A fascination with funerary vehicles

[Mark D]

Found this image on the web. Love the "flowery" description of the vehicle used in the caption. Wonder if this was enough to attract folks wanting the most modern funeral available?

The car look to have started life as a business coupe, rear fenders redeployed after the new body parts were grafted. Would be cool to see if this example survived.

[Plymouthy Adams]

Flower cars were a unique vehicle in that era...mostly today they are SUV's that also transport funeral staff to the rvesite for ushering snd set up and ultimate take down once services are over.  The flower car has all but disappeared from the scene...most were custom built by the same companies that built hearse and ambulance and or combination cars that could serve as both..

 

I had always wanted a hearse since my younger days..but never cared to own a GM version coach...it was long time before finding and procuring my Packard as modified by Henney...built on a chassis that sports a 13 foot wheel base...glass divider between front and rear..

 

The vehicle actually hangs over each end of my 18 foot trailer...and it was a bit adventurous just getting it off the mountain top where it was located..if you have never loaded a 13 foot wheelbase car...even with the dove tail it is involved..the actual chassis sat down on the dove tail about 3 feet before the rear wheels made it to the ramps..that is what makes all this so fun...

Edited December 10, 2014 by Plymouthy Adams

[Mark D]

In my younger days I drove professional cars for a local company.  All of the other drivers refused to drive the the long wheelbase cars becuase of the Boston traffic at the time (Big Dig related).  I was happy to drive them and had a blast behind the wheel. I drove armbruster Cadillacs and Royale Towncar widebody conversions. Long cars that started long to begin with, and ended up longer.  Only once broke down and we needed ramps to get the car onto the ramp truck due to the 110" stretch.  The a$$ end of the car would touch the ground before the front made it in place.

 

We were fortunate to have a coachbuilder in Mass during the late 80's/early 90's, got to tour the plant and witness the cutting of a town car.  Even today I like checking in on the industry to see how the funerary coach designers are adapting to the new smaller footprint cars with the sleek designs.

 

Thought of you and your Packard coach when I posted this Tim. What is your intention for the car?  Restore it or maybe a hillbilly camper? 

[Don Coatney]

If you have a hard time getting rid of the coffin Plymouthy I hear Smith Brothers can help.

 

[Plymouthy Adams]

the coffin stays Don..and will be here when either one the Smith brothers are in need...actually I would like to upgrade it some day but that is not anywhere on the horizon yet...I just this week found two more teems for the hearse and have cleaned them and packed away....Mark, I would like to refurbish the car to some degree...at least save it from decay...I have purchased the repair panels and have them here at the house now for that intent...I am still on the lookout for two trim pieces and drop lines to any and all car owners of this sort I see on various forums...as one of the pieces is stock to the donor Patrician..I am always searching the bay for this item.  It is a time process obtain the parts much less working the actual issues.

Edited December 10, 2014 by Plymouthy Adams

[Don Coatney]

Was that coffin new or used when you got it?

[1940plymouth]

I wonder is that is Newburgh, NY and is the flower wagon  a Hudson or maybe Buick

 

I just answered one of my questions, googled Tooheys, it was a funeral home in Newburgh, NY

Edited December 10, 2014 by 1940plymouth

[DonaldSmith]

The Smith Brothers - Trade and Mark.  Who would name a son "Trade"?

[Plymouthy Adams]

DonaldSmith, on 10 Dec 2014 - 3:17 PM, said:

The Smith Brothers - Trade and Mark.  Who would name a son "Trade"?

obvious answer....Mr. Smith

[Plymouthy Adams]

Don Coatney, on 10 Dec 2014 - 1:14 PM, said:Don Coatney, on 10 Dec 2014 - 1:14 PM, said:

If you have a hard time getting rid of the coffin Plymouthy I hear Smith Brothers can help.

 

girls.jpg

Don, I have in my work jacket pocket at this minute a partial box of Smith Bros. Cough Drops, licorice flavored...liked them as a child..they do well yet today...and I can still get Beeman's Black Jack and Teaberry gum...and for folks that do not know, teaberry grows wild where I grew up...have picked and carried many a tea leaf with me in my youger days..been almost a year since I last picked some of these leaves.  They also get a very sweet red berry on them...these are a treat when you find them..as kids we knew all the edible roots and leaves of the natural woodlands..

