Milward Funeral Home records
Abstract
The Milward Funeral Home records (dated 1913-1924, undated; 22 cubic feet; 10 boxes, 26 items) comprise the records of the oldest continuous business in Lexington, Kentucky, and the family papers of the Milward and Cooper families.
Descriptive Summary
- Title
- Milward Funeral Home records
- Date
- 1813-1924, undated (inclusive)
- Extent
- 22 Cubic Feet
- Subjects
- Civic leaders -- Kentucky -- Lexington
- Coffins
- Family archives -- Kentucky -- Lexington.
- Funeral rites and ceremonies -- Kentucky -- Lexington.
- Music stores
- Arrangement
- The collection is arranged by format in three series: Civic activities, Business activities, and Cooper family papers.
- Preferred Citation
- 2000ms001: [identification of item], Milward Funeral Home records, 1813-1924, undated, University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
- Repository
- University of Kentucky
Collection Overview
- Biography / History
- Milward Funeral Directors have been in business in Lexington, Kentucky since 1825. The founder of the family-run business, Joseph Milward, was born near Baltimore, Maryland in 1803. He came to Lexington at the age of three, and in 1819 was apprenticed to a local cabinet maker named Thomas B. Megowan. After completing his training in 1823, Joseph Milward worked for years at his trade in both Cincinnati, Ohio, and Richmond, Kentucky, but soon returned to Lexington, where he opened his own cabinet making shop on Main Street in 1825. The next year, the business moved to Main Cross (now South Broadway), and Milward soon engaged in casket making, or undertaking, like many furniture makers of the day.
- By 1856, Milward had taken in as partner his son, J.U. Milward, and the business (at the time called Milward & Son) had become a wholesale and retail furniture house, including the sale of coffins and caskets. In 1867, Joseph Milward's young son, William Rice Milward, Sr., who had served the Union cause in the Civil War as an officer in the 21st Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, bought an interest in the business and its name change to Milward & Company. The furniture and undertaking business again moved to a new building on Main Street. Upon Joseph Milward's death in 1883, J.U. Milward took over the now well-established family business and ran in partnership with his brother, William. The Lexington City Directory for 1885 listed Milward & Company as undertakers and dealers in furniture, pianos, and organs. J.U. Milward retired in 1887, leaving William in charge. At this time, the business branched off into two or three separate establishments. Like Milward continued to operate The Milward Company, selling pianos, organs, music, and musical instruments, while William took over sole proprietorship of the funeral business, changing the name to W.R. Milward, Funeral Directors and moving a building on East Main Street (now West Main Street). The 1887 Lexington City Directory also lists a stove and furnace selling business run by L.P. Milward, but it is unclear whether this business was previously in existence or was a third branch of the original Milward & Company.
- Shortly after William R. Milward, Sr. took over the funeral business, his two sons joined the company: Stanley Milward in 1887 and William R. Milward, Jr. in 1892. Stanley Milward was active in local civic and business organizations and even served as Lexington City Treasurer for a time in the late 1890s. In 1896, they relocated once again to East Short Street (now West Short Street), and by 1898, the business included the moving wholesale. Finally, in 1906, W.R. Milward Funeral Directors moved to its present location in a specially constructed building on North Broadway. A second location on Southland Drive and third location on Trent Boulevard were opened in the late 20th century and early 2000s.
- W.R. Milward, Sr. died in 1915 and was succeeded by his son W.R. Milward, Jr., who operated the business during the remainder of the years covered by the present collection. During the next few years following W.R. Milward, Sr.'s death, the business expanded into the moving, packing, and storing of household goods, as well as ambulance service. The company purchased its first automobile in 1917. W.R. Milward, Jr. passed away in 1947 and was succeeded by his son, Robert Milward.
- Scope and Content
- The Milward Funeral Home records (dated 1913-1924, undated; 22 cubic feet; 10 boxes, 26 items) comprise the records of the oldest continuous business in Lexington, Kentucky, and the family papers of the Milward and Cooper families. The collection is divided into three series: Civic activities, Business activities, and Cooper family papers.
- The first series, Civic activities, pertain to Milward family involvement in local civic, business, and fraternal organizations like the Sons of Temperance as well as municipal leadership roles. Most of the papers in the series belonged to Stanley Milward, son of W.R. Milward, Sr.
