Edith Cook's coffin and its contents

The following is from the Garden of Innocence: 

"The casket excavated in the Karner’s backyard was a child’s-sized metallic casket, tentatively identified as a design patented by Amos C. Barstow of Providence, Rhode Island. This was later confirmed by records from the mortuary engaged for the funeral and burial arrangements for Edith Howard Cook, N. Gray & Co. Undertakers, located at 641 Sacramento Street in San Francisco. Gray & Co. was also advertised as the sole agent for Barstow caskets in San Francisco.

Barstow-style caskets are easily distinguishable from other caskets of the era by their ogee-shaped ends and their unique base constructed from overlapping metallic ribs. The design and construction of the casket resulted in an air tight seal, ensuring that its contents would be preserved for some time. One advertisement promised “perfect protection from water and vermin.”

Barstow patent caskets appeared to have enjoyed a long production run. The earliest known advertisement dates to 1860. The casket was manufactured by the Barstow Stove Company. Production rights were later sold, and while it is not known when the last Barstow was made, it is known that N. Gray & Co. sold them well into the late 1890s. In every known advertisement, the casket appears exactly the same."

Learn more about Edith Cook below 

Related stories 

• Preserved child found in glass coffin under San Francisco home ID'd
• History of the Cook and Scooffy families 
• How did Edith Cook die 
• Burial for century-old remains of SF girl found in a coffin underneath a garage

Information source: The Garden of Innocence