FUNERAL SCIENCE HISTORY Overall Review ASUMH_FUS

TROCAR

An elongated, hollow, sword-like needle, through which fluids might be injected into and throughout the trunk cavity of the dead. This instrument is also used to aspirate body fluids from within the hollow organs of the body.

CIVIL WAR (1861-1865)

Before the war, embalming was done for anatomical purposes. After the war, embalming was done for preservation and family viewing. Cavity embalming was done post Civil War with a trocar. Story of embalming in America is best seen in 3 dimensions: 1. The resistance to chemical preservatives 2. The rise & decline of the medical specialist as the embalmer 3. Development of a commercial enterprise in the compounding & distribution of embalming fluids with the attendant rise of the embalming school

CRYONICS

Benjamin Franklin anticipated cryonics by nearly two centuries.

TRANSPORTATION - EARLY

Bier or "bear" -(to carry by hand) - In the form of a hand-stretcher where uncoffined body was carried to grave. Bearers -four of the oldest or most prominent men Underbearers -relieved the bearers Horse-drawn carts

HEARSE - AUTO

(1909 Crane & Breed); designed to provide speed and smooth glide to cemetery. 5 Reasons many gave belief that Auto Hearse would be slow in taking hold: 1. High Outlay of Cash 2. They could go no faster than horse drawn carriages. 3. Upkeep & cost for rained chauffeurs was expensive. 4. High cost of operation 5. Old people preferred the slow, leisurely dignified trip to the cemetery

HEARSE - 1850'S/1860-1870's

1850- Long, Rectangular Box with windows along the side of double thick French Glass and skimped curtains. Shafts were for 1 horse only & the driver's seat was on top. 1860-1870 - Longer, Higher with full plate glass sides, fancy scroll work along the top, metal columns & scrolled iron neck a "goose neck" that connected a fancy seat for the driver with the body.

HEARSE

- Derived from the Latin word "hirpex" - Meaning is "rake' or "harrow" -why? French derivation was "herse" or "herce". Sizes and Colors - Until the civil war they were black, after the war they were varied sometimes gray but mostly a dark color. The size increased in length and width after the war. Children's hearses - nearly always white - introduced about a decade after the civil war Keeping a shine finish on a hearse was a problem because they were scrubbed & polished after each funeral. Some companies included a repainting service every 6 mo. with the purchase of a new hearse.

CLOTH BURIAL CASES

An actual line of cloth covered caskets began in 1871 with the Stein Patent Burial Casket. They were made of wood with metal reinforcements and were cloth covered. Stein merged with National Casket Co. in 1890 and they made 600 cloth covered caskets a week. In 1885 Samuel Stein made a casket for President U.S. Grant. It was called the "Style E State Casket"

METALLIC BURIAL CASES

By the mid-1800's the small coffin shops were no longer dominating the market. Stove manufacturers began to make burial cases. Their advantages were: 1. protection from plagues and epidemics 2. easy to move for re-burial Re-burial was important because it was not uncommon for urban cemeteries to be moved frequently. Also, bodies could be transported easily by steamboat or rail. In 1854 the wholesale price of a six foot "Ornamental Bronzed Case" was $20.50.

CASKET SELECTIONS

Catalog Undertaker's display or supply room Manufacturer's showrooms Hardwood was the most popular. (Oak, Mahogany, Walnut or Rosewood) • Bulk of sales involved less expensive caskets. • Delivery problems were common. • Once ordered, it took between 20-60 hours to get a casket. • Availability, type of casket and distance were always factors. • Accurate deliveries were always harrowing the funeral director.

Coffin Shops & Warehouses 17 & 18th Century

Coffin furniture began in American after the 1800's. In 1825 John Dillon made a "Mahogany Coffin, lined, trimmed, hinged, and mounted for $24. Remember (from chapter 5) that in 1678 David Porter's casket was only 12s, which was less than 1/4 of the total cost of the liquor alone. In 1825 the casket was almost 2/3 of the funeral bill. The most significant development in funeral business in the 19th century was the growth of coffin shops and the increased attention to the casket as a major item in the burial.

