By Courtney Taylor
news@wbcowqe.com

It’s rare to find a company that’s been in business since shortly after the Civil War and is still doing well. This is true for Galion’s longest-running business, Longstreth Memorials.

Sean Longstreth is a fifth-generation owner of Longstreth Memorials, along with his wife Terri Longstreth.

The business recently moved locations to 1263 Ohio 598. This was due to the old space being too cramped and having to work out of two different locations. The new property is 16,000 square feet and currently employs 23 employees. Longstreth Memorials specializes in headstones, cremation displays, caskets, and burial vaults.

The new location has provided plenty of advantages. Some new features that benefit the customers are a larger indoor showroom display, an observation room for customers to view their products being made, a cremation display room, and a state of the art computerized design program. They also have the latest monument carving equipment with many designs being sandblasted by hand.

The computerized design program is especially helpful. Instead of ordering something generic from a catalog, customers can sit and personalize a headstone off a screen.

“We try to make their personality fit the monument,” said Terri Longstreth.

The owners have found that the amount of business and walk-ins have increased. Longstreth Memorials does business with approximately 35 different funeral homes in 11 counties, and is the go-to for the funeral homes when ordering caskets and burial vaults. They also provide educational training to funeral home workers in their conference rooms.

“It’s all about creating a memory for people,” said Sean Longstreth.

Another new feature is their tribute to veterans. They plan to have a display specifically for veterans in their display room, and are currently working on the Crawford County Veterans Hall of Fame monument for Bucyrus.

Longstreth Memorials has offices in Bucyrus, Mansfield, and Mount Gilead, though the Mount Gilead office is under the name Jahn Memorials.

Hours of business are 9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Fridays, and 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. on Saturdays.

To learn more about Longstreth Memorials and to view the business’s products visit http://storyinstone.com/ or check out the company’s Facebook page.