Development of Coffins, Burial Cases, and Caskets Flashcards
Earlier burial methods in colonial America consisted of wrapping the remains in a blanket known as a
Cerecloth or “Winding Sheet”
Cloth treated with was is a
Cerecloth
Between 1650-1700, with the influx of European cabinet makers and carpenters, what entered the American colonies?
Coffin Making
Original Coffin Making was based on what?
Hardwood
The colonists made coffins ______
at need
Why did the colonists make their coffins at need instead of mass producing them?
Both softwood and hardwood were readily available
Softwood coffins, usually pine, were used in colonial America for
the masses
The hardwood, with fancy imported coffin furniture trimmings and fittings were used for
The wealthy
Most coffins from 1650 to 1820 were of this shape
Octagon
Furnishing undertakers appear when?
after the War of 1812
Before the American Revolutionary war, all coffin furniture was
imported
Because of these, American craftsmen were forced to enter or initiate the industrial revolution mostly in the northeast, and thus all coffin furniture and coffins were now made domestically
Embargo Acts of the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812
After the War of 1812, some coffin shops began to produce coffins exclusively on this level
Wholesale
Name the first wholesale manufacturer in America
John L. Dilon Coffin and Shroud Warehouse of New York
After 1812, this became the primary expense of the funeral bill
The coffin
By 1840, undertaking was separated into two distinct roles of
Wholesale and retail
The industrial revolution brought about the birth of the furnishing undertaker who turned the simple coffin shop into this
Coffin Warehouse
A prospering new middle class would spend money but demand more in service and better burial receptacle caused the development of this
Concept of supplier and the rise in power of the furnishing undertaker
The cabinet maker still held the economic advantage because he could bypass the middleman, but in terms of these, he could not compete
Fit, finish, design, and variation in style
Billing prior to 1929 was this
Full itemization
Ever since the stock market crash, billing move to
package deals
Improvements of functions, style, and composition of coffins is most noticed when?
The Early 19th century
What improved the function, style, and composition of coffins?
The development of the casket
The style of the casket moved from an 8 sided octagon shape to a
4 sided rectangle
The 8 sided casket was prominent until
the 1940s
Specific goals were set forward by the furnishing undertaker for the casket?
Increased utility
Reflect a persons station in life
Preservation capability through the wake and funeral service
Provide protection against grave robbers and body snatchers
Have eye appeal
Received the first patent on a metallic coffin
James A Gray
Received a patent to make coffins of stone, marble, and hydraulic cement
John White
Cement Burial vault development
John White
These materials were used, unsuccessfully, to make coffins
Rubber Celluloid Paper meche Aluminum Glass Zinc Iron Baked Clay
This very heavy burial case was anthropoid in shape, made airtight with cast iron or raised metal
Fisk Metallic Coffin
Fisk falsely claimed that his Metallic Coffin would prevent this
putrefaction
Why did Fisk believe his Metallic Coffin would prevent putrefaction?
Because it was airtight
Why was Fisk wrong about his coffin preventing putrefaction?
Decay is aerobic, while putrefaction is anaerobic. An airtight coffin would actually encourage putrefaction while possibly deterring decay
Name the three claims the manufacturer made about the Fisk Metallic Burial Case
Lighter in weight because of the form fitting design
A glass porthole similar to a diving bell on the head end to view the deceased face
Airtight design to protect the body
What was the timeline of the fisk metallic case production?
Fisk - Fisk and Raymond - Crane, Breed, and Co
Development of the Fisk style metallic burial case was mostly where and by whom?
In the East and Mid-West by Crane Breed and Co
Crane, Breed, and Co also falsely claimed this about the Fisk Burial Case
It would preserve dead bodies
Promotion and success of the Fisk style Metallic Burial Cases was due to
The Civil War with massive numbers of dead needing a mass produced coffin
Good Transportation by steamboat and railway made the cases accessible to all parts of the country
Good Promotion by undertakers
Many notable leaders were buried in this case
Cast iron with bronze finish bedecked with highly wrought ornaments, representing drapery, flowers, emblems of mortality, etc
Bronzed Case Line
What were the two models of the Bronzed Case Line offered?
Ornamental and Cloth Covered (higher end)
By the end of the Civil War, this style surpassed all metal ornamental cases in popularity
Cloth Covered Metallic Burial Case
Front hinged perimeter with a drop down design
Ogee Design
Patented by A.C. Barstow
Ogee Design
Simplified the earlier Fisk style by utilizing less space, rectangularized with internal overlapping support ribs
Ogee Design
Furnishing undertaker and coffin manufacturer who claims to be the first to develop the straight-sided coffin
William Cooley
First to use the word Casket to describe his innovation
William Cooley
Between 1858 and 1862, this company without a doubt the introduction of the rectangularized casket
Crane, Breed, and Co
This company mass produced the rectangularized casket during the Civil War
Crane, Breed, and Co
Developed in 1857 by Crane, Breed, and Co as a streamlined coffin
Zinc Shoulder Casket
The forerunner of the modern casket
Zinc Shoulder Casket
With the advent of arterial injection and cavity treatment of the dead, after the civil war, and emphasis was placed on this rather than merely encasing the body
Presentation of the dead
This company mass produced the first sheet metal casket
Crane, Breed, and Co
Crane, Breed, and Co produced these two models of the sheet metal casket
Oriental and the New Casket
By 1890, coffin was replaced by the word
Casket
An Austrian cabinet maker who produced a glass and wood casket
Samuel Stein
Samuel Stein’s first glass coffin was a failure, so he modified the glass sides with wood and covered these panels with what?
Cloth
Samuel Steins casket, covered in the finest black broadcloth, was used in the burial of US Grant, with Grant’s initials embroidered on the pillow.
Style E Casket
This was also referred to as the Fraud coffin
Life Signal Coffin
The Life Signal Coffin was developed and sold based on what fear?
Premature Burial
This ended Life Signal Coffins
Arterial Embalming
One who stole bodies from graves to sell to anatomists
Resurrectionists
A device made of iron about an inch in diameter and six inches long, containing an explosive and a trip mechanism to set it off should the coffin be tampered with
Clover Coffin Torpedo
Concrete slabs of various lengths sealed together to form an oblong box
Sectional
Forerunner of modern cement outside liner
Sectional
Consisted of a concrete floor or slab with brick and mortar sides and a top slab of concrete
Brick and Slab
Large squares or slabs of slate with tongue and groove end fittings bolted together to form an oblong box
Slate Vault
Popular in Eastern cities; slat bottom, brick and mortar sides and a slate top slab
Brick and Slate
Invented the burial safe in Cincinnati Ohio
Andrew Van Bibber
Developed a design that would dominate metallic vault styles
George W. Boyd
Consisted of a domed iron cover and a floor plate, both made of wrought iron plates riveted together
George W. Boyd’s metallic vault
Developed the direct predecessor of the air seal metallic burial vault used today
George W. Boyd
A variation of an existing vault made like a safe deposit box with a hinged end panel
End Seal Metallic Vault
List the basic concepts for the use of the Vaults
Protect the remains from grave robbers
Protect the casket and its container
Aesthetic beauty and eye appeal
Hardwood and Softwood were cheap and plentiful and was used to make these to protect ornate wooden and metal caskets that were shipped
Rough Boxes
Caskets were placed on top of these boxes for display
Rough Boxes
Undertakers used to offer these to customers for free as grave liners
Rough Boxes
After WWI, rough boxes were extensively used as grave liners because of the many deaths due to this
influenza
By 1915, _____ of all funerals included vaults, mostly air seal
5-10%
The vast majority of Americans could not, or would not pay for these
Pay for concrete or metal vaults
Most Americans used these as grave liners
Wooden outside boxes
Since WWII, cemeteries have demanded a minimum of this
A concrete grave liner
Now, concrete liners have 2 holes drilled in the bottom to help with
water drainage
From 1945 to present, this has dominated vault sales
Reinforced cement vault
