It's one car that most people may want to put off taking a ride in. Hearse have a rich history in the Tri-State, and some of your neighbors think the hearse deserves an afterlife.
The Eagle Coach Company still builds the cars in Amelia. The industry started back in 1909 when the Crane and Breed Company built the first gasoline-powered hearse on West 8th street in what is now Queensgate.
100 years later, if you're looking for a unique ride, you can find it at CW Coach Sales in Carthage.
Carl Woener started selling Hearses 25 years ago. "I reluctantly sell 'normal' cars, I call them abnormal cars,'" says Woener "My hearses are my normal cars."
Woener says he says more used hearses than anyone else in the world. He sells hundreds of the funeral coaches every year and even exports them to foreign countries.
If you want to park one in your driveway, most cost less than $5,000. Not bad considering a new one can cost $100,000.
One of Woener's most famous customers is NASCAR driver, Tony Stewart. He bought a hearse, then made lots of changes to the looks adding a fancy new interior complete with a big screen and seats the fold away.
Anderson resident, Brad Stapelton, is another satisfied customer.
Stapleton raves about his 1990 Cadillac Fleetwood. "Very impressed with the ride, in fact it's the first car I've owned with leather seats," said Stapelton.
The afterlife for his hearse is The Nightshift Limousine service. The hearse turned limo has room for six people to ride in style to any event. The company hit the street in mid-summer.
He has a marketing tie in; he offers a special package for divorce celebrations.
"It's a lot cheaper than a conventional limo because the vehicle it's self is a cheaper to configure," said Stapleton.
We took the limo to Fountain Square. Three UC students from Corryville took a look inside. They had mixed reactions at first, but after getting inside, they were won over.
Stapleton's goal for his service is for the ride to become part of the Cincinnati to-do list.
He wants people to say: "Oh Cincinnati, you gotta try the chili, you gotta try Graeater's ice cream, and you gotta take a ride in one of those hearse's."
In Carthage, Carl Woener wants to make a deal.
"I don't quite understand why most everyone doesn't have a hearse. What better car is there out there?"
The regional Professional Car Club meets in Cincinnati every year. The location for the hearse show is fitting; Spring Grove Cemetery.
