Joseph L. McPhee, founder of Joseph McPhee Funeral Directors became interested in funeral services in 1916. As a young boy he was a server for his church in Park Hill, Ontario (Canada) assisting his pastor in funerals and weddings. This was an era of horse-drawn carriages and at-home funerals. After his father’s death he emigrated to Chicago with his mother and sister. He worked for the New York Central railroad by day and pursued his dream of becoming a funeral director by attending Worsham School of Mortuary Science at night. He graduated in 1927 and was licensed by the State of Illinois as a funeral director in 1928.

During the Great Depression, people could not afford to give their families food and shelter, let alone pay funeral expenses for their loved ones. Soup kitchens and bread lines were common. His core philosophy was to care on the families who called upon him for his services with dignity and compassion. Finances took a back seat. The lessons he learned during the Depression continued to play a significant role in the way his family does business today.

He opened a humble storefront funeral home at 7131 S. Western Avenue, Chicago in 1934. In 1936 he married Margaret Duhig, raising and nurturing his family above the funeral home. The area was sparsely populated, a few homes scattered around the prairies and farmland. As the population grew, so did McPhee Funeral Directors. He purchased adjacent properties and a parking lot. The business remained as its original location until 1987.

McPhee Funeral Directors has working relationships with several funeral homes in the city and suburbs to service our families with local facilities. Today, his son, Joseph R. McPhee continues the tradition of caring for the families he serves with honesty and integrity during their most difficult times.