Klicker Chapter 12- Shipping Human Remains Flashcards
Thomas Holmes
Prepared some 4,000 fallen soldiers for shipping home during civil war. $100.
People allowed to deliver or receive human remains from an airport:
- Funeral director or licensed trainee.
- Must produce two forms of ID, picture id and license or registration card.
All airlines require:
- Body to be embalmed If not, packed with dry ice or ice packs or in Ziegler case, no sign of putrefaction or leaking.
- Both sending and receiving funeral home could be liable for clean up costs if body leaks.
Shipping casketed remains
- Body lowered to bottom of casket
- Face and hands covered to prevent cosmetics from rubbing off
- box by feet to prevent sliding
- lock casket, so top doesn’t collapse
- must be in shipping unit (wooden bottom, cardboard top, can only be used once).
- all info in shipping envelope taped to top of casket
- btp in envelope
Shipping non-casketed remains
- plastics should be worn
- minimum of hospital gown
- wrapped in a sheet
- send clothes in a bag
- anchor body to combo tray by nylon straps
- all flight info in envelope
- one time use container must be discarded.
Apostile
Verification of a notary seal or govt agency seal & an accompanying signature.
Domestic shipping in the funeral industry
Defined as the returning of human remains to a place of origin for final ceremonies and disposition.
- Average funeral director will have between 1 and 5 of their case calls each year
- Rooted in a person’s desire to be returned to the place they “call home” as their final resting place.
Reasons for the increase in domestic shipping.
- Mobility of today’s society
- Development of embalming and the Civil War
- President Lincoln
Mobility of today’s society
-Majority of people used to stay within close proximity of their residence and when they died buried in a church or community cemetery.- Revolutionary War era- soldiers killed in battle were usually buried in the closest local cemetery near the battlefield.-Transcontinental railroad (early 1800’s)- people began to venture outside local community, but still buried close to home due to no means to preserve bodies.-Relatives notified by telegram or when people accompanying the person who died returned back home.
Development of embalming and the civil war.
Development of embalming was realized later when the Civil War broke out in 1861 and Holmes became a commissioned officer in the Union Army.- became so lucrative he resigned his commission and marketed his service of preservation and shipping to the common soldier for as much as $100
President Lincoln
A fundamental force that promoted new technology and modern embalming in the US.-Enamored with the idea of embalming and declared to the Union Army that all Union officers killed in action were to be prepared and sent back home to their towns for burial. (this was the pinnacle point in domestic shipping).- It was not until his assassination that the masses became aware of the importance of how domestic shipping could bring people together to morn and pay respects. He and his son traveled together from Springfield Illinois to Washington D.C.. They rest at Oakridge Cemetery
Army Procedure and Protocol During Civil War for Shipment Back Home
-Embalmed- Dressed and placed in pine rectangular box and delivered to nearest train station.-Sent to place of origin for burial-Telegram to soldier’s home to inform family remains will be at the train station at a specific time.-Family or Undertaker received remains and had a viewing
William Wallace (Willie) Lincoln
-Died of typhoid fever just before 11th birthday.-Dr. Charles Brown (embalmer surgeon) summoned to the White House to embalm- Either buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Georgetown or housed in receiving vault-Never president’s and first lady’s intent to keep him at this cemetery until the President’s term in office had expired.
World War I
Fallen soldiers were prepared in a nearby morgue affiliated with a new branch of the service known as Graves Registration Service.-Developed a way of tracking soldiers via dog tags to reduce amount of unknowns-Unknown soldiers were the single most reason why 42% of all soldiers were not able to be returned back to their families during the Civil War era.
World War II
-Viewed returning human remains to families as a sacred obligation.-War department contacted next of kin and asked if they wished for the remains to be sent back home.-Graves Registration Service would disinter the body and return it back to the US via military transport.-Body then placed on a train for final destination.-Aviation advances improved speed-Period of time to return home was greatly improved upon due in part of the Graves Registration Service and a commitment by the government to return as many soldiers back to their families ASAP.-The first time three forms (air, sea, rail) of shipping were used to return remains.