History

In 1886, Mr. Herrlich purchased the business of two under¬taking establishments in New Palestine, Ludwig Schmidt and Calvin Bennett. Max Herrlich soon became known as an able and reliable man.

Before his death on April 27, 1909, he was joined in the funeral business by his son, Charles Herrlich and daughter, Emma Herrlich Gunn.

Upon the death of Max Herrlich, the brother and sister operated the firm under the name, Max Herrlich and Son. From 1888 the funeral operations were located and conducted from an office, garage and casket display room at the corner of Mill and Bittner Street. The Max Her¬rlich Home built In 1905 by Charles Richmand is still standing on the east side of Bittner Street and was often used when necessary as a funeral parlor.

The horse drawn hearses used were made by Charles Faut here in New Palestine. They had a white hearse used with a team of white horses and a black hearse with black horses. The purpose of the white hearse and the white team of horses was for small children and the black hearse with the black horses to distinguish that they were for grown ups

The first motor driven hearse was purchased in 1912. The first families served after the purchase of the car were afraid it would go too fast for a proper funeral.

Around 1900 the firm purchased the German M. E. Church located at the northeast corner of Mill and Bittner. It was moved and attached to the office building located on the northeast corner of Bittner and Mill Street.

The first service held by Max Herrlich was that of Fritz Rissner, October 16, 1888. Burial in the Lutheran Cemetery with last rites in the Lutheran Church. A charge for this service was the amount of $40.00 rendered from Louise Rissner.

Max Herrlich also established an ice storage house located on Wood Street, east of Sutherland’s Store. He also made concrete blocks, some of which were used in his home and his daughters. A stone fence still used on the Lulu Herrlich Rafferty property were made of these blocks.

        In 1942 Charles Herrllch passed away; but the business was continued by his sister, Mrs. Emma Gunn. Mr. Ira Blackford was a trusted employee of this firm for over thirty years.

In June of 1948 the business was bought by Max Herrlich’s grandson, Max Hendryx and his partner, Russell Fields. They operated under the name of Hendryx and Fields Mortuaries and established another chapel at Curnberland, Indiana. In 1958 the Greenfield Chapel was added.

In 1962, Max Hendryx purchased Mr. Field’s interest in the business. Since the year 1948 the chapel has been located on Main Street, New Palestine in the home formerly owned by John Kirkhoff. It is now operated under the name of Hendryx Mortuaries.

In 1974 Max Hendryx closed the funeral home in Greenfield and sole it to the Greenfield-Central School Corporation.  He continued to run the New Palestine and Cumberland Chapels.

In 1985 the business was bought by Max Herrlich’s great-grandson, Tom Hendryx.  Tom is the fourth generation of “Herrlich’s” in the funeral business and owns the business at the present time

-- Most of this information is from the New Palestine History book written by Mildred Kitley Hendryx and Barbara Hutton Mattingly in 1971.  The info after 1971 was added by Marcia Hendryx Parker.