango composer
• Irineo Leguisamo (1903–1985), thoroughbred racing jockey
• Antonio Vespucio Liberti (1900-1978), president of the River Plate football team
• Nélida Lobato (1934–1982), dancer
• María Loredo (1854-1928), faith healer
• Gianni Lunadei (1938-1998), actor
• Tito Lusiardo (1896-1982), tango dancer
• Pedro Maffia (1899-1967), bandoneónist
• Agustín Magaldi (1898–1938), tango vocalist
• Azucena Maizani (1902–1970), tango vocalist
• Homero Manzi (1907-1951), writer and tango composer
• Mona Maris (1903–1991), actress
• Duilio Marzio (1923-2013), actor
• Tita Merello (1904-2002), actress
• Lola Membrives (1888–1969), theater director and actress
• Alberto Migré (1931-2006), screenwriter
• Zully Moreno (1920–1999), actress
• Oscar Moro (1948-2006), rock drummer
• Jorge Newbery (1875–1914), pioneer aviator, sportsman
• Oscar Núñez (1929–2012), actor
• Alberto Olmedo (1933–1988), comedian
• Juan Carlos Onganía (1914-1995), former President of Argentina
• Pappo (1950–2005), musician (cremated here, his ashes were scattered in a Buenos Aires park)
• Mario Passano (1925-1995), actor
• Malvina Pastorino (1916-1994), actress
• Adolfo Pedernera (1918–1995), soccer player
• Ivo Pelay (1893–1959), poet, playwright
• Pascual Pérez (1926–1977), Olympic and World champion boxer
• Ástor Piazzolla (1921-1992), bandoneón virtuoso and tango composer
• Nathán Pinzón (1917-1993), actor
• Pablo Podestá (1875–1923), actor
• Jorge Porcel (1936–2006), comedian
• Javier Portales (1937-2003), comedian
• Osvaldo Pugliese (1905–1995), pianist
• Benito Quinquela Martín (1890–1977), painter
• Francisco Rabanal (1906-1982), former Mayor of Buenos Aires
• Pedro Pablo Ramírez (1884-1962), former President of Argentina
• Raúl Riganti (1893–1970), race car driver
• Edmundo Rivero (1911-1986), tango vocalist
• Nélida Roca (1929-1999), dancer
• José Ignacio Rucci (1924-1973), trade-unionist
• Luis Sandrini (1905–1980), comedian
• Enrique Santos Discépolo (1901-1951), tango composer
• Enrique Sdrech (1928-2003), journalist
• Mohamed Alí Seineldín (1933-2009), mutinous Army officer
• Enrique Serrano (1891-1965), actor
• Osvaldo Soriano (1943–1997), novelist
• Hugo Soto (actor) (1953-1994)
• Alfonsina Storni (1892–1938), poet
• Carlos Thays (1849-1934), landscape designer and urbanist
• Juan Carlos Thorry (1908–2000), actor, entertainer
• Cacho Tirao (1941-2007), guitarist
• Leopoldo Torre Nilsson (1924-1978), film director
• Lolita Torres (1930-2002), actress, singer
• Aníbal Troilo (1914–1975), musician
• Saúl Ubaldini (1936-2006), trade-unionist
• Augusto Vandor (1923-1969), trade-unionist
• Ángel Villoldo (1861-1919), the "father of Tango"
• Roberto Viola (1924-1994), former President of Argentina
• María Elena Walsh (1930-2011), poet and composer
• Héctor Yazalde (1946–1997), soccer player
• Tincho Zabala (1923-2001), comedian
• Marcos Zucker (1921–2003), actor

Notable interments at the British Cemetery Corporation include

• Lucas Bridges (1874–1949), Anglo-Argentine author
• Thomas Bridges (1842–1898), Anglican missionary
• Frank Brown (1858-1943), popular English clown
• Jeannette Campbell (1916–2003), swimmer
• Cecilia Grierson (1859-1934), physician and feminist
• Alexander Watson Hutton (1853-1936), founder of Argentine Soccer
• Juan Bautista Thorne (1807-1885), Army Colonel, fought in important battles such as: Pozos, Patagones, Martín García, Vuelta de Obligado, and Quebracho

Notable interments at the German Cemetery include

• Hans Langsdorff (1894–1939), Captain of the World War II pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee
• Friedrich Bergius (1884–1949), Nobel Prize in Chemistry