The National Museum of Funeral History, Houston

Several weeks ago I visited one of the hidden gems in Houston: the National Museum of Funeral History. Despite its gloomy subject matter, the museum had some of the best exhibits I have ever seen. During the visit, I had the unique opportunity to learn the traditional burial rituals of the United States presidents and Catholic popes, discover the secrets of mummification and cremation, view a variety of animal caskets and hearses from around the world, and reflect upon the life and times of celebrities, heroes, and dutiful public servants. According to an information brochure, the museum has 30,500 square feet of exhibit space (the largest collection of authentic historical funeral service items in the United States), and I am very glad to have spent more than two hours in there, observing all the artifacts they had. The museum staff displayed fantastic customer service, and I felt welcomed from the beginning. In sum, the National Museum of Funeral History is an excellent treasure trove of culture, afterlife antiques, and the undiscussed history of the funeral service industry. I took many photographs of the exhibits; I have put some below w/ captions.

The museum had an exhibit on actors and actresses who had a tremendous impact on Hollywood and USA culture. Robin Williams (and the shoes he wore from the movie RV) were featured as well as Meinhardt Frank Raabe, the munchkin coroner from The Wizard of Oz and Oscar Mayer businessman. You will see photographs and biographic captions of actors from the Wild West movie genre (including the famous Alamo star John Wayne) in the exhibit above. (photograph by author)

Caskets are usually made out of wood, and the museum had a fine rendition of an early twentieth-century workshop. Wood-makers must have made a lot of money during the Victorian and World War I Eras when many died of disease and warfare. This exhibit was living history; since you heard the sounds of laborers chopping wood, you felt like you were actually there with the carpenters. (photograph by author)

9/11/2001 was a terrible day for the United States... a group of terrorists hijacked 4 commercial airplanes, all of which crashed into the NY World Trade Center, Pentagon, and a field in PA, killing over 2,700 people. This event changed the modern world and sparked the western invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan. Although my students were not yet alive, I still teach the importance of understanding 9/11 and why we should always remember this tragic event. The museum had a neat exhibit on the first responders who perished on that fateful day, putting themselves on the front lines in the face of danger to save many civilians. Hundreds of New York and D.C. firefighters, police workers, and emergency personnel died on 9/11/2001, leaving many families devastated. Photographed is one of the caskets created for a fallen New York firefighter. (photograph by author) 

This 1832 hearse is believed to be one of the oldest hearses in the United States (it was donated to the museum in 1996). According to records, the black hearse that is photographed was purchased by the town of Cambridgeport, Vermont, and frequently used during funerals. The hearse was last used in 1926 and stored at the town's congregational church until it was fully restored several decades later. During the winters, the hearse's wheels were removed and a pair of sleighs were bolted on... I wonder what it was like to drive this hearse in the snow?! (photograph by author)

I recall reading about the Egyptian mummies in elementary school, so I was pleased when I found out that the museum had a small exhibit on Egyptian death and burials. Long ago, Egyptians would preserve their Kings' and Queens' vital organs and wrap the deceased bodies in cloth. The mummies would then be transported up the River Nile to the tombs and pyramids, and buried among the possessions (including chariots) that monarch had in their life. One of the famous Egyptian Pharaohs whose tomb was discovered in the twentieth century was Tutankhamun. (photograph by author)

After learning about the life of Pope John Paul II, I was treated to a wax-figure representation of the Pope's lying in state ceremony in the Vatican (this was one of the largest gatherings of heads of state in all time). Here, he was surrounded by the Vatican Guard and propped up by 3 red pillows. The body was blessed by the Cardinals and Bishops, who repeated ancient Greek prayers. His Eminence Edward Michael Cardinal Egan led the prayers. The body of Pope John Paul II was buried in a tomb underneath St. Peter's Basilica. John Paul II would later become an ordained saint by Pope Benedict XVI in 2011. (photograph by author)

The curators at the funeral museum have done a fantastic job at compiling religious artifacts and creating a wonderful exhibit on the history of Pope funerals. The Pope is the head of the Roman Catholic Church and resides in Vatican City, one of the smallest countries in the world. A wax figure of John Paul II, a Polish priest who was elevated to the Pope position in 1978, is pictured. I learned that when a Pope dies, their ceremonial Ring of the Fisherman is crushed, the private bedroom and quarters are sealed off, and the Cardinals of the world are summoned to the Vatican to start deliberations on the successor. Since John Paul II died in 2005, these rites of passage were performed during that year. (photograph by author)

The museum had a variety of funeral hearses in their collection. The hearse, originally a horse and carriage, is the vehicle used to carry the deceased from the church to the burial site. The hearse in this photograph is an early twentieth-century automobile from Britain. I also enjoyed discovering the history of the hearse in Asian countries, including in Japan and China. (photograph by author)

A casket is usually a rectangular-shaped box that the dead's body/cremated remains are put into before burial. Yet, there have been many different casket looks throughout history... including caskets which are shaped like a fish, crab, centipede, and chicken -- see photograph above. It was funny to see different incarnations of the casket. Cow, plane, car caskets not pictured. (photograph by author)

I was amazed at the vibrant Day of the Dead exhibit at the museum (seen above). A majority of Hispanics partake in a colorful and religious celebration every Halloween called Día de los Muertos. During these festivities, when it is believed that the dead return to visit the living, ancestors are honored through home memory tables/alters and redecorated gravesites in cemeteries. The memory tables are typically decorated with artificial flowers, photographs of the deceased, personal items, breads, candles, and the food and drink the departed enjoyed during their time on Earth. (photograph by author)

One of my favorite exhibits at the museum was a human-scale model of Abraham Lincoln's corpse and casket. Lincoln, the Great Emancipator and our 16th president, was assassinated by actor John Wilkes Booth on April 14, 1865, just days after the end of the bloody Civil War. After Lincoln died, his body was put on display in the East Room in the White House before making the railroad trip to Springfield, IL. The museum also had a photographic collage of Lincoln's changing face during the war (where the former Illinois attorney considerably aged) as well as a model of the single shot 44-caliber Derringer that Booth used to fatally shoot one of our greatest presidents. (photograph by author)

The museum also had a rich collection of newspapers detailing presidents' deaths. Franklin D. Roosevelt, president during the Great Depression and World War II, suddenly died on April 12, 1945, a few weeks prior to the end of the bloodiest war in world history. FDR, who was a chain-smoker and suffered from several illnesses in the years leading up to his death, is best remembered for being the architect of the New Deal and the only president to date to get elected to the Oval Office 4x. This photograph shows FDR's death on the front page of The Houston Chronicle on April 12, 1945. (photograph by author)

I can distinctly remember watching the funeral of President George H.W. Bush on TV in December 2018. Bush, who had been Reagan's VP and later successor, will be remembered in American history as a seasoned politician and dedicated public servant. The museum had a model of Bush's funeral train (the president would be laid to rest at his presidential library in College Station) as well as artifacts from the Bush family private collection, including one of H.W.'s colorful socks. (photograph by author)

The museum had several funeral hearses, including the official 2003 Presidential Funeral Hearse that carried Presidents Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford from the services to their final resting places. So much history!! (photograph by author)