John E. Roberts, Wedekindt funeral homes merge
The owners of the John E. Roberts Funeral Home have acquired Harry A. Wedekindt Funeral Home, bringing together two area funeral homes with long family traditions in the business.
John E. Roberts will continue to operate its own location at 1361 Hertel Ave. in North Buffalo, as well as the Harry A. Wedekindt Funeral Home at 280 Grover Cleveland Highway in Amherst, said Margaretmary Roberts-Dobmeier, who owns the John E. Roberts Funeral Home along with her brother, James J. Roberts.
“We saw the opportunity for our business to grow,” she said.
The Harry A. Wedekindt Funeral Home was established in 1958, part of a long family history in the business. Harry’s twin sons, Raymond and Richard, joined their father in the business in 1965 and ran it after Harry died in 1982. The John E. Roberts Funeral Home dates to 1932, started by the current owners’ father and grandfather.
Raymond Wedekindt said no Wedekindt family members were following them in the business. And at 66, the brothers welcomed the chance to have a more limited role in day-to-day functions while staying involved with the funeral home and the families it serves.
The two independent funeral homes had a good working relationship even before the deal was struck, Wedekindt said.
Four generations of Wedekindts have been involved in the local funeral home business since the 19th century. Henry Wedekindt Sr., great-grandfather of Raymond and Richard Wedekindt, opened an undertaking parlor in 1887 in Buffalo. A number of his descendants established their own funeral home operations.
The John E. Roberts Funeral Home was established in 1932 by Thomas Roberts and his son John in the Old First Ward. Thomas owned a livery service that provided horse-drawn hearses to funeral directors. He was the first in Western New York to own and operate motorized hearses, an idea that caught on over time, James Roberts said.
The business later moved to Elmwood Avenue, and in 1955, John Roberts formed a partnership with Raymond Potts at the Elmwood and Hertel locations.
The partnership lasted until Potts retired in 1964.
John’s wife, Mary, was also active in the John E. Roberts business and in 1949 became one of the first women in the state to become a licensed funeral director.
James Roberts will be the licensed manager of the John E. Roberts location in Amherst. The Amherst location will also retain the Wedekindt name, with Raymond Wedekindt as the licensed manager of the Wedekindt business.
The Amherst location, with 12,000 square feet, will allow the John E. Roberts Funeral Home to accommodate larger funerals, and is only about three miles from the Hertel location, Roberts said.
