Austin & Barnes Funeral Home and Crematory

Austin & Barnes Funeral Home and Crematory is a Funeral Home in Boone, NC, located at 194 Queen St. It provides traditional full service funerals, memorial services, celebrations of life, cremation services, monuments, grave markers, and mausoleums to residents of Boone, Blowing Rock, Foscoe, Todd, Deep Gap, Stony Fork, Meat Camp, Zionville, Vilas, Banner Elk, Crossnore, Elk Park, Fleetwood, Jefferson, West Jefferson, Lenoir, Linville, Newland, North Wilkesboro, Wilkesboro, Valle Crucis, Sugar Grove, Pineola, and Hickory. The business holds a rating of 4.80 based on 17 reviews.

The business has served the community since 1933, originally operating as Reins-Sturdivant Funeral Directors, the only funeral home in Watauga County at that time. Johnnie Austin, Carolyn Austin, and Bill Laughridge purchased the business in 1975, and Johnnie Austin became the sole owner in 1987. Bob Barnes purchased a portion of the business in the same year, leading to the name change to Austin & Barnes Funeral Home in 1993. The facility moved to its current downtown location on Queen Street in 1987. In 2005, the funeral home installed its own on-site crematory, distinguishing itself as the only full-service funeral home and crematory in the High Country area. This capability allows families to keep their loved ones in the region rather than transporting remains out of town or out of state.

Staff members include licensed funeral directors and embalmers Bob Barnes, Jordan, and Tessie, along with certified crematory operator Bridgett. Bob Barnes, a native of Watauga County, has been in funeral service since 1968 and holds an Associates Degree in Business Administration from Caldwell Community College. Jordan, a graduate of the Commonwealth Institute of Funeral Service, has served since 2015. Tessie has been in the industry since 1992. The team offers advance funeral planning, pre-need bank and insurance trusts, VA markers, monuments, grave markers, and mausoleums. They provide a wide variety of caskets from Aurora, Batesville, Winston-Salem Casket Company, and Thacker Caskets, as well as handmade wood and ceramic cremation urns from local artisans.

Customers value the care and compassion shown by the staff during difficult times. The business is known for handling each detail with great care and making the process as easy as possible for grieving families.

Austin & Barnes Funeral Home and Crematory continues to serve the Boone community with local ownership and an on-site crematory.

The funeral home is situated on Queen Street in Boone, NC, just a tenth of a mile from the Watauga County Public Library and the United States Post Office.

BizScoreAI awarded the business a Technical score of 80 out of 100. This strong result shows that the website is technically sound, secure, and indexable. It ensures search engines can read the site without errors.