By Rose Kelley
RHCC Board Member
The eye-opening history of burial practices in the United States and Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries still impact the funeral industry today even though these practices are antiquated and environmentally harmful. This information comes from the first module of the online Green Burial Masterclass for natural burial cemetery operators.
The Cultural and Environmental Call for Natural Burial Practices
Evidence exists that the impulse to care for our own dead dates back to our Neanderthal ancestors. Throughout most of human history midwives helped bring new life into the world, functioned as healers using natural remedies and prepared bodies for burial as “death midwives”. Burial was a simple act. A suitable spot was chosen, the earth was removed, and the body was laid to rest. In the United States, home funerals were the norm until the mid-1800s. Early 18th century homes were even built with one exterior door wider than standard to accommodate the passage of a coffin. The funeral industry as we know it today began after the Civil War when the development of embalming allowed bodies of soldiers to be transported home for burial over long distances. But even before this time, other forces were at work that complicated the simple act of returning our remains to the earth.
During the 13th century, male physicians gained prominence over women healers through accusations of witchcraft and exclusion from formalized education. As male- dominated medical schools began to demand more and more cadavers for anatomical study, grave robbing or body snatching became a lucrative practice for ”resurrectionists” who would steal recently buried corpses of the poor, criminals, and those in paupers’ graves. In 1878 Andrew Van Bibber patented the first burial safe or vault to prevent grave robbery of the well-to-do. Most families could not afford this added protection for their loved ones, however. The demand for cadavers reached such a fevered pitch that the public formed mobs that attacked medical schools, destroying property and even assaulting students and staff. At least 17 of these “anatomy riots” occurred between 1765 and 1854. Finally states began to pass “Anatomy Acts” to outlaw grave robbing, but the use of vaults continues to this day in the funeral industry. The reasons given are to support the weight of six feet of earth on a casket (a depth that only became common during the Great Plague of London in 1665) and weight of maintenance equipment, to prevent the ground from settling so the appearance of a smooth lawn can be maintained and to minimize water infiltration and deter insects.
The natural burial movement of today recognizes that embalming, vaults, lined coffins made of exotic woods, and burying a body more than 3.5 feet deep is antiquated and harmful to the environment.
Lee Webster says, “There is a surge of interest in taking back responsibility for our dead, bringing or keeping them home until disposition, and encouraging family and community participation in all the tasks associated with the funeral.” Today we look to green burial as an authentic way of caring for our dead.