MELROSE PARK, IL CREMATIONS: INTERESTING FACTS YOU MAY NOT HAVE KNOWN

Located in Cook County, IL not far from Chicago, Melrose Park is a beautiful suburb filled with diversity and a tightly-knit community. Chicagoland Cremation Options® has been a proud local establishment, serving the residents with reverence for decades and providing affordable Melrose Park, IL cremation options.

Reasons to Choose Cremation

Though cremation has spent years, decades, even centuries being considered taboo by various religions and cultures, choosing cremation as an after-death option is on the rise. Steadily, it has become largely popular in the US and throughout North America, according to many studies. This increase is due to a variety of factors, namely:

• Convenience
  
• Affordability (especially among the Baby Boomer generation)
  
• Flexibility in arrangements
  
• Geographic dispersion of families across state lines and beyond
  
• Environmental concerns (especially as the “Going Green” movement gains traction)

In our history, there are countless fascinating stories surrounding burials; stories which have produced widespread expressions, such as “saved by the bell” and “graveyard shift.” But, many don’t know that cremation is just as interesting and tightly associated with some attention-grabbing facts. Read on for some little-known facts about this established after death care option.

Cremation Facts

1. The first legal crematory was established in 1876 by Dr. Julius LeMoyne

The first crematory in the US was built in the town of Washington, PA in 1876. The second was opened in 1884 in Lancaster, PA. By the year 1920, the US still had only 20 working crematories. This number ballooned to a whopping 1,890 crematories by 2003, then over 2,100 in 2009, nearly 3,000 in 2014, and growing.

1. Cremations—in the Stone Age
   Scholars today generally agree that cremation likely began during the early Stone Age, approximately 3,000 B.C., according to data presented by the Cremation Society of North America. There is actually evidence of decorative pottery urns in Western Russia showing that the practice of cremation had begun to spread during the late Stone Age. Eventually, this practice spread to the British Isles and into, what we now call, Spain and Portugal during the Bronze Age (2,500-1,000 B.C.).
   
2. The rise and fall (and then rise again) of cremation
   By the time of the Roman Empire, cremation was widely practiced. In fact, the cremated remains were usually stored in elaborate urns and columbarium-like structures. By about 400 A.D., though, due to Constantine’s “Christianization” of the Empire—Christians generally believed cremation to be a pagan tradition—in-ground burials completely replaced this practice (except in instances of war or plague). Earth burials remained the common practice for some 1,500 years. Now, the statistics show that just over 50% of Americans choose cremation as their or their loved one’s final arrangement option. In Canada, the cremation rate is over 70%.
   
3. The cost of a traditional funeral is nearly as much as an excellent used car
   In 1960, the average cost of a traditional funeral was right around $700. In less than 60 years, that average cost has inflated to a nearly $8k price point. In contrast, cremation is less than $2k as a country average. In most cases, cremation costs are less than $1,200.
   
4. The state with the highest cremation rate is…
   Nevada. In second place, a tie: Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington (state).
   
5. Cremation today does not involve flames
   This may come as a bit of a surprise, but cremation does not involve the use of flames. Instead, the body is reduced to cremated remains called “cremains” as the result of being exposed to intense heat. The cremains include bone fragments and don’t actually look like “ashes,” as so often the remains are called. Rather, the cremains look more like coarse dirt and fragmented pieces with a whiteish/grayish hue.

If you didn’t know most of these interesting facts regarding cremation, you’re not alone. Now, if you’re currently researching this option as a pre-plan possibility, or if a loved one has recently passed, and you feel uncertain of how best to handle his or her final arrangements, the courteous staff at Chicagoland Cremation Options® would be honored to meet with you.

CHICAGOLAND CREMATION OPTIONS® IS RIGHT FOR YOUR LOVE ONE’S CREMATION IN MELROSE PARK, IL

• We believe in providing cremation options. Here at Chicagoland Cremation Options®, our intention is embedded in our name: we believe in providing our community with real, viable, and affordable options. We know that it is of the utmost importance to advise families and to offer an assortment of cremation service choices. Our commitment is to listen, guide, and help you to construct the most fitting tribute.
  
• We are humbled to serve your family. We are a group of proficient and committed cremation service specialists. To serve you and your family is an honor. We know you place special trust in us during a very vulnerable time and our team takes immense pride in assisting you through the cremation process. We are your trusted advisors and will serve you and your loved ones with the highest level of dignity.

We look forward to working with you. Contact the Melrose Park, IL cremation specialists at Chicagoland Cremation Options® by phone at (773) 631-0018 or come and visit us at 9329 Byron St, Schiller Park, IL 60176. We look forward to discuss cremation options with you.