Victorian Mourning & Funeral Practices

Black crepe draped the mirrors. Clocks stopped at the moment of death. Locks of hair became treasured keepsakes. The dead were photographed as if they were merely sleeping.

This Halloween, step into the somber world of Victorian mourning and discover the rituals that surrounded death in the nineteenth century, a world Abraham and Mary Lincoln knew all too well. Mary Lincoln endured unimaginable tragedy. She buried three of her four sons, mourned her husband, the president, struck down by an assassin's bullet, while sitting beside him, and struggled through grief in an era when death was a constant companion. Victorian Americans developed elaborate customs to honor the dead, preserve memories, and confront mortality in ways that can seem haunting to modern audiences.

Join licensed funeral directors and embalmers for an unforgettable evening exploring the darker side of Victorian America. Examine authentic funeral traditions, the emergence of embalming during the Civil War, mourning clothing, postmortem photography, hair jewelry crafted from the deceased's hair, elaborate funeral processions, cemetery symbolism, and the superstitions that surrounded death and burial.

Learn how President Lincoln's funeral became one of the most extraordinary public mourning events in American history, why thousands viewed his embalmed body as it traveled more than 1,600 miles by funeral train, and how his assassination forever transformed American funeral practices. Was Mary Lincoln truly consumed by grief? Why were mirrors covered after a death? What secrets did Victorian mourning jewelry conceal? And how did funeral directors prepare the nation's fallen president for one of history's most famous funerals?

Experience an evening where history meets the macabre as we uncover the fascinating and unsettling customs that defined death in the Victorian age.

*Recommended for ages 13 and older. This program is educational in nature and explores historical mourning and funeral practices with sensitivity and respect.

This is a FREE program. However, tickets are highly suggested for a guaranteed spot.

Contact: Susan Parker 423-869-6583 or email susan.parker@lmunet.edu