Having tired of the art museum, we visited The National Museum of Funeral History. I know, we’re old and this seems an odd choice. My wife definitely thought so. Never-the-less, it was interesting.
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- The first exhibit was about September 11, 2001. Appropriate since we’re visiting on the anniversary.
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- One of the hearses (there were many) included Civil War era baskets. Amputees were carried in baskets. They were Basket Cases.
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- A child-sized hearse.
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- A Japanese hearse.
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- A glass casket which was short-lived.
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- A casket for three. After the death of their child, a couple decided to have a cutom casket built for them and their child. They later changed their minds.
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- Custom-made caskets from Ghana.
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- The section on cremation included a model of the controls. Yes, I’m an electrical engineer.
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- There were many patents for caskets that opened from the inside. John Carter of Mars had one.
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- This is a certified copy of the original shroud.
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- The gift shop had some practical gifts.
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- We didn’t buy any.
There were many other sections: Egyptian mummification, Presidential funerals, famous people funerals, post-mortem photography, the hearse that carried Princess Grace, a hearse that converted to an ambulance, and much more.
The hearse that converted to an ambulance reminded me that before modern EMTs, funeral homes ran ambulances. I remember as a child visiting my parents’ friends that lived above a funeral home. A call for an ambulance came in and interrupted their card game. My dad accompanied his friend to the accident scene. (No fatalities.)
Where were we on September 11, 2001: our story.