Edited December 10, 2014 by Plymouthy Adams

[Don Coatney]

DonaldSmith, on 10 Dec 2014 - 3:17 PM, said:

The Smith Brothers - Trade and Mark.  Who would name a son "Trade"?

Perhaps that is how they got there son.

[Don Coatney]

Just this week I watched a thing on the history channel on Ginseng root poaching in West Virginia. Seems folks are getting shot over poaching this crop.

[DonaldSmith]

111,111,111   x  111,111,111  = 12,345,678,987,654,321

 

OK, so 9 places times 9 places gets you up to 9, before going back to one .  Four places:  1,111 x 1,111 gets me + 1234321.  But 1,111,111 x 1,111,111 gets me 1.2345676 and an error message. My calculator can't handle it.  What would ten places do?   (By hand:) 1,234,567,900,987,654,321.  Carrying the "one" screws it up. 

[Dave72dt]

When I was on the farm, most of the 'seng hunters would ask permission as well as most of the turkey hunter, some of the deer hunters. I've caught a few mushroom hunters poaching morels in the spring, apparently thinking it's legal to trespass.  Often wondered what would happen if I returned in kind by picking all the flowers and produce from their wife's gardens, maybe put up a tree stand in their front yard and toss a few beer cans on the grass before I leave.  Whatever happened to hunting etiquette?

[Plymouthy Adams]

Don Coatney, on 10 Dec 2014 - 3:42 PM, said:

Just this week I watched a thing on the history channel on Ginseng root poaching in West Virginia. Seems folks are getting shot over poaching this crop.

I saw a commercial for one of them reality shows to that extent..pure TV hype....it gets poached on a daily basis....to the extent this root is harvested. I am amazed any can still be found in the wild...I have never seen anyone shot for poaching root...they do however get run off property and fined by the law...

[Plymouthy Adams]

Dave72dt, on 10 Dec 2014 - 4:26 PM, said:

When I was on the farm, most of the 'seng hunters would ask permission as well as most of the turkey hunter, some of the deer hunters. I've caught a few mushroom hunters poaching morels in the spring, apparently thinking it's legal to trespass.  Often wondered what would happen if I returned in kind by picking all the flowers and produce from their wife's gardens, maybe put up a tree stand in their front yard and toss a few beer cans on the grass before I leave.  Whatever happened to hunting etiquette?

 

 

Dave...unfortunately respect for the property of others was long lost as was respect for people themselves.  When growing up we did not know the word trespass...you crossed the mountains to get to other places quicker and only two rules of the land were needed...close any gate you open and pass through...do not smoke in the woods.  Going down the creeks fishing and such were a given to anyone anytime...but as you stated above, property damage and littering by those that had no respect all but killed it that liberty..now days if you step off the road they call trepass..

[Ulu]

So regarding flower cars,  did any of the big mfrs produce one on the line?...or were these always custom conversions?

 

I've never seen many in person & they were all Cadds from '59 & later.

[Plymouthy Adams]

to my knowledge,,they are custom coaches..a little bit of of description here..  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flower_car

[Mark D]

I think they were all custom coaches.

Another image popped into my facebook feed today. How about this beauty! My guess from the cross on the top, is that this was a euro export conversion.. Maybe Portugal or Spain?

[Plymouthy Adams]

^{now that...I like.....thanks for the pic...there was a very solid Studebaker, 1936, at the swap meet last month...I did like that beast also..still ran smoothly with it original flathead...}

[BigDaddyO]

I think they were all custom coaches.

Another image popped into my facebook feed today. How about this beauty! My guess from the cross on the top, is that this was a euro export conversion.. Maybe Portugal or Spain?

 

That's not a cross.

It's the key to wind it up.

[BigDaddyO]

Here's a couple funerary vehicles for ya.

[BigDaddyO]

Found another one.

[BigDaddyO]

This one looks like it would be a gas...

[Ulu]

OK, I want that last one but without the cannon.