Menachim Aveilim Cemetery

The land for Menachim Aveilim Cemetery, whose name means “Comforting the Mourning”, was donated by Alexandre Mouton in 1869. The site features marble and granite headstones and artistic sculptures in a setting of historic Live Oaks, Azaleas and Camellias enclosed by the original wrought iron fence. The marble angel and mourning woman, pictured above, graces the grave of Mary Plonsky Bendel Falk, the mother of Henri Bendel. Mary Plonsky and her spouse, Benjamin Falk, also buried here, were two of the foremost business persons in Vermilionville during the mid to late 1800s. To organize a graveyard society, a meeting was held at Falk’s Opera House. In attendance were Benjamin Falk a Russian-born successful merchant, Solomon Wise, a Polish-born Vermilion River steamboat operator, Joseph Wise, a Polish-born store owner, Gustave Godchaux, a French-born lumber dealer, Jacob Isaacs, a German-born merchant, Joseph Plonsky, a Prussianborn dry goods merchant, Gus Schmulen, a dry-goods merchant, Isaac Bendel, a philanthropist and land developer, and Abraham Haas. More information and a map of Menachim Aveilim Cemetery can be found on the Temple Shalom website at https://www.templeshalomlala.org/cemetery.