Even in a city famous for its burial rituals, this one was notable for its scope and scale. On March 23, New Orleans came to a standstill for the mourning of Tom Benson. Radio stations offered traffic reports and alternate routes for getting to (and avoiding) Benson’s mass at St. Louis Cathedral in the French Quarter. Louisiana’s governor, John Bel Edwards, stood alongside business leaders as Benson, the state’s only listed billionaire, was commemorated and celebrated.
The embodiment of the self-made man, Benson, who died at 90, was the proprietor of various local enterprises, from car dealerships to banks.