Big pile of photos

wandajune6

I bought a huge box of vintage photos at an auction while visiting family in TX this weekend. I originally thought it would be fun to use them for craft projects but the more I flip through them, the more I wonder.

Should I track down the family that owned these? There are photos that clearly go back over 100 years. There are postcards written from a guy serving in WW2 that he sent to his mother, baby pictures and all sorts of goodies. Some are even labeled- I've got a handful of names to search. The few names that I have for people who could still be alive are hard to find but I think it's doable. For those who are long gone, I may be able to find relatives (I'm seeing multiple last names).

Should I be searching these people out? Would you want them if they came from your family? Do I have any responsibility? Could someone be hurt if I reach out?

I'm undecided. What do you think?

wrigleyville

I would probably try to hunt people down, but I'm one of those people who thinks it would be fun.

Plus, I have relatives who get rid of things like that without asking the rest of the family. I would be so upset if I found out my great-grandparents' or grandparents' photos and postcards (especially the postcards) had been sold at an auction, and I would definitely want them back.

hellohkb

Interesting... I'd definitely try to! I bought an old photograph from a vintage store that may have been from the 1950s from the looks of it (the photo itself, the outfits, hairstyles, background scream early 50s). There were no names but it's such an interesting photo and I always wonder who they were and how they would feel if a random stranger bought their photo.

hellohkb

Hit submit before I meant to and mobile won't let me edit.

I think getting in touch with them could be a fun project. Let us know how it goes! I wish I could contact the ladies in my photo.

wandajune6

I guess I'm hunting them down!

I have a lot of photos- probably 2-3 shoe boxes worth. There are a few photo albums but none are filled all the way. One was a cheap plastic album that already started to disintegrate. Lots of photos have started to deteriorate in places.

The hardest part is the handwriting. The person (I'm guessing woman) shows a clear deterioration in writing. Early labels have clear writing while later labels are very wobbly. It's clearly going to be a project!

novella1186

For me personally, I would be so so so excited to be contacted by someone like you who has a whole box of my family history, and I would be so amazed that you were thoughtful enough to find me and reach out. I love family history and old photos, so it would mean a lot to me. 

Some people may be weirded out by it or maybe wouldn't be interested I guess? But I don't think you would cause any damage to anyone just by reaching out. 

sarahufl

I have a friend who recently bought a book at a used book store. It had an inscription on the front page that had someone's first and last name. She ended up tracking them down and getting the book back to him- turns out it had accidentally gotten put in a Goodwill bag a number of years ago and he was super grateful to get it back.

It took her awhile, but it was fun to catch up on her progress. They ended up having a long phone conversation.

wandajune6

It looks like I'll be doing the research!

I'm glad I kept my ancestry.com membership. Tracking women is hard due to name changes at marriage. People get tricky.

Thanks for the feedback!

princessleia22

I think it would be a fun project.  I would probably wonder about the people while going through those pictures and would be anxious to find someone that may actually be able to put some real stories to go with the photos.

My family hasn't been good at keeping any heirlooms or history... we have nothing farther back than my grandparents and even there we have very little.  I would love it if someone found a cache of my family history and returned it to us.