Changes in the funeral industry

In the early 1900s, many funerals were held at home and the family prepared and dressed the bodies of the deceased.  With modern day funeral homes, the funeral home director helps to manage that so the family does not have to.
Costs have certainly changed over the past century for funerals. It has become a profitable business over time.

Some information I learned from the National Funeral Directors Association website are:
-U.S. funeral homes employed 102,877 workers in 2007.
-As of 2008, it was estimated that there are 25,680 funeral directors in the U.S. and 8,200 embalmers.
-Funeral home/funeral home combined with crematories revenue: $11.95 billion in 2007, increased from $11.05 billion in 2002.

The national median cost of a funeral for 2012 was about $7,045 compared to 1960 when the average cost was about $708.
Another change over the past century is the cremation rates. In 2012, the average was 43.2% whereas in 1960 is was about 3.56%
Source:National Funeral Directors Association (2013, April 12). Statistics | National Funeral Directors Association. Retrieved September 29, 2013, from http://nfda.org/about-funeral-service-/trends-and-statistics.html

The costs of modern times funeral have increased dramatically. Having just experienced a recent death a few days ago and helping plan a funeral for this week, I am learning the cost of funerals is very expensive.
I had no idea that you could rent a coffin for a visitation ceremony until the other day. Renting a casket/coffin was $1500 but it was cheaper than trying to purchase a coffin/casket which was about $2500 when purchased at the funeral home.

What has changed over the last century?

Since the 20th century, we have see a change from the undertaker to the funeral director, from coffins to caskets, and the embalming process.

"undertaker" refers to the person who "under took" responsibility for funeral arrangements. Many of the early undertakers were furniture makers because building caskets was a logical extension of their business. For them, undertaking was a second business rather than a primary profession. - See more at: http://www.funeralwise.com/learn/industry#sthash.Hw7emTib.dpuf

The "undertaker" was the person who "under took" responsibility for the funeral arrangements of the deceased. Undertakers in earlier times were typically furniture makers and building caskets was a  second business rather than a primary business/profession (FuneralWise).



picture source: Schmidt, B. (n.d.). Mark Twain's Quarrel with Undertakers - It All Begins with Jennie Clemens. Retrieved September 26, 2013, from http://www.twainquotes.com/jennie.html

As far as embalming, it actually dates back to the time of the Egyptians, but became more popular around the time of the Civil War when they had to bring the bodies back home, but developed more over time into a profession. 
Another change is the coffins/caskets. It was the undertakers that made the coffins in the early 20th century or a family member, but this later became a professional business where large companies now make them. The styles and designs/options have dramatically increased since the 20th century.

undertakers made the coffins

Egyptians

Egyptians

Funeral Wise (n.d.). History of the Funeral Industry | Funeralwise. Retrieved September 26, 2013, from http://www.funeralwise.com/learn/industry#sthash.Hw7emTib.dpuf


picture sources:Neighbors, J. (2012, August 10). A Grave Interest: History of Coffins & Caskets. Retrieved September 26, 2013, from http://agraveinterest.blogspot.com/2012/08/history-of-coffins-caskets.html
 and 
Casket Showcase (n.d.). Caskets for Sale | Discount Caskets | Caskets Online | Funeral Caskets | Cheap Caskets | Discount Caskets. Retrieved September 26, 2013, from http://www.casketshowcase.com/

"undertaker" refers to the person who "under took" responsibility for funeral arrangements. Many of the early undertakers were furniture makers because building caskets was a logical extension of their business. For them, undertaking was a second business rather than a primary profession. - See more at: http://www.funeralwise.com/learn/industry#sthash.Hw7emTib.dpuf

Undertaker

Undertaker

Twentieth Century Funeral Sermons/Services have Changed

Throughout the 20th century, funeral sermons began to de-emphasize the once religious content as the funeral process began to become more professional and less dominated by members of the family.  Clergy members continued to provide some sermons and commendations at funerals but by the late 20th century the secularization of the American society led to an increase of participation in the services done by friends and family providing eulogies and services that often replaced the traditional religious service. Lay eulogies included movie clips, recordings, oral reminiscences, poetry reading, and even spiritual readings. The speakers would highlight accomplishments and fond memories of the deceased as well as the minor weakness or eccentricity in the deceased's character. The transformed service was to celebrate the human spirit of the deceased rather than to offer up the deceased as a religious model.

