Saving Heirlooms Before It's Too Late

Historians, archivists, and indeed most family researchers agree that making copies of valuable family objects is a wise endeavor. But is easy to put on the procrastination list.

I'm writing this as I also watch the graphic reporting of tornado destruction in the midwest overnight (April 28, 2014). Besides the satisfaction of having copies that you can use to document your history and share with other family members, you will have assurance that the item image will not be lost to future generations - even if the actual object is now gone.

For those of us who practical of thought, these type of archive images are many times useful for insurance documentation also.

Uniