{"product_id":"gone-to-the-grave-burial-customs-of-the-arkansas-ozarks-1850-1950-9781496804600","title":"Gone to the Grave: Burial Customs of the Arkansas Ozarks, 1850-1950","description":"\u003ch2\u003eGone to the Grave: Burial Customs of the Arkansas Ozarks, 1850-1950\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBefore the rise of the modern funeral industry, residents of the Arkansas Ozarks handled every aspect of death and burial within their own communities. \u003ci\u003eGone to the Grave\u003c\/i\u003e by Abby Burnett documents this vanished way of life through meticulous research spanning the century from 1850 to 1950.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eTraditional Burial Practices in Rural Arkansas\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis comprehensive study examines the labor-intensive process that rural communities undertook when a member passed away. The deceased's neighbors and family managed body preparation, constructed wooden coffins by hand, dug graves, and conducted burial ceremonies according to long-held traditions and superstitions. These practices remained standard throughout the South, particularly in isolated Ozark communities, until the end of World War II.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eResearch and Documentation\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBurnett draws from extensive primary sources including personal interviews, diaries and reminiscences, obituaries, and historical records to reconstruct these forgotten customs. The book covers attempts to prevent death, mourning rituals that couldn't follow tradition due to circumstances, and the significant factors behind high maternal and infant mortality rates during this period.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eThe Transition to Modern Funeral Services\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe final chapter examines how professional undertakers gradually replaced community-based burial practices. Burnett analyzes the various strategies funeral industry professionals employed to convince the public that their services were necessary, documenting the shift from traditional customs to commercial death care that occurred after World War II due to manpower loss and changing social structures.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eExpressions of Loss and Memory\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe text explores how communities expressed grief through obituaries and epitaphs, preserving the language and sentiment of 19th and early 20th century mourning traditions. These written records provide insight into how death was understood and commemorated in rural Southern culture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbby Burnett\u003c\/b\u003e is a former freelance newspaper reporter and author of \u003ci\u003eWhen the Presbyterians Came to Kingston: Kingston Community Church 1917-1951\u003c\/i\u003e. Her background in journalism brings a detailed, investigative approach to this historical and anthropological study.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePublished by University Press of Mississippi, this paperback serves as an essential resource for those studying American folklore, Southern history, death customs, and cultural anthropology of rural communities.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"University Press of Mississippi","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50681014223122,"sku":"9781496804600","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_f6e9b946-f22f-4c16-806b-a698b65f91a0.jpg?v=1733947567","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/gone-to-the-grave-burial-customs-of-the-arkansas-ozarks-1850-1950-9781496804600","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}