Have you ever wondered how the National Museum of Funeral History gets new artifacts and adds to its exhibits?  Well, one way is that they come from generous people like Lee Ward.  The Independence, MO resident and grief counselor at St. Mark's Catholic Church (and former funeral director) just happened to possess a priceless 15-year collection of funeral artifacts dating back to the Civil War era. In fact, A&E’s American Pickers television show desired the collection, though only certain pieces, so Ward waived them off in order to keep the collection whole.

  Finally, he found the final home for his collection – the National Museum of Funeral History – and last month, on the day before his 70th birthday, Ward worked with a team from NMFH to catalog the items from his precious collection and prepare them for shipping to Houston. “It was definitely an emotional day for me,” Ward said, “but I took comfort in the fact that everything was going to a good home for others to enjoy and that my collection was staying together.”

  The acquisition of such impressive artifacts is an honor to NMFH. Highlights from his collection include the funeral program and embalming machine used for President Harry Truman, fascinating coffins and caskets from far-flung corners of the world, photographer-signed images of Marilyn Monroe from her famous “Last Sitting,” Civil War era embalming instruments and more.

  Upon arrival at NMFH, items from Lee Ward’s collection will be incorporated into several of the museum’s permanent exhibits over the next few years, including the History of Embalming exhibit, which gives insight to visitors on the how and why of ancient Egyptians’ embalming rituals more than 5,000 years ago and how embalming was introduced in the United States during the Civil War. The exhibit tracks the methods of preserving human remains through the centuries, as well as model objects and tools used in the Egyptian mummification process and pictorial displays and renderings depicting the mysterious rituals of ancient Egypt, where they mummified their dead to preserve them for the afterlife. The exhibit also details the work of Dr. Thomas Holmes, deemed the “Father of American Embalming,” with a full-scale recreation of his embalming station on the Civil War battlefield. Additionally, the exhibit features a typical mid-1900s embalming room including authentic equipment and instruments from the era. The equipment required for embalming was so extensive that observers frequently commented on how the process was “quite an undertaking,” leading to the use of the term “undertaker.”

  In 1955, when he was merely nine years old, Lee Ward decided he wanted to be an undertaker. In small towns, undertakers were considered heroes and highly regarded, always there when people needed them. Ward trained at the California College of Mortuary Service in Los Angeles and upon graduation returned to Missouri where he worked as an embalmer and undertaker for 45 years. During the course of his career, he owned two funeral homes and ultimately retired in 2001.

  His fascination with collecting funerary items began with items found in storage at his funeral homes, and then his collection grew as word spread of his interest in antique funeral equipment and memorabilia. Owners of small-town funeral homes often heard of his hobby and contacted him with their memorabilia and historical equipment so as to ensure it wasn’t destroyed, put in storage or forgotten when it came time for them to sell their businesses to larger corporations. As his collection grew, Ward dreamed of opening a public museum, but instead devoted parts of his home to displaying his funerary artifacts, often opening his home to groups and visitors wishing to tour his collection.

  One of Ward’s personal favorites is a Civil War-era embalming surgeon’s kit, which includes all the tools, pumps, jars and equipment used by early embalming pioneers. “There was no embalming prior to the Civil War,” Ward said in his 2007 published book, Coffins, Kits and More! “It was unheard of except in medical schools. It was also very dangerous, because of the chemicals they used. The Civil War threw a whole new loop into it, because parents wanted those boys brought home. So they had to figure out how to do that.”  Ward’s book, which is available for sale in the Museum’s gift shop and website, is a comprehensive look at the history of embalming between 1850 and 1880, and makes these ancient practices come alive, particularly through the funeral rituals for Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis.

  If you have any funerary items or collections to donate that you would like the National Museum of Funeral History to consider, please http://nmfh.org/donate/donate-artifacts to read more about the guidelines for donation and how to submit an inquiry.