02/28/2025
In honor of National Retro Day, we’re shining a light on a true piece of history—the unique handle hardware on our most popular casket, the Antique Pine Panel.
Jonas and I stumbled upon the die for this hardware in a dusty old box at the General Machine and Manufacturing Company in Chicago, IL. Untouched for 50 years, it had been tucked away, nearly forgotten—until we opened the box and knew we had found something special.
The story became even more remarkable when we learned that Eric, the company’s current owner, is the grandson of the man who originally patented this hardware in the 1940s. With the die collection sitting unused for decades, Eric was planning to dispose of it.
Instead, we handed him the die and asked him to bring it back to life. Today, this beautifully crafted hardware, with its classic art deco styling, is a signature feature of our Antique Pine Panel casket—honoring history with every detail.