“A successful funeral home has always been a 24 hour-a-day business,” Hoskins-Long said. “If people pass away, it doesn’t matter when, we go and help.”
Now located on East Mulberry Street, the funeral home was founded by John Oswald in 1860 as an off shoot of the furniture store he already ran on Broadway in downtown Lebanon.
It was a common practice during that time for a combination funeral home and furniture store since many of the materials used were the same, Hoskins-Long said.
“In 1860, embalming was often done at the deceased person’s home on a kitchen table and using the sink,” Hoskins-Long said. “You can see how that has changed. There are many government regulations that wouldn’t allow that to happen anymore.”
Three generations of Oswalds seceded John Oswald in running the funeral home, eventually abandoning the furniture business altogether. In 1960, the funeral home was purchased by Bill and Lois Walker, who owned the home for 26 years.
Hoskin-Long’s parents, Jim and Joanne Hoskins, purchased the funeral home in 1986. Like the Oswalds, the Hoskins had a generation-spanning commitment to funeral services.
Hoskins-Long is a fourth-generation funeral director. She began working at the funeral home in 1990 and became the owner when her parents retired.
Today, the Oswald-Hoskins Funeral Home serves approximately 200 families every year.
“We try to take care of families the way we would be want to be taken care of if we were going through something so painful,” Hoskins Long said. “We feel their grief and empathize with those who have lost a loved one.”
Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4544 or jmcclelland@coxohio.com.
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