Casket makers once did a booming business in Bristol

The first death to occur in the new town of Bristol was that of Benjamin Frederick Zimmerman who died at his home in Bristol, Va., on Nov. 11, 1854.
There were no undertakers or funeral suppliers in the town at the time. The casket (more commonly called coffins in those days) had to be bought in Greenway’s store in Abingdon and brought here in a wagon. A little later, Campbell Gallier, who had served as the second postmaster at the old Sapling Grove Post Office (it was discontinued on Oct. 1, 1853) made a few caskets in his woodworking shop that was just outside the limits of the town of Bristol.
The second death to occur here was that of a newly born black child who died in late January 1856. This free black family had recently arrived, were very poor and had made no friends here. The baby was buried in a small trunk in a lot that is now the northwest corner of Mary and Goodson Streets. The site is now covered by the Lee Street Baptist Church.
Then came Bristol’s first undertaker, G. H. Mattox, who arrived here in early spring of 1857 (some say he was from Bedford County, Va.). He set up his undertaking service on Buford Street in Bristol, Va. Along with it, he set up a casket-making shop that may still stand on Washington Street now owned by First Baptist Church.
His first casket was barely finished when it was needed. Maston J. Ayers died here on May 10, 1857. The coffin bought from Mattox sold for $12.50. As a side note, one may be interested to know that his clothing for burial cost $5.50, bought from Henry Rosenheim, a local Bristol merchant. The entire bill for the funeral ran a little under $20. The receipt is somewhere here at Pleasant Hill.
The second undertaker to operate here also had a casket-making shop in connection with his funeral home. This was the legendary Hiram A. Bickley who came here from Wise County, Va., about 1865. He brought with him an ex-slave who old-timers remembered as being called “Two Thumb Tom.” I have been told that he had two thumbs on both hands.
He had been trained as a cabinetmaker, so he was put to work making caskets for Bickley’s new funeral service. Over the years, he made numerous caskets for Bristol’s citizens, including the one in which Joseph R. Anderson, founder of Bristol, was buried in 1888.
Old records left over from the early undertakers here show that casket costs were generally under $20. Bickley often charged according to the family’s ability to pay. One record shows that he supplied a walnut casket for little Flora Davis, aged 3, for $2.50. Then, later, Mrs. L. M. Rhea had a fine, satin lined metal casket for a cost of $35. This seemed to be an enormous price to the citizens of Bristol at the time. These metal caskets were not made here but were ordered from larger cities, usually Lynchburg, Va.
As far as can be determined, large casket makers did not operate here until the late 1800s. About 1897, Charles F. Gauthier founded the Bristol Coffin and Casket Company. At first, his factory was located on the corner of Lee and Sycamore streets in downtown Bristol, Va. This building was demolished around 1908 to make way for the new Bristol, Va., courthouse.
A new building was then erected on the corner of Euclid Avenue and Commonwealth. This factory later came under the ownership of P. M. Cody and Edward L. Cooper. Still later it was owned by D. W. Wagner and Charles Harmeling. After the death of Mr. Wagner, his wife, Grace, ran the business for several years.
In the 1930s, the Appalachian Hardwood Casket Company was set up at 1614 State St. This was managed by Simon N. Christian of Blountville, Tenn. A little later came the State Line Casket Company at 2304-06 West State St. James C. Bates managed this company.
For a time, Bristol was regarded as a casket-making center. Products from these shops were sent all over the United States and though the aforementioned makers ceased to operate here long ago, the Cortrim Lumber Company of Bristol, Tenn., continued to make caskets until just a few years ago.

BUD PHILLIPS is a local historian and author. He can be reached at (276) 466-6435. For more about Bristol’s history, visit www.bristolhistoricalassociation.com.