Funeral Orations and Sermons - rituals, world, burial, body, life, customs, beliefs, person, human. (n.d.). Retrieved September 24, 2013, from http://www.deathreference.com/En-Gh/Funeral-Orations-and-Sermons.html

changes that have occurred since the early 1900s to the present day.

What is a mortuary? It is a place in which dead bodies are kept until burial. Sometimes refereed to as a funeral home. merriam-webster dictionary mentions it is a room or building in which dead bodies are kept, for hygienic storage or for examination, until burial or cremation. of or relating to the burial of the dead. 

Merriam Webster (n.d.). Mortuary - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary. In Dictionary and Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster Online. Retrieved September 22, 2013, from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mortuary


During my research for this project, it has led me to focus on some of the changes that have occurred since the early 1900s to the present day.
Funerals in the 1900's were different than they are in our present time. Funerals were not held in a funeral home like we have today and instead they were held in a parlor in someone's house. The parlor was the  fanciest room of the home only used for special occasions. 

During the early part of the twentieth century,  family and friends would attend the funeral that took place at the decedent’s home with the burial taking place within twenty-four to forty-eight hours after the death. Funeral Homes were not always prevalent in society and came about around the 20th century. Many rural communities did not have a funeral home, and many times the funeral/wake was at the home. The burial had to happen more quickly than today in modern times because embalming had not become the norm in the early part of the 20th century. However, embalming can extend the period between death and burial and has become more prevalent in today's society. 

Photo of an an Early Home Parlor 
According to the Hoosick Township Historical Society,  "The word "parlor" comes from the French word for "speak" or "conversation". The Victorian parlor was popular during the American Victorian era from 1850 through the early 1900s. It was a very formal room with elegant furnishings. It was used exclusively for receiving and entertaining guests. It was never used as a "living room" by the family. At the death of a family member, it was used to show the body and carry on the wake. Interestingly, when the wakes moved out of the home to a public building the new business became known as a funeral parlor. "   If you are ever near Hoosick Falls, NY, check out the museum for a look into our past. 




Hoosick Township Historical Society (n.d.). Hoosick Township Historical Society. Retrieved September 22, 2013, from http://www.hoosickhistory.com/maplinks/museuminfo.html
A Funeral Home today may look similar to this:




source: Dignity Memorial Gerber Chapel (n.d.). Photo Gallery - Gerber Chapel. Retrieved September 22, 2013, from http://www.dignitymemorial.com/gerber-chapel/en-us/photo-gallery.page?image_start_id=4bccb73c-08e5-daaf-dd13-91d3b1b44d45

Instead of having vehicle like a hearse you may see today to carry the deceased, they used a hearse pulled by two horses in earlier times. It had glass windows with curtains over them. The 'hearse' has changed in appearance over the years. One similarity is that people would pull over to the side or stop out of respect of the hearse carrying the dead body which is done today.




source:Urban Remains (n.d.). very rare 19th century american hand carved horse drawn funeral hearse "eternal flame" wood finial. Retrieved September 22, 2013, from http://www.urbanremainschicago.com/very-rare-19th-century-american-hand-carved-horse-drawn-funeral-hearse-eternal-flame-wood-finial.html#ur-desc

A hearse today may look like this

source:
HearseWorks: 2005 Cadillac Landau Coach by Bennett Funeral Coaches. (n.d.). Retrieved September 22, 2012, from http://www.hearse.com/vehicles/motorized/cadillac/2005/bennett/landau_coach/v001_PBandJ/pages/pa.html




Once the family picked a funeral director, the funeral director removed the body to take to the funeral home where it was embalmed. In some cases, it was cremated instead depending on the families wishes.  The family members also made to make other decisions such as the time and location of the funeral service, whether to publicize it in the form of an obituary, who will say the eulogy, and the place of burial or cremation. The family also had to choose the clothing that the deceased would wear during the wake/funeral. 


