At the American Funeral Service Museum in Houston
caskets come in many sizes and shapes. In Africa, a craftsman sends the dearly
departed off in a carved and painted wooden box that commemorates their life.
In America, we build elaborate coaches to transport the dead to their final
resting place.
You might expect a depository of historic items so closely related to death to
make your skin crawl and your stomach queasy. With the exception of the
caskets, an autopsy exhibit, and a mourning room, visiting the museum was more
like visiting a car museum than a funeral parlor.
One of the more unusual vehicles is a 1916 Packard Funeral Bus. The bus was
large enough to carry the entire funeral party with the casket and flowers up
front behind the driver and the family riding in the back. Unfortunately, a
design flaw had the rear axle too far forward. On one of the first times the
bus was used, the weight of the grieving family tipped the vehicle so much that
the front wheels came off the ground spilling the family out the back door. The
vehicle was not used again. It was found by the museum in a field being used by
a ranch hand as a home.
Whether horse-drawn or gasoline-powered, all of the coaches represent a
period in history and most are elaborately decorated. The newest hearse in the
collection is a 1972 Japanese ceremonial hearse that looks like a gold- and
silk-covered camper shell over a small pickup. All of the motorized hearses are
started every 60 days. Several of the horse-drawn carriages have been in
movies.
The newest additions to the collection are the 12 fantasy coffins from
Africa. After touring folk art museums around the country the artifacts are now
permanently housed in Houston. The brightly colored caskets represent a
Mercedes, chicken, bull, shallot, eagle, fish, outboard motor, lobster, crab,
and a Boeing 747 with removable wings. In the picture to the left, museum
director Gary Sanders stands next to a casket built to carry African royalty to
the beyond.
The collection of caskets ranges through the centuries, across cultural lines.
There is a green glass casket, a casket with a window to view the deceased’s
face, and a three-person casket ordered by a family. The mother and father had
a terminally sick child and had taken a suicide pact when they ordered the
bronze-colored casket. They thought better of the plan and the casket was never
used.
The collection was established by Robert Waldrip, a third-generation
mortician. The museum is in north Houston at the corner of Ella Boulevard and
Barren Springs Drive and is open Mon-Sat, 10am-4pm, and Sun, noon-4pm.
Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children. For more information, call
713/876-3063.
Coming up this weekend…
Halloween at Monument Hill and Kreische Brewery State Historical Park in La
Grange includes a haunted house and special tours, Oct. 27, 2-5pm.
409/968-5658.
Hogeye Festival in downtown Elgin combines hot sausage, music, and fun, Oct.
26.
Food & Wine Fest in Fredericksburg offers a premier showcase of Texas
products while having fun, Oct. 26. 210/997-8515.
Cactus Jelly Cooking at Honey Creek State Natural Area turns prickly pear into
a tasty jelly, Oct. 2 & 9. 210/438-2656.
Coming up…
Pumpkin Street Festival in Burnet decorates downtown for Halloween, Oct. 31.
512/756-4297. n
This article appears in October 25 • 1996 and October 25 • 1996 (Cover).
