Our Story

The history of Kramer Funeral Home dates back to the earliest days of the city of Dyersville.  Not only did the current location of the Dyersville funeral home belong to the founding family, the Kramer ancestors also have been a part of the Dyersville community for more than a century.

As early as 1880, a gentleman by the name of Paul Lippert began arranging funerals, attending to the deceased, and producing finished caskets in the back of his furniture store (Lippert Building on 1st Ave in Dyersville).  For nearly 20 years, Paul carried out family wishes.  He even earned a degree in embalming from the Chicago College of Embalming in 1902.  The diploma of this achievement is still available for viewing at the location in Dyersville.

Paul's son, Henry "Local" Lippert, worked with his father and carried on the family practice after Paul's death in 1905.  Local, having also earned a degree in 1906, continued the business in the store for many years. Then in 1928, he purchased the home of Judge James Dyer's daughter, Anna and Joseph Limback, and remodeled it as a "Home for Funerals".  This location in Dyersville continued to serve the public until the end of 2013.

Local had one daughter, Lanette J. Lippert, who married a man by the name of L.F. "Gene" Kramer and the Kramer name entered the existing funeral care practice.  After receiving his license to practice Mortuary Science in 1933 from the Hohenschuh-Caarpenter College of Embalming in St. Louis, Gene Kramer invested 38 years as a Funeral Director.  Lanette, a pioneer herself, assisted with the business, even going so far as to receive a business degree in 1932, an event nearly unheard of for a woman in that day and age. 

Gene and Lanette had four children, two of whom entered funeral service.  Karol, the eldest, became a funeral director in 1958 and spent a number of years with the funeral home until her relocation to the Cedar Rapids area.  Their son, Dave, became a funeral director in 1962.  He assisted Gene until becoming the fourth generation owner of Kramer Funeral Home following Gene's death in 1971.

Today, Craig Kramer, Dave's son and Gene's grandson, owns and operates Kramer Funeral Home. He received his degree in Mortuary Science from the University of Minnesota in 1990 and took over the family business in 2000.  Craig helped his father grow the Dyersville service to include two more locations in Monticello (built in 1997) and Holy Cross (a public school purchased and renovated in 1994).  He and the staff of Kramer Funeral Home continue to strive for excellence in caring service delivered with integrity as well as foster close ties with each community served.

Needless to say, we at Kramer Funeral Home have always strived to provide the highest level of professionalism and innovation in funeral service.  This has enabled us to continually provide the highest quality service available.