Velma Louise Gaines Hamock (May 25, 1910 – October 3, 2000) was an American funeral home owner in Paducah, Kentucky. In 1949 she inherited the business, at one time the only African-American owned funeral home in the city, after the death of her husband A. Z. Hamock. She is noted for having kept the mummy of

Speedy Atkins Charles Henry "Speedy" Atkins (1875–1928) was an American tobacco worker in Paducah, Kentucky. A pauper at his death, he drowned in the Ohio River. The city turned over his body for a pauper's burial to his friend A.Z. Hamock, the only African-A ...

, which her husband had preserved in 1928, for more than 40 more years before burial in 1994."Black man who died 66 years ago is finally buried"
''Jet'', 29 August 1994 About 200 people attended the 1994 funeral and burial of Atkins in Maplelawn Cemetery in Paducah.
''Chicago Sun-Times'', 6 August 1994 As had her husband, Velma Hamock kept Atkins' preserved body in a closet when it was not displayed to tourists. She died in October 2000.

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* 1910 births 2000 deaths People from Paducah, Kentucky Businesspeople from Kentucky Persons involved with death and dying 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American businesswomen Kentucky businesswomen 20th-century African-American women 20th-century African-American businesspeople {{Death-stub