City of Marietta, GA
10/08/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/08/2024 06:24
Victorian Funeral Exhibit Opens Just In Time For Halloween
October 8, 2024
CONTACT: Trevor Beemon
678-594-4994
MARIETTA, GA - During the month of October, visitors to the William Root House will see the home decorated for a Victorian-era funeral. In the 1850s, Hannah and William Root shared their home with their children and extended family. Hannah Root's father, Leonard Simpson, lived with the family and passed away on October 11, 1856. During this special exhibit, the rooms inside the Root House will be decorated as they would have been following Leonard's death. Curtains will be drawn, and rooms will be adorned with black crepe and ribbons. Visitors will be able to view 19th century embalming equipment, mourning jewelry made from human hair, and other curious artifacts related to death and mourning in the Victorian era.
New to the exhibit this year is a 19th century embalming/cooling board. Embalming gained popularity during the Civil War when bodies needed to be transported long distances without decaying. Portable cooling boards were an essential tool of the undertaker. In the home, cooling boards were often brought to the bedroom of the deceased where the embalming procedure would be performed. This particular cooling board was made in Columbus, Ohio during the late 1800s and was acquired by the museum from a shuttered funeral home in Madison, Indiana. This unusual piece of funerary history has been restored to show what it would have looked like when it was new.
Admission to the exhibit is included in the cost of regular museum admission. Special flashlight tours will be offered on October 18th and 25th from 5:00pm to 9:00pm. Flashlight tours are $10 per person. Space is limited, so those interested in taking a flashlight tour are encouraged to purchase their tickets in advance online at WilliamRootHouse.com/Funeral.
WHAT: Victorian Funeral Exhibit
WHEN: On display October 2 - November 2, 2024
WHERE: William Root House | 80 N Marietta Parkway, NW | Marietta, GA 30060
TICKETS & INFO: WilliamRootHouse.com/Funeral
ABOUT THE WILLIAM ROOT HOUSE: The Root House Museum is the first house museum in the U.S. to offer a fully self-guided touchscreen tour. One of the oldest homes in the Atlanta area, the Root House is more typical of its time and place than the columned mansions popularized by Gone With the Wind. While the home and grounds have been meticulously restored to their 1860 appearance, interactive electronic displays have been added to tell the story of the Root family and their enslaved house servants. The Root House is owned and operated by Cobb Landmarks and was named 'Museum of the Year' by the Georgia Association of Museums in 2023.
ABOUT COBB LANDMARKS: Since its founding in 1974, Cobb Landmarks & Historical Society, Inc. has succeeded in preserving and protecting some of Cobb's most historically relevant sites. Cobb Landmarks is a historical society rooted in the past but always looking forward. The organization is committed to empowering the community with an understanding of the events, people, and places that formed our past, so that we may all strive for a brighter future.