- The Business activities series, forms the bulk of the collection, consists of Milward business records from 1850-1924, and primarily focuses on Milward & Company and W.R. Milward Funeral Directors. There are three daybooks and some loose papers from The Milward Company piano, organ, and music store included in the collection, which date from 1887-1891. There are no other records pertaining to other Milward-owned businesses in Lexington. The subgroup is divided into several sub-series consisting of a specific type of record.
- The business records consist largely of several volumes recording the daily transactions and activities of the company. The columns provide the overall view of the day-to-day operation of the business. Although several gaps appear in the records, it is still possible to gain an understanding of the financial operations of a growing Lexington family-owned business throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The daybooks and journal in the collection record transactions with customers, in chronological order, include names, purchases, services, and prices. Some daybooks and journals have entries in common. The cashbooks provide records of business cash flow and expenditures, while ledgers show detailed records of accounts held by individual customers. Notable business records contain statements of Milward private and business accounts dating from 1895-1899 documenting between Milwards (primarily Stanley Milward) and many other Lexington businesses; funeral books from 1898-1900 including date and location of ceremonies; and invoices from 1866-1900 recording inventory purchases. Also included in the series are Civil War field battle reports written near Nashville, Tennessee in 1864 by the commander of the Iron Brigade, the brigade in which W.R. Milward, Sr. served as a company officer.
- The Cooper family papers series includes correspondence, personal papers, and business papers from 1813 to 1868. There are two invitations to military balls held in Lexington addressed to Miss Annie Cooper, a letter from Wickliffe Cooper to his mother, written from the Field of Battle Shiloh on April 10th, 1862, and a newspaper clipping regarding the mysterious death of the same Wickliffe Cooper. Also included are personal correspondence to various recipients in Lexington, Louisville, and New Liberty, Kentucky dated from 1881 to 1910. Finally, there is correspondence to C.F. Turner, a resident of Georgetown, Kentucky dated from 1903 to 1910.
Restrictions on Access and Use
- Conditions Governing Access
- Collection is open to researchers by appointment.
- Use Restrictions
- The physical rights to the materials in this collection are held by the University of Kentucky Special Collections Research Center.
Contents of the Collection
Civic activities, 1859-1900
Sons of Temperance handwritten documents, 1859
Independent Order of Oddfellows and Uniform Rank Knights of Pythias: correspondence and dues list, 1898-1900
Republican Club receipts, 1896
Lexington City Government: audit petition, city charter, delinquent tax reports, and ordinances, 1879, 1895-1897
Business activities, 1830-1924, undated
Daybooks (furniture and funeral), 1853-1903
1853-1854
1854-1856
1856
1857-1863
1863-1864
1865-1867
1866-1868
1867-1868
1872-1873
1878-1879
1880-1881
1886-1887
1886-1887
1887
1887-1889
1889-1891
1894-1896
1900-1903
Daybooks (music), 1887-1891
Journal, 1866-1918
Cashbooks, 1853-1889
Ledgers, 1850-1906
1850-1853
1856-1862
1865-1866
1866
1885-1886
1885-1887
1887-1889
1887-1889
1889-1894
1890-1896
1890-1901
1895-1898
1897-1902
1902
1902-1906
Invoice books, 1866-1890
Business correspondence, circa 1866-1872
Order and storage books, 1882-1895
Carriage books, 1896-1920
Expense accounts, 1900-1910
Assorted records, 1830-1924, undated
Customer receipts, 1863-1866
Battlefield report, 1864
Papers from Journal 2, 1867-1872
Railroad shipping receipts, 1882-1883
Assorted papers (provenance unknown), 1894, 1896
Insurance policy accounts diary, 1896-1903
Furneral book, 1898-1900
Statements of account, 1895
Statements of account, 1896
Statements of account, 1897
Statements of account, 1898-1899
Company employee timebook, 1918-1924
Photographs, circa 1880-1910
Ink blotters, undated
Various newspapers (27 issues), 1830-1890
Cooper Family Papers, 1813-1910
Business papers: indentures, receipts, marriage permits, market reports, 1813-1833
Personal correspondence: invitations and letters to Cooper family in Louisville and Lexington, circa 1857-1866
Wickliffe Cooper papers: comissary orders, newspaper clipping, 1863-1868
Letters to various receipients, 1881-1910
Letters to C.F. Turner, 1903-1910
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Table of Contents
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UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center is open Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 4:00pm. Appointments are encouraged but not required. Schedule an appointment here.
Researchers must have an SCRC Researcher Account to request materials. View account set-up and use instructions here.
Questions? Contact SCRC via our Contact Form.
Requests
No items have been requested.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
