Proper mourning practices in the old west??

franniescan

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Hey everyone,

I've got a WIP that involves a funeral scene with children. The family is a well to do family but they have just moved to Colorado Territory in the late 1850's when the first settlement of what is today's Colorado Springs was founded. They have a homestead, but I was curious to know how children would have been dressed for this scene? I'm attempting to find accurate information on this but all I have found is what women would wear and the practices they followed back then.

Any thoughts?

Thanks!
 

Puma

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Thoughts is all I can offer, Fran, because I have no precise knowledge. Thought 1 is to look for pictures from Lincoln's funeral, especially ones with the funeral train stopping in little cities. That's 15 years later, but might give some indications. Thought 2 is that folks didn't have extensive wardrobes back then and that children would have been dressed in their Sunday clothes whatever they were. Thought 3 is I think a lot of clothing was of somber colors anyway because of the limits of the dyes available away from the big cities. Hope those thoughts help. Puma
 

firedrake

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I reckon Puma is right, the children would've worn their Sunday-go-to-Meeting clothes.
 

franniescan

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Thank you Puma and Firedrake!

The thoughts were indeed helpful...especially the Lincoln idea...
 

Gary

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I remember my dad telling me about his grandmother's funeral in the late teens...when he was a kid. Not exactly the old west, but the conditions were probably quite similar in rural North Dakota at that time.

When she died, her son took the wagon eight miles to town and bought a plain pine box to bury her in. The family dressed her and placed her in the box atop the dining room table. The funeral was held two days later, and in the summer heat, without embalming, she was beginning to decompose. There was no electricity and no ice available to slow the process.

During the church service, the family was standing beside the coffin as the neighbors filed past. Dad said her mouth fell open and a burp of putrid air nearly overwhelmed them.

The family had a picture taken that day, since everyone was there for the funeral. They were dressed up, but it was the typical wools suits and Sunday dresses of the era. The men wore ties, but the boys did not. As I recall, none were wearing hats in the picture.

I guess that funeral was somewhat unique, since that's the only one I recall dad telling me about, but he related the story many times. It might have been more memorable because he was a child.
 
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shakeysix

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heard one from my great grandmother who was born in 1884 in barton county, kansas. she and her sibs came downstairs one morning thinking there would be a new baby. instead there were stillborn twins, dressed in white gowns and lying on the piano bench like a couple of dolls. some of the neighbors stopped by to pray over the babies. there was a small funeral but the priest stopped by later to bless the grave. it always seemed like such a matter of fact story to me. there were other children to dress and feed-- farmwork to do, so there was not a lot of fuss. still it made an impression on my great grandmother and her sisters. they often told the story--ss
 

Puma

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Thought I'd pop in here to let the more recent posters know Franniescan won't be back on the forum for about a week (may be more, not sure). She's not ignoring your posts, just doesn't have internet access to acknowledge them.

Speaking of old funeral photos, my grandmother died in 1904 (Ohio). There's a picture of all the family - children and adults were in their Sunday clothes, not black mourning. Puma
 

Glen T. Brock

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funeral practices

Hello folks,

I don't know if this will help but, in my family the dead were viewed, usually in the bedroom, with coins over their eyes (usually silver dollars) to keep the eyes closed. I suppose the coins are removed before burial. I've also heard that sometimes the body was sewn into a body bag, if a coffin was not available right before the burial. Usually the body was not embalmed, which led to other problems like the corpse sitting up unexpectedly or moaning during the service, leading to great ghost stories passed on from generation to generation!

Glen T. Brock
 

franniescan

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Hello everyone!

Thanks for all the thoughts. All the stories shared have given me some good ideas.

Thanks Puma for dropping a line in that I wouldn't be around. I'm here around for the weekend and then I'm out again for another two weeks.

The idea of a body sitting up or moaning at a funeral would definitely give me some ghost stories to share!