Samuel Patch Frankenfield: Laying Out the Dead

All Bones Considered: Laurel Hill Stories #082, part 5

In 18th- and 19th-century Pennsylvania, women played a central role in caring for the dying and the dead, performing tasks that combined practical, emotional, and ritual duties. Over time, the profession of undertaking evolved, becoming male-dominated and more specialized, reducing women’s involvement in death care. Early undertakers often apprenticed from trades like cabinetmaking, expanding into funeral services; Samuel Patch Frankenfield was a notable example who developed a family undertaking business.