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| Hand Carved Stone Marker |
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| Mass Manufactured Stone |
Grave
markers are the oldest form of funerary art. They have been used to mark burial
locations since Celtic and Roman times.
Gravestones and memorials differ widely depending on where they are
located, the status of the person buried there, when they were erected, and if
they were hand carved or ordered from a catalog.
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| Vermont Marble Company |
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| Flint Granite Company |
When
someone died, the family usually went to the local stone carver to arrange for
a grave marker to be made. Those who could afford it might order markers directly from
stone quarries and monument companies in other states, possibly New Hampshire
or Michigan for the best blue granite, or Vermont for exceptional
marble. By ordering from the
source of the stone, customers felt they were getting the best stone available.
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| Monument with Statue |
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| Family Mausoleum |
Affluent
residents of the 1800’s through the 1920’s might have their graves marked with
a large obelisk monument, a memorial with a statue, or a family mausoleum. Ornate and elaborate grave markers
could tell the story of the deceased, or showcase the family’s wealth.
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| Abandoned Quarry |
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| Inside a Quarry |
Markers
were made from several types of stone including, field, slate, limestone,
marble, and granite. Some were also created from metals such as zinc (White
Bronze) or iron. Marble and granite were the most popular and durable of the
stones used. Stone markers were
quarried; hand carved with hammers and chisels, polished and then shipped to
the local monument company or cemetery.
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| Sears Roebuck Catalog |
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| Price Information |
In
1902, Sears Roebuck offered a Tombstones and Monuments catalog from which anyone could select a grave
marker. This put a reasonably
priced, custom-ordered gravestone within the reach of almost everyone.
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| Workmanship Guarantee |
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| Information on a product |
Sears
included a statement in the catalog that the stone used and the workmanship
were both on par with the more exclusive monument and stone companies, but the
prices were less expensive.
However, Sears requested that the stone be paid for in full before being
shipped.
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| Marker for $4.88 |
In
the 1902 catalog, Sears Roebuck prices began at $4.88 for a basic marker
(without lettering, embellishments, larger stone orders, or shipping.) Sears
also touted that their prices could be up to $150 less than those of a home
monument company or stone carver.
The idea of ordering by catalog caught on and many people began planning
what they wanted their stones to say and deciding on which one they wanted.
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| Catalog Tree Stone |
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| Options Available |
The
Sears Roebuck catalog offered a wide variety of products to choose from.
Customers could select Blue Vein Marble from Vermont or White Acme Rutland
Italian Marble; granite markers were also quarried in Vermont. Upright stones
and those with some small sculptures were available. Even tree stone markers
could be ordered, although the more ornate stones with statues, obelisks and
mausoleums were not obtainable through the Sears Roebuck catalog.
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| Montgomery Wards Catalog |
Montgomery
Wards also offered a catalog of Monuments, Tombstones and Markers. While Sears requested payment in full before shipping, Montgomery
Wards offered an easy payment plan so that “You need not leave the grave of
your loved one unmarked just because you haven’t the money to pay the full
price of a memorial stone.”
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| Red Barre Granite Markers |
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| Symbols & Emblems |
Montgomery
Wards also offered stones carved in Blue Vein Marble from Vermont, along with Red or
Gray Barre Vermont granite.
Lettering, symbols, and embalms were an extra charge, as were large
stones, and shipping costs.
The
Portrait Eternal stone was available in 1929 on which to preserve the “Likeness
of Loved Ones” with a photo.
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| Fencing, Benches and Vases |
In
the 1929 catalog, Montgomery Wards also offered iron fencing for the cemetery
lot, wrought steel benches, and cemetery flower vases.
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| Description of Granite |
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| J.E. Harrison & Son |
Many
stone and/or monument companies followed suit, offering catalogs to showcase
what memorials were available and what the prices were. Most catalogs offered marble and
granite stones.
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| White Bronze marker |
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| Monumental Bronze Company |
The
Monumental Bronze Company also offered grave markers for sale, but
these consisted of their custom line of White Bronze markers. These grave monuments were cast
individually from zinc. Each
monument was made to order, then assembled and shipped from one of the
company’s manufacturing plants. Sales of White Bronze monuments were popular
from the 1880’s to 1914.
By
the 1930’s, catalog sales of grave markers had decreased significantly. During the Depression and war years, many
people could not afford hand carved, or even mass manufactured stones. The only option for many was to create a home-made grave marker by pouring concrete in a frame, or painting the deceased’s
on a rock.
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| Laser Stencil |
By
the late 1960’s, stone carvers had become a thing of the past, and mass
produced headstones were the norm.
But people no longer ordered them from catalogs. They now went to the local monument
company and selected from what stones were offered there.
The era of individualist grave
monuments; of small family mausoleums, soaring obelisks, and intricate statues was
over. Catalog grave markers had heralded in a new age.
~ Joy
The
idea of this blog post came about after two very dear friends took my husband
and I to the graves of their premature triplets. They wanted more than just a stone with names and a date, but weren’t
sure what. After some
consideration they decided on angels.
The result was three detailed wire angel sculptures the father hand
crafted individually and then joined together – two boys with blue ribbon halos, and one girl with a white halo. 
