"Classic" Coffin Cuts Costs

"Classic" Coffin Cuts Costs FARM HOME Miscellaneous 29-2-30 With common steel caskets costing thousands of dollars, Milton Lampe decided to offer grieving families an alternative. He builds classic wood coffins with oak, pine and even plywood sides and tops. They look nice and are priced under $1,000. "All too often when a person dies, the mortician talks the loved ones into spending $6,000 to $7,000 on a casket," says Lampe. A furniture maker and wood craftsman by trade, Lampe started building caskets at the request of native Americans in Oklahoma. "They didn't have the money for expensive caskets, and they wanted something that would break down faster and return their bodies to the earth," he explains. "They just wanted a plain pine box so they could line it with their own blankets and quilts." Lampe suggests that people interested in wood caskets check on laws in their state as well as rules of the cemetery association where they wish to be buried. A full-size oak casket runs $850. A pine casket sells for $600. All are available stained or in a natural finish. They have carpet-covered styrofoam padding, wood handles and are held together with brass screws. All caskets, including smaller child and baby-size units, are made with half doors. Lampe also makes wooden caskets for pets. A friend planning to be cremated asked for one the size of a tissue box. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Milton Lampe, Lampe Wood Caskets & Crafts, 250 Birch St., Saint Francis, Kan. 67756 (ph 785 332-3119; email: mblampe@kans.com).

To read the rest of this story, download this issue below or click here to register with your account number.