The Band Plays On

I came across this memorial image in Van Wert, Ohio at Years Ago Antique Mall.  The deceased young man is not identified.  Based on the fashion I would date this photo as being from the 1910s. It was the widow who stole my heart and made me decide to add this large cabinet photo to … More The Band Plays On

The Undertaker’s Wife

In 1896, Maggie Estella Holder, 17, married Charles Luther Thornburg, 21, and the couple settled in Farmland, Randolph County, Indiana.  Luther, as he was best known, was a farmer, but had a “hankering” to become an undertaker.  In 1904, he bought the undertaking business of W.B. Meeks, and thus began Thornburg’s career as a mortician.  … More The Undertaker’s Wife

Love and Sympathy

Throughout history, flowers have been used at funerals and memorial services as visual expressions of love, sympathy, and respect.  This cabinet card is so beautiful that the lack of identifying writing didn’t stop me from adding it to my collection.  I also didn’t let it stop me from attempting to figure out who these flowers … More Love and Sympathy