Chinn Funeral Service. Green Valley/Nauck, Arlington, 1979. Photo by Lloyd Wolf. From PG 700: Arlington Photographic Documentary Project.
Chinn Funeral Service was established by James Elwood Chinn in Green Valley (formerly known as Nauck) in 1942. As a Black-owned funeral home operating under Jim Crow segregation, Chinn Funeral Service provided an invaluable service to the Black community when white-owned funeral homes refused to serve them.
After apprenticing with James Chinn for three years, Robert Baker, Jr. purchased the business in 1969. His twin brother Rupert soon joined him as a business partner, and they became trusted pillars of the community through their compassionate service and dedication to their neighbors, helping them through times of loss.
In an interview with the Virginia Tech Legacy Business Studio conducted in 2017, Robert’s daughter Tyra Baker – then manager of the family business – described the twins' talent for lessening the burdens of their grieving customers:
"Rupert, he had a really, I don’t know, funny sense of humor. He had a way to make you laugh and smile when you knew you don’t want to, or maybe even shouldn’t. But even in the worst times, he can make you get through it pretty easily. And my dad has always had a calming voice, and you know, I guess the whole community trusted them. So, they would come here, and my dad and Uncle Rupert would make the arrangements for them, help them out, pretty much take over, so that it was very easy for them to get through it."
Robert Baker, Jr. was deeply involved in community organizations such as the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, the Nauck Business Association and Shirlington Road Revitalization movement. He earned the NAACP Community Appreciation Award and was awarded Mortician of the Year by the Virginia District Morticians Association. Along with Rupert, both brothers were recipients of the Arlington Best Business Award granted by the Arlington County Board.
Chinn-Baker Funeral Service, present day. Image courtesy of Google Maps.
Today, Chinn-Baker Funeral Service still operates out of its original building and is run by the descendants of Robert and Rupert Baker. In her interview, Tyra Baker explained that although the surrounding neighborhood has changed since the business was first established, they continue to perform funerals for families that have lived in the area for many generations. “[I]f Chinn buried your grandmother, your great-grandmother, they’ll probably bury your mother and your father. We still have three churches in the area that traditionally have come to Chinn Funeral Home. So, if you are at that church, you probably will come to Chinn Funeral Home.”
Serving the community for more than 80 years, Chinn-Baker Funeral Service hopes to continue meeting the needs of Arlington’s grieving families for many years to come.
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