|
|
 |
|
John
J. Barrett, circa 1940.
|
|
The Barrett family is
truly at the heart of the history of the Barrett Funeral Home. Throughout
the years, our family has maintained a standard of personal care and service
that stems from the values within our own homes.
John J. Barrett, born in Ireland in 1888, immigrated to the United States
at a young age, living on the West Side of Manhattan and later moving
to the Bronx. As he grew older and entered the workforce, John became
the head of the union of UNAPOC, United National Association of Post Office
Clerks; one of his duties for UNAPOC included lobbying in Washington,
D.C.
In these early years, John also worked as a blacksmith, shoeing horses
for the horse-drawn hearses which were used at that time. An innovative
and entrepreneurial man, John recognized an opportunity to start a business
of his own, and he opened the John J. Barrett funeral home on the West
Side of New York in 1932. The facility was moved in 1937 to its present
location at 424 West 51st Street. John's new business mainly provided
funeral services and supplies, as wakes were customarily held in a family's
home prior to World War II. As customs began to change over time, and
wakes began to take place in funeral homes, the John J. Barrett funeral
home expanded its services and included visitation chapels.
 |
|
Thomas
V. Barrett Sr., circa 1944.
|
|
Upon John's death in
1947, his son, Thomas V. Barrett, joined the firm and the company name was
changed to John J. Barrett & Son. In 1965, Tom purchased the Pell Funeral
Home in Tenafly, NJ, renaming it the Barrett Funeral Home. He understood
the value of continuously reinvesting in his growing business, and immediately
began cosmetic renovations to the home. Work was begun to create a classic,
comfortable and elegant facility. Years later, in the mid-1970's, additional
chapels were added to the funeral home — part of an addition that tripled
the size of the facility. Tom owned and managed both the New York and New
Jersey funeral homes until his son, Thomas V. Barrett, Jr., assumed the
management of the New York funeral home in 1980.
Tom Barrett, Jr. received his funeral director's license in 1976 and
became a full-time funeral director in 1980. He is the current owner and
manager of our facility. John J. Barrett & Son funeral home proudly continues
to be an integral part of the Hell's Kitchen community.
|
 |
