Ostrich Feather Funerals of the Victorian Era
Ostrich feather funerals might sound very odd to us in our day but in the 1800s, they were all the rage. An elegant funeral just wouldn’t have been prestigious at all without an abundance of ostrich feathers. The fluffy plumes could be found just about…
Grave Robbers in the Victorian Era
Grave robbers were a common problem in Victorian-era cemeteries. They stole everything from rings and necklaces to the bodies themselves. “Rest in Peace” is a common epitaph on older gravestones but this wasn’t just a trite phrase in the 1800s. Family members were genuinely concerned…
Undertaker Advertisements from the 1800s
Undertaker advertisements of the 1800s hold fascinating information about the days in which our ancestors lived. Would you like to know if your ancestor’s community had elaborate funerals or quiet memorials? Check the undertaker’s ads! Would you like to know how much your ancestor might…
Native American Burial Rituals
Native American burial rituals can help us to understand the values of unique groups of people. In the early 1900s, when my grandmother was about five years old, she was playing outside with her twin sister in rural Michigan when a Native American man came…
Genealogy Trips are the New Family Vacation
Genealogy trips can bring your family history alive! Online archives and DNA have made it easier than ever to discover our ancestors and our heritage. So why not visit the places where your great-great-grandparents lived and died? As you walk where they walked and do…
12 Cemetery Superstitions
Cemetery superstitions from the last century or two may have more influence over how you behave when it comes to family funerals and burials than you might realize. Have you ever worn black to a funeral? Did you travel from a funeral home to the…
