Onsite Retort

Pine Lawn Chapel and Crematory

The process begins at the crematory office within the Pine Lawn Chapel and Crematory, located on Harlem Road, just north of Genesee Street. Here a Mount Calvary Cemetery staff member meets the funeral director and accepts the necessary releases and permits for the cremation.

Delivery

The hearse is brought into the crematory at the north end of the building, and the human remains are transferred from the hearse to a transfer cart.

Transfer

The transfer cart with the human remains is then moved into the retort room.

The Retort Room

The retort is the chamber in which the cremation takes place. Each retort is only large enough for one cremation container at a time.

 The Retort

The human remains are then transferred to the retort, which is heated to 1600 degrees Fahrenheit. This high level of heat produces the state of extreme dehydration and evaporation, which causes the composition of the body to be reduced to ashes and bone fragments. This step in the cremation process takes approximately three hours.

Collection

After the cooling period of approximately 3 hours, the cremated remains are pulled forward into a collection tray for removal from the retort. Any non-combustible materials, such as metal, which could not be reduced during cremation, are separated and removed. Magnets are used to facilitate this process.

Processing

The remaining bone fragments are then mechanically processed into fine particles. Cremated remains for the average adult weigh from four to eight pounds. 

The cremated remains are then placed in an urn or temporary container, depending on the family's plans for memorialization. The total time necessary for the entire cremation process is approximately five to seven hours.

Pine Lawn Chapel

Pine Lawn Chapel and Columbarium was recently renovated with both large and small rooms to accommodate intimate services and viewings. Our state-of-the-art crematory is in the room adjacent to where viewings and memorial services are held. This provides a single location for viewings and services along with the actual body cremation and permanent memorial site for a loved one.

What happens to cremated remains?

Cremated remains are placed in an urn selected during the pre- need planning, an urn selected by survivors after a death or in a temporary container until a memorial urn is arranged for and/or inscribed. Memorial urns can be very simple or elaborate and are available from cemeteries and funeral homes. They are solidly designed and are appropriate in size to fit into a niche or urn vault. From here you have many choices.