COFFINS - STONE & METAL

Coffins of material other than wood made their appearance in the first half of the 19th century. In 1836 patents were granted for coffins made of stone or marble and hydraulic cement. By 1860 patents included iron, cement, marble, artificial stone and potter's clay. Additional patents included cement and wood, zinc, iron and glass, iron and wood. Before the turn of the century included vulcanized rubber, fabricated metals, papier-mache, aluminum, cloth and wood, wood and glass, and coffins with inner-coffins.

HORSE DRAWN CARTS OR WAGONS

Colonial hearses for the wealthy were horse drawn wagons. But most people still went to the grave on foot. Horse-drawn hearses became more widely used in the middle 19th and early 20th century (1850-1910). "Hearse" and "bier" were used interchangeably through 1850's.

FUNERAL

Derived from the Latin word "funeralis" Meaning is "torchlight procession"

GAS BUGGY/ELECTRIC CARS

Design of the gasoline-powered hearses - Fred Hulberg designed a hearse 16 ft. long and costing $6000 in 1908. There is no record if any were actually produced or placed in operation. Crane & Breed-June 1909 they had an auto- hearse on the market. In 1909 two technical advances were made that brought about drastic change, the gas buggy and the electric car. In 1896 the first gas powered auto went through the streets of Detroit. The selling points of a motorized vehicle in 1909 was speed & smooth glide to the cemetery.

EMBALMING METHODS BEFORE 19TH CENTURY

Disemboweling and filling the cavity with charcoal. Immersing the body in alcohol. Wrapping the body in a cloth soaked in alum, or "cere sheet." Benjamin Franklin anticipated cryonics by nearly two centuries. Most bodies were embalmed during the early 1800's because: Preservation, Corpse Display, Transporting greater distances, Sanitation & Medical Pathology

EMBALMING - 19TH CENTURY

Embalming was done in part because it was a reliable method for transporting the body greater distances.

CHICAGO UNDERTAKERS ASSOCIATION (1868)

Established for mutual protection, dispensing information and setting preliminary standards for the operation of their trade.

DEATH - First Response

Family reaction and behavior: • atmosphere of anxiety and emotional strain • funerals had a mood of gloom -stiff formality At the Home: • Most deaths occurred at the home • The home was the central point of mourning • Procedures in rural areas • Usually no undertaker was readily available. Women of the house closed the eyes & straightened limbs. Undertaker accepted the responsibilities of taking care of the dead. • Preparation procedures-washed and dressed the deceased • Procedures in the cities • The undertaker relieved the families of the responsibility of preparing the body. Undertaker would take charge. He had an advisory role. Men decided what plans should be followed. • Preparation procedures-corpse cooler or chemical embalming.

FLOWER CAR

Flowers were carried to the grave in separate vehicles. First flowers were transported in regular hearse equipped with special trays or receptacles attached to the side walls of the hearse body above the casket.

FLOWERS

For a time they were considered pagan, wasteful, and worldly. • Eventually they became popular to help avoid the gloomy atmosphere of the funeral. • Artificial flowers were used because real flowers were not readily available.

FUNERAL PROCESSION & BURIAL - CITY

Formation of the cortege in the city • Clergy • Flower carriage • Honorary Pallbearers • Active Pallbearers • Hearse • Immediate family and relatives • Friends The one exception was if a society or fraternal order was involved, then they always took the lead. Procedure at the graveside • The undertaker lead the pallbearers and the clergy to the grave. • The UNDERTAKER supervised the lowering of the casket into the grave. • The grave was usually not filled in front of the family. Rural variations • There were hell, fire, and damnation sermons at the grave. • The grave was usually filled in front of the family.

NFDA

Founded in 1882, some significant events of the 1st convention: -established that it should function as a parent organization for state associations -named itself the National Funeral Directors Association of the United States (later shortened to NFDA) -Emphasis was on funeral directing and thus the use of the designation of "funeral director". -Marked close relationship between the convention and manufacturers of morticians' goods.

TROLLEY CAR

Funeral Trolley Car. It could carry the casket, flowers, and mourners. People didn't like it because it went to fast through the streets. Spread through the 1890's and into the early years of the 1900's.

