Expanding Rochester Funeral Home Used to Be Furniture Store, Too

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Today (Tuesday, May 31, 2022) there was a groundbreaking for a funeral home expansion in Rochester, Minnesota. More funeral home space might not make the news very often, but it sure does when it's been in business, in Rochester, for 113 years.

Macken Funeral Home Announces Expansion

According to Peter Macken, fourth-generation funeral director, and his partner Chris Bronte, Macken Funeral Home is expanding to create space and gathering room for over 200 people.

That'll mean an 8,000 square foot addition will extend to the north of the current River Park Chapel, connected by a breezeway, and provide a reception hall that overlooks Slatterly Park and Bear Creek to the east.

There have been a few expansion projects, starting in 2010 with their River Park Chapel, and in 2016 with a location in Byron.

Brief History of Macken Funeral Home

Born in 1877, Dan Macken was raised in Marion Township, graduated from the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul, and held what to most of us would seem an unusual apprenticeship, but is just an everyday part of mortuary science....an embalming apprenticeship at a mortuary in St. Paul.

For a bit, he worked for Paine Funeral and Furniture Company in the Med City (a common combination back in the day). Then, in December of 1909, the Dan Macken Company was founded and he went to work for himself, opening his own Funeral Parlor/Furniture Store combo, The Dan Macken Company.

From the beginning Macken's family was involved, first his siblings, then, in 1950, his son, Daniel D., joined the family business. In 1962, Daniel D. built their current location, 1105 12th Street SE. His father died in 1963.

As always, if you have a comment, complaint, or concern about something I wrote here, please let me know: james.rabe@townsquaremedia.com

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