Finding History!

Today was one of those days that called for some sort of laid-back project.  Something that would not require major amounts of activity.  Having been "under the weather" a bit as of late, I did not want to overdo with any strenuous work.  Pondering just what I could do, I wandered about the Little Bayou House.  In the corner of the living room, I spied an antique wardrobe steamer trunk.  This is one of the old upright things that have a series of drawers on one side and a place to hang clothes on the other.  The trunk has been at my house since my mother passed away years and years ago.  Inside..things are exactly as she had left them.   The funny thing is..none of the stuff inside ever was used by her!  This trunk and the contents were given to Pop way back when I was a wee tot.  Besides being a farmer, he was a small engine mechanic and the town handyman.  All of this was to make ends meet when the farming was poor.  He had a wife and five kids to support so needed the extra work.  Pop was one hard working man!  Anyway, sometimes folks did not have a lot of money to pay for his work efforts.  They would offer him items in lieu of cash.  Being the kindhearted man he was, he never refused their offers.  As a result, we came in possession of some mighty odd items.  Mom and Pop never complained even when they received something such as their ninth set of fire pokers or another odd dining chair.  They just counted their blessings that the bills stayed paid and the kids stayed fed.  This trunk, though, contained a veritable treasure trove of goodies if I remembered rightly.  There was my busy work for the day!  I would investigate the trunk!  I called for my son, Michael, to come pull the thing out from the wall and open it up for me!  That was when the "fun" began!

We found newspapers from as far back as the 1800's, bunches of letters, a number of property deeds and some great old pictures. There were old purses, mirrors, beadwork, curling irons (pre-electric!) and shoes!  I knew most of this was in there but had forgotten exactly what the items were.  Two of the more interesting things were books.  One is an album of photographs from the Philippine Islands. These pictures had to be taken way, way back in the day!  The ladies wore the most beautiful dresses! I only wish that I knew who these lovely people were!  There is probably fifty or so photographs in the album with captions such as "Such a lovely picnic!"  or "A jolly party..Mariveles".  Wouldn't it be great fun to know what went on at these parties?

Another photo album in the trunk was a complimentary album from the company "T. J. Rosell Manufacturing Co."  The inside cover states that this company made "all sorts of building materials".  The book is a pictorial of old Biloxi.  Photographs from long ago of the houses and businesses of the area.  Thomas Jefferson Rosell was quite the important businessman in Biloxi at the time and even served as mayor during the early 1900's.  This book, in itself, is absolutely priceless as far as being a guide to old Biloxi and the architecture of the time.  The houses were exquisite masterpieces!  There was also a great picture of the Biloxi Lighthouse!

I am happy that I spent the day perusing through this collection of history.  I am not sure just what to do with it all but I know that since Mom kept it as treasure, so will I.  This is something that perhaps will be passed down to my kids.  Some rainy afternoon in the future, they can open the old steamer trunk and be amazed at what junk their mom kept.  Someday, when I am ready to part with the stuff, perhaps I should contact some historical society and let them take a gander at the stuff.  I have reservations of doing this simply because of the reaction I received once before when I tried this. My intention was to donate some of the items to the Biloxi Historical Society.  The offer was met with a bit of disdain saying the stuff was "junk" and probably all replicas of the time.  Hmmm?  It should be an easy task for a true historian to authenticate a dated paper.  On second thought, perhaps I shall wait.  When the time comes, I shall know.  If not..then my kids will be stuck with some fantastic treasures!