FUNERAL DIRECTION

Funeral direction grew out of three needs: 1. Acceptance of embalming by chemical injection. 2. Need for "funeral parlors" for ceremonial disposal of the dead due to crowding of cities and development of small living quarters. 3. In urban areas, a need for a "chapel" as a setting for religious ceremonialization of the dead due to problems attendant upon transportation of the living and the dead.

METAL GRAVE VAULT

George Boyd made the metal grave vault which is used today in the same form and function. The Champion Company and the Springfield Metallic Casket Company made most of the vaults in the 1890's. By 1915, 5% to 10% of all funerals included a vault, nearly all metal. They became used for protection of the casket and the remains. The Stein Manufacturing Company made boxes of cedar, chestnut, oak, and mahogany. They were $25 to $23 for adult sizes.

CLOTH COVERED CASKETS

In 1854 a "Cloth Covered Case" was an additional $21.00 The cloth covered caskets were a European design.

OGEE DESIGN - A.C. BARSTOW

In 1859, A.C. Barstow of Rhode Island developed the "ogee" design, a system of overlapping ribs. The term casket suggested a jewel box. The OGEE Design was pleasing to the eye, it reduced excess space.

METALLIC BURIAL CASKET

In 1862 there was a change in the burial case. Its advantages were: 1. it was simple in design 2. not ornate 3. air-tight 4. it claimed it would stop the spread of contagion and for a time would arrest the process of decomposition. It consisted of two large sections of plate glass. It was based on the presentation of the dead rather than encasement. In the early 1870's the first true sheet metal caskets were made by Crane, Breed, and Co. This was the beginning of the lighter sheet metal caskets gradually replacing the heavier cast iron caskets.

CREMATION SOCIETIES (1881-1885)

In 1884 there was only one crematory in the entire country. -By the turn of the century, there were 24 crematories operating in 15 states. • 1876-1884 41 cremations • 1884-1889 731 cremations • 1889-1894 2,898 cremations • 1894-1899 7,197 cremations • Past 15 years thru 1900 involved 13,281 cremations or less than 1% of total deaths.

SAMSON, HUDSON

In 1889 he introduced a new style with an oval deck and eight posts.

CRANE, BREED & CO.

In the early 1870's the first true sheet metal caskets were made by Crane, Breed, and Co. Received manufacturing rights from Fisk. Crane & Barnes of Cincinnati (Aug. 15, 1853) Business succeeded by Crane, Breed & Co. maintained title & ownership until 1882 then incorporated as Crane-Breed Mfg. Exhibited a funeral car at the Chicago World Fair in 1893 Crane & Breed-June 1909 they had an auto- hearse on the market.

EMBALMING - CHEMICALS

Influences on development - More effective preservation for anatomical studies Provided for a longer viewing period Added element of disinfection Techniques & Materials All poisonous materials were used including bi-chloride of mercury zinc-chloride various arsenic-based compounds Techniques - Hand pump Gravity pump Trocar

ORDER CONCERNING EMBALMERS

Issued in March 1865 by the War Department. Forced an examination and licensing of people. All embalming was done for a uniform fee (including services and merchandise.)

FISK METALLIC COFFIN

It resembled an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus. It was made by Almond D. Fisk. It claimed to be air-tight, used the least amount of metal possible, so it was lightweight. All of the air could be removed from the casket or it could be filled with any gas or fluid which would prevent putrefaction. They sold for $7.00 to $40.00.

EMBALMING - LIMITATIONS & METHODS

LIMITATIONS - It was not accessible for everyone. Little was known about preservation. METHODS - During the 18th century, because body preservation techniques were unknown they reverted to the level of sawdust and tar for preparation. This was in part because during this period embalming was lost exclusively by the people in the healing arts. The need appeared for embalming as a consequence of the inability of the poorest urban classes to pay funeral expenses. The body remained unburied until the money could be raised.

HEARSE - MANUFACTURING COMPANIES DURING 1850-1910

MERTS & RIDDLE COACH & HEARSE CO. JAMES CUNNINGHAM, SON & CO. BROWNELL'S HEARSE REPOSITORY

BELLY PUNCTURERS

Nickname given to funeral directors who used the trocar

FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS

Notification of relatives The funeral director sent telegrams. • Floral pieces were ordered through undertaker. Arrangements were completed as soon as possible -preferably by the following day. Casket Selection was made.

EMBALMING - OPPOSED

People did not understand the nature of embalming. Many embalmers couldn't explain it well. Though it was mutilation of the body.

MOURNING SYMBOLS - LATE 19TH CENTURY

Personal dress was black clothing. Appearance of the home • Door Badges • Draped room or entire house with black cloth • Dark colored veils covered the doorways of the home. Timetable of mourning behavior • Lasted two years for the widow • One year for the widower • The first 6 months was the period of deepest mourning for all family members. Stationary -the width of the border indicated how long the person had been in mourning. Calling cards -what did the width of the black edging indicate? Social Emblems • Badges were made for the Undertaker and Pallbearer • Masonic, IOOF, Catholic or other society emblems were also popular. Funeral music symbolized solemnity, if not gloom.

PLUME

Plumes waved from the urns that decorated the top of the body of the hearse.

STYLE 'E' STATE CASKET

Provided fore President Grant. Made from the finest black broadcloth, heavy silver metal mountings, flat top, full french plate glass.

LIFE SIGNALS

Purpose- fear of live burial and grave robbers.

FREDERICK, ROBERT & TRUMP, C.A.

Received a patent for "Refrigerator for Corpses" in May 1846 (CORPSE COOLER)

GAUSSARDIA, J. ANTHONY

Received the first patent for arterial injection of a chemical compound (1856). He was not concerned with viewing, just preservation.

SCHOOLS & EMBALMING

Role of chemical manufacturers - Provided traveling salesman to promote their chemicals. Provided training to those who purchased their embalming chemicals. Provided warehousing of chemicals and the development of chemicals. INTRODUCTION OF EMBALMING SCHOOLS Separation from chemical companies. Improvement of quality of instruction.

FUNERALS - IN RURAL AREAS

Role of the undertaker -ordered the casket, casketed deceased, and generally arranged things so that the preacher could play the dominating role. • Locations for the funeral -most likely in home, maybe the church, and seldom in the funeral parlor. • Participants -most of the people of the town or village were involved.

FUNERALS - IN THE CITY

Role of the undertaker -sent invitations, general supervisor, supplier and arranger of funeral paraphernalia. • Locations for the funeral -most likely in home, maybe church, and seldom in the funeral parlor. • Participants -friends, family, pallbearers, clergy, funeral director, hearse driver

ST. CLAIR, COLIN

St. Clair's Patent (1867) Immersed the body in plaster of paris and hydraulic cement. Parts of the cadaver had tubes coming out so that the gases could escape.

STATE BOARDS OF HEALTH

System of sanitary police. • Collected and analyzed vital statistics. • Massachusetts State Board of Health was first to be established in 1869. • By 1878, sixteen other Boards were established. • By 1900, thirty Boards were established. • Funeral Directors were strong supporters.

BURIAL RECEPTACLE

The 3 types of burial receptacles commonly used during the 19th century were: 1. the metallic "mummy case" 2. the cloth-covered metal reinforced burial case 3. the traditional wooden coffin

HOLMES, THOMAS DR.

The Father of American Embalming Recognized the compounds used as poisonous and injurious to the health of the students dissecting the cadavers Presumed to have embalmed Abraham Lincoln Used the femoral artery to embalm. Types of embalming chemicals used by Holmes - Arsenates, metallic salts, chlorides, Efficacious Embalming fluid @ $3/gal. Introduced the first rubberized body carrier

COFFINS - WOOD

The different varieties of wood revealed the economic status of the person buried. The shape was nearly always octagonal with all the sides flat.

BURIAL VAULTS & OUTSIDE BOXES

The idea started from the desire of permanent protection of the body from ghouls and the elements. Original material used during the 19th century were grave liners of rock, stone, and brick. Later concrete slabs were used in sectionals. The were called burial safes and mort-safes. The concrete vault as we know it today was not common until after 1900. During 1900-1920 the number of vault patents granted were the greatest in history. People started wanting protection for the casket because of its beauty.

