Dateline: October 11, 2007

Funeral home to dedicate historical marker

Robertson Funeral Directors, Inc., will celebrate 108 years in business Sunday with the dedication of a Texas Historical Marker.

Funeral directors Chuck Robertson and Cameron Word worked for more than three months to research and document the history of what is believed to be the Panhandle’s first funeral home.

Delbert Robertson began his career in 1951 with what was then called Murphy-Spicer Funeral Home and is happy with the business’ new designation.

“It’s real nice,” he said. “I knew we had a lot of history, but I never realized that it qualified for a marker.”

But when the youngest Robertson and Word joined the business and heard Delbert’s son, Patrick, talk about its history, the wheels began to turn; and soon old records were being dusted off, and calls were being made to the descendents of previous owners.

Pleasant Andrew “P.A.” Buntin established the business in 1899 – a date that was always confirmed by his late granddaughter.

“Phebe Ann told me that she used to have a letterhead from the Buntin Funeral Home that said ‘Established 1899,’” Chuck Robertson said. “She also told Virginia Browder that it was established in 1899.”

Buntin’s original funeral home still makes up the south part of the Robertson’s building today.

Buntin’s son, Fred, came into the business in 1919. P.A. died in 1941, and Fred formed a partnership with Blackburn-Shaw Funeral Directors of Amarillo in 1945 and changed the name to Blackburn-Shaw-Buntin Funeral Home.

The next year, Buntin became partners with J.W. Murphy and Bob Spicer to form Murphy-Spicer-Buntin Funeral Home with locations in Clarendon, Memphis, Groom, and Hedley. Fred died in 1946, and the name was changed to Murphy-Spicer Funeral Home in 1948. Murphy became the sole owner of Murphy Funeral Home in 1954.

Over the years, our funeral home has performed the services of Mrs. Mary Goodnight and the legendary Col. Charles Goodnight. The business’ hearse was also featured in the movie “Hud,” which was filmed in Goodnight and Claude.

When Delbert started working, he was still a senior in high school and would occasionally get calls during class.

“Mrs. Goodner and Mrs. Polk were always good to let me go,” he said. “They would say, ‘You just go and do what you’ve got to do.’”

Delbert opened his own business in 1973 and later that year, along with Amarillo funeral directors Maurice Schooler and Mack Gordon, purchased the Murphy family interests and facility. Murphy Funeral Home and Clarendon Funeral Home ownerships combined, and the name was changed to Schooler-Gordon-Robertson Funeral Directors.

Patrick joined the firm in 1976, and he and Delbert acquired Schooler-Gordon’s interest in 1977. The firm has been known as Robertson Funeral Directors since that time. Chuck and Cameron joined them in 2003. Together they are the only funeral home in the Texas Panhandle to have three generations of family involved in the funeral business.

Sunday’s dedication will begin at 4 p.m. in the Robertson’s chapel with a short welcome and history. Former funeral directors and relatives of previous owners will be in attendance along with the executive director of the Texas Funeral Service Commission and the vice president of the Texas Funeral Directors Association.

The public is invited to attend, and refreshments will be served.