Receiving vault
Encyclopedia
A receiving vault is typically an underground crypt
or above-ground building built within a cemetery
, with the purpose of storing the bodies of deceased persons in winter months when the ground is too frozen to dig a permanent grave
. Modern mechanical all-weather digging tools have mostly replaced the need for such receiving vaults in today's cemeteries.
In the early 20th century, the United States Public Health Service
(Marine Hospital Service
) issued rules about receiving vaults, that they should be "cleared, cleaned, and disinfected" before May 1 each year, and that keeping a body there for more than 72 hours between May and September was to be avoided. Various cities have different ordinances about the storage of bodies in these vaults.
Crypt
In architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
or above-ground building built within a cemetery
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
, with the purpose of storing the bodies of deceased persons in winter months when the ground is too frozen to dig a permanent grave
Grave
A grave is a location where a dead body is buried.Grave may also refer to:*Grave accent, a diacritical mark*Grave , a term used to classify sounds*Grave , a term for "slow and solemn" music*Grave , an old name for the kilogram...
. Modern mechanical all-weather digging tools have mostly replaced the need for such receiving vaults in today's cemeteries.
In the early 20th century, the United States Public Health Service
United States Public Health Service
The Public Health Service Act of 1944 structured the United States Public Health Service as the primary division of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare , which later became the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The PHS comprises all Agency Divisions of Health and...
(Marine Hospital Service
Marine Hospital Service
The Marine-Hospital Service was an organization of Marine Hospitals dedicated to the care of ill and disabled seamen in the U.S. Merchant Marine, U.S. Coast Guard and other federal beneficiaries....
) issued rules about receiving vaults, that they should be "cleared, cleaned, and disinfected" before May 1 each year, and that keeping a body there for more than 72 hours between May and September was to be avoided. Various cities have different ordinances about the storage of bodies in these vaults.