While some aspects have similarities,there have been some changes over time. 

exposing children to death?

By the early 1900's, some became concerned about exposing children to death. In earlier centuries, children were exposed to death more-so than they are today.  Some experts were concerned and began to warn about the dangers of a child's fears of death and parents were told to use caution in their conversations regarding death with young children.
Around the 1950's there was a general silence had come about regarding death. It became taboo to talk about. Today, death is not as taboo a topic as it once became.

mortuary defined

Here are some definitions of 'mortuary' that I have found to help in researching this topic.

noun (plural mortuaries)

• a funeral home or morgue.

adjective

[attributive]

• of or relating to burial or tombs:mortuary rituals a mortuary temple

Origin:

late Middle English (denoting a gift claimed by a parish priest from a deceased person's estate): from Latin mortuarius, from mortuus 'dead'. The current noun sense dates from the mid 19th century

mortuary: definition of mortuary in Oxford dictionary - American English (US). (n.d.). In Oxford Dictionaries. Retrieved from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/us/definition/american_english/mortuary



mor·tu·ar·ies, adjective

noun

1.funeral home.

2.a customary gift formerly claimed by and due to the incumbent of a parish in England from the estate of a deceased parishioner. 
adjective

3.of or pertaining to the burial of the dead.

4.pertaining to or connected with death.

Mortuary | Define Mortuary at Dictionary.com. (n.d.). In Dictionary.com. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/mortuary

Topic Post

The topic question is : How have mortuary rituals changed in America over the past 100 years. 

Over the last one hundred years has encompassed changes beginning in the 20th century (a period between January 1, 1901and December 31, 2000) and the 21st century (beginning January 1, 2001, to the present day) There have been changes to our experience of dying and the mortuary rituals. As our perceptions of death have changed, so have rituals. 

During my research, I came across a site called deathreference, and it has a section called the encyclopedia of Death and Dying. 

The funeral industry in American emerged in the aftermath of the Civil War, picking up steam at the turn of the twentieth century and gaining economic power by the middle of the century. Although the industry has long been the object of scathing public attacks, local funeral homes across the country have won respect as established and trusted places of business and as a source of comfort for families suffering from the loss of a close friend or relative. Variously called "undertakers," "funeral directors," and "morticians," America's new ritual specialists have transformed the twentieth-century experience of death and body disposal.

source:Encyclopedia of Death and Dying (n.d.). Funeral Industry - rituals, world, burial, body, life, customs, history, time, human. Retrieved September 14, 2013, from http://www.deathreference.com/En-Gh/Funeral-Industry.html

At the visitation, also called a "wake" or "viewing",  the body of the deceased, who has been embalmed, is placed on display in a casket. The viewing often takes place on an evening a day or two before the funeral service.  During the wake, the immediate family greets friends and others relatives of the deceased in a social gathering. Photos have been shown at the wakes of the life of the deceased. This was not always done in the past.

In the past, after a small service was performed with no frills and the body was buried, some just went on with their days work but now some have luncheons after the burial of the body. This is a change in rituals. 
Source:

The Funeral Source (n.d.). U.S. Funeral Customs & Traditions- Funeral Traditions: The Funeral Source. Retrieved September 14, 2013, from http://thefuneralsource.org/trad01.html

The ritual of the luncheon was not always present so this is one of the changes that has developed over time. 

I also became aware of the Department of consumer affairs, cemetery and funeral bureau during my research.  

Department of Consumer Affairs Cemetery and Funeral Bureau (n.d.). FAQs - Cemetery and Funeral Bureau. Retrieved September 14, 2013, from http://www.cfb.ca.gov/about_us/faqs.shtml