REPORT OF THE MASSACHUSETTS SANITARY COMMISSION (1850)

The report recommended: • a sanitary police • state and local health departments • collection and analysis of vital statistics -In 1878 Congress established a National Board of Health and also enacted a quarantine law. -Grew into the U.S. Public Health Service.

OUTER CONTAINERS

The terminology sequence starting in the late 1840's was: mummy-case burial-case coffin-case casket-burial case grave vault (1870's)

COFFINS - composition, function & style

They wanted to improve by: 1. increasing utility 2. better indicate the importance of the deceased and his/her family 3. provide protection against grave robbers 4. protect against the elements 5. should be more artistic and beautiful in order to influence an aesthetic movement in burials. Utility Status indication Preservation of the body Protection Aesthetic representation

UNDERTAKERS' MUTUAL PROTECTIVE ASSOCIATION OF PHILADELPHIA (1864)

They were the first formal organization of undertakers formed. They adopted a constitution which established a "Black Book"; a register of objectionable and delinquent customers.

CORPSE COOLER & COOLING BOARD

Type of chest placed over the torso of the body in order to slow down the process of decomposition prior to the funeral. It was typically a responsibility of the undertaker to provide & change the ice when it melted. Worked on the principle of ice refrigeration. The body was laid out on the cooling board. It was a concave metal ice-filled box which fit the torso. It was equipped with a lid, spigot, and handles. It was made of zinc and wood. After the embalming table was invented it was called a cooling board for a long time. Undertakers used them until the dawn of the present century. Advantages - portable, economical, could be used after the body was dressed Disadvantages - messy, water dripped as it melted ice needed changing

ALSO RANS

UNPOPULAR CASKETS terra cotta, wicker wood and cement glass and iron cross shaped or cruciform The designs were box like, long and narrow, and octagon

HEARSE - LIMOUSINE

appeared after WW I; began tendency to blend hearse and other conveyances in pleasing style. An automobile having an enclosed compartment for passenger's and a driver's seat outside but covered by a roof. Reduced height made loading & unloading easier. Specially built to carry 8 passengers, rented out for pallbearers or as a family car.

HULBERG, FRED

designed a hearse 16 ft. long and costing $6000 in 1908.

BARSTOW, A.C.

developed the "ogee" design, a system of overlapping ribs.

CUNNINGHAM, JAMES

exhibited at the New Orleans Cotton Exposition in 1884 featuring a funeral car.

CLARKE, JOSEPH H.

he added an embalming school at the Pulte Medical College in Cincinnati, OH.

DODGE, A. JOHNSON

he opened the Dodge School of Embalming in Boston, which was superseded in 1910 by the New England Institute of Anatomy, Sanitary Science and Embalming.

HARLAN, RICHARD DR.

he translated Gannal's history of Embalming into English.

AMBULANCE

in 1909 Cunningham factory in Rochester, NY produced motorized ambulance; 32 hp motor, rubber tires, heater and a gong.

SEPULCHER

is defined as a burial vault or a receptacle for sacred relics.

SEPULTURE

is defined as the act of burying, burial or interment.

STEIN, SAMUEL

made a casket for President U.S. Grant. It was called the "Style E State Casket" Cloth covered casket was patented in 1872. Light, strong & aesthetically pleasing.

BOYD, GEORGE

made the metal grave vault which is used today in the same form and function.

RENOUARD, AUGUSTE

opened the Rochester School of Embalming in 1882.

CASKET

suggested a jewel box. In the 1890's the term casket was being used. The caskets were square in form and the octagonal coffin was no longer used.

DURFEE, ALLEN

was a Grand Rapids, MI undertaker and compounder of fluids. • He organized the first state association meeting in the country. • He was the "Father" of the NFDA. • He was the first NFDA President.

COFFINS - IRON

were advertised as ghoul-proof.

COFFINS - LEAD LINED

were used to help prevent decay of the body. John Paul Jones was buried in 1792 in a lead coffin - his limbs wrapped in tin foil. In 1905 his body was recovered and was still recognizable.

MICHIGAN FUNERAL DIRECTORS ASSOCIATION

• 1st state to have an association • The first convention was held in Jackson,MI in 1880