Descansos, roadside memorials & crosses

Descansos are the roadside crosses and other roadside memorials built at the sites of fatal traffic accidents. The families and friends of accident victims construct descansos as a memorial for their lost loved ones.

The name descanso comes from the Spanish word for resting. Also known as crucitas or memorias, the practice comes from ancient Spanish tradition of placing stones where pallbearers rested between the church and the cemetery. Later the stones were replaced with crosses.

When the Spanish came to the New World and comrades died on the trail markers where left at the site. This is one thing that distinguishes descansos from gravestones: descansos mark the place of death, not the place of burial.

Today descansos are usually built around a cross and include elements like flowers (real or artificial), candles, and the deceased's personal relics. They are maintained by friends and relatives, sometimes for years after the person's death. They are often visited and freshened on the annivarsary of the accident, the victim's birthday, or holidays like Christmas or Halloween.

Descansos vary by region and ethnicity. They are more rural than urban, more common on the West Coast than the East Coast, and more Hispanic than Anglo. Another rule of thumb I've noticed is that they tend to neighborhood customs. By this I mean that if you find one somewhere you'll probably find others nearby. This is because descansos are public displays of private grief. One can only image that this was the singular most significant event in the survivors' lives. They are meant to be seen. Those who see them on a regular basis probably have ties to the victim: family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, etc. Descansos are socially acceptable behavior for a given locale, hence their appearance in clusters.

I have also noticed regional differences. Rural areas with large Hispanic populations have Catholic-influenced memorials. Along the East Coast I've noticed a different style in regions with Italian populations and African-American inner city neighborhoods. The former have Catholic influences but are more modest than rural Hispanic regions. Inner city survivors often do graffiti commemorating fallen comrades. Likewise in New Orleans there is a tradition of designing t-shirts for those killed. In Hawaii memorials are made of coral.

Other related practices include so called Jesus boxes, found in rural areas as well as in Europe, and the practice of placing flowers at the steps of killed celebreties. The most pronounced example of the latter was Princess Diana.

So often we speed by descansos as we drive hither and yon. They don't even register as a blur. Too many appear to be the result of drunk drivers. All too often the victims were young. I get the sense that many are made and maintained by women.

After contacting MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), I confirmed rumors that they support and encourage survivors building and maintaining roadside markers. Though I am absorbed by this tragic folk art, I'm always distressed how easy it is to find new ones. This isn't something that makes me happy. Some states try to outlaw descansos to no avail. Many states "legitimize" the urge to build descansos by erecting official signs that discourage drinking and driving in memory of a traffic victim.

What got me started doing this? One of my first web sites was The Cairn Project. Cairns are the piles of stone used to mark a trail. Historically they have roots as grave markers and/or markers of the site of death. Other influences were my father's death which inspired me to do photography in cemetaries all over the country. My tutor in learning the hidden meaning of graves and cemetaries was my friend David Sobel.

Why did I stop? I visited Columbine High 6 weeks after the killings. It was staggeringly overwhelming. What made me glad I stopped? 9/11. The images in the news of the descansos and memorials in NYC were too much.

Joseph McCabe has a page with pictures of descansos in TX.

[click on each given thumbnail to see the larger image]


view the photos...