TAYLOR-VANDALE FUNERAL HOME OWNED BY CASTO CHAIN SINCE 2020 - Fading Local Ownership

(04/08/2026)

By Bob Weaver APRIL 2026 Much has changed with traditional funerals in the USA during the past 50 years, including ownership. Starting about 50 years ago many WV funeral homes were purchased by corporate conglomerates, disallowing the identification of "locally owned and operated." In 2020, one of Roane Counties longest running businesses, Taylor-Vandale Funeral Home was sold to the Casto Funeral Homes chain. In 1914, the Vandale Funeral Home, owned by Fred Vandale, began on Main Street and was relocated to its current location on Beauty Street in 1929, formerly the Roane County Hospital and Lowe Hotel. George Vandale and his son-in-law Richard Taylor, operated the funeral home for many years, both now deceased. Richard Taylor's son, Mark Taylor, a licensed mortician, picked up the gauntlet until recently, he now having resigned from the Casto Group owned business, disallowing "locally owned and operated" slogan.

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