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Grave of the Hermit of Deer Island.

Grave of the Hermit of Deer Island

Field review by the editors.

Biloxi, Mississippi

Jean R. Guilhot, a former barber and oysterman, lived as a hermit on Deer Island after a hurricane destroyed his house in 1947. Sometimes he would row out to passing boats and serenade them with French folk songs. He was reported to have had as many as eight wives before he began his self-imposed isolation, and would only come to the mainland when he needed groceries -- paid for with money thrown to him when he sang. He was a local tourist attraction until he died, age 81, in 1959.

Grave of the Hermit of Deer Island.

Another hurricane, Katrina, washed away his simple wooden tombstone in 2005. It was replaced with a substantial one of black granite, engraved with his grizzled, hairy face, along with a summary of his fascinating life, in 2013.

Grave of the Hermit of Deer Island

Old Biloxi Cemetery

Address:
1166 Irish Hill Drive, Biloxi, MS
Directions:
Old Biloxi Cemetery. I-10 exit 46A. Drive south on I-110 for four miles. Take exit 1B onto US Hwy 90. Drive west one mile. Turn right onto Azalea Drive (just before the multi-story hotel), then turn left onto Irish Hill Drive. You'll see the cemetery on the left. The Hermit's grave features a large, black tombstone with his hairy face etched into it.
Phone:
228-435-6279
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