More Living Columnists

• Dolores Sanchez Badillo: The view from the fenceline
• Mary Penner: Learning about your past is an awesome journey
• Steve Brewer: Goofy fads can hold fond memories for families

MOST RECENT TRIB STORIES

• ABQTrib.com to remain available
  08:48 a.m., February 25, 2008
• Congressman is indicted
  08:37 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Series of attacks target Green Zone
  08:36 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Iran is defying U.N., agency says
  08:35 a.m., February 23, 2008
• Waterboarding approval probed
  08:34 a.m., February 23, 2008

TRIB IN THE BLOGOSPHERE*

• Ty Murray Invitational thrills fans in Albuquerque
• Is Rome Burning?
• Ominous Skies
• The Road to Invalidation
• Albuquerque company participates in “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”

*Note: The Tribune does not create and is not responsible for the blogosphere's headlines and stories. These links to blogs talking about ABQTrib.com are automatically generated. Use them at your own risk.

STORY TOOLS

• E-mail story
• Comments
• iPod friendly
• Printer friendly

SHARE THIS STORY [?]

The cardboard box sitting on the top shelf of my closet is well-traveled. When my uncle died in 1979, his sister placed bits and pieces of his life's memorabilia in the box and took it to her home.

She died in 1994 and the box went to her son's home. He died in 1998 and the box went to my dad's home. He died in 2002. Two years ago, my mom gave the box to me and since then it's been on my closet shelf.

After watching the Ken Burns PBS documentary about World War II, I pulled the box off the shelf. My uncle served in the Army during World War II and fought at the Battle of the Bulge.

I suspected the box had things in it related to the war.

I found photographs, medals, postcards, souvenirs and all kinds of military-related documents. One of the most interesting items tucked away in the box is a copy of "Sweatin It Out Daily."

This daily newsletter was printed onboard the ship that brought my uncle and hundreds of other soldiers home from Europe in November 1945.

My uncle had no children to leave these things to, so I have become their keeper.

As a member of the "greatest generation," his military memorabilia deserves better than to be jumbled in a cardboard box.

Very few ancestral trappings have meandered through the generations in my family. My ancestors may have been unsentimental throwers, especially private, or just too dirt poor to leave much behind.

Genealogists truly value personal items that have a physical connection to our ancestors. Even those who don't research their family history have special documents, photos, and sentimental knick-knacks that link them to their ancestral past.

Maybe you have your grandparents' marriage license. Or do you have letters written during the Civil War? Do you have a ticket stub from the 1909 World Series? I have my granddad's pipe and a driver's license issued to him in 1939.

Most of the ancestral artifacts that we have stuffed here and there won't hit a jackpot on Antiques Roadshow, but we still hang on to them.

We may cherish these pieces of ephemera or we may just be packrats. Whatever the reason, we might as well preserve and protect them properly.

I took everything out of the box and sorted all the items. Paper documents in this pile, photos in that pile, textiles in another pile, and so on.

Now I've begun ordering archival storage containers and folders to put everything in. These can be expensive, so I'm ordering just one item a month. This month, I ordered a package of viewing folders to slip all of the paper documents into.

There are a number of companies that sell archival storage supplies. I usually buy from Gaylord (gaylord.com). You can request a catalog at (800) 448-6160.

Also check out the Web site for The American Institute for Conservation of Historic & Artistic Works (aic.stanford.edu). Here you can find information on how to preserve your artifacts, and you can also search a directory to find professional conservators to help with your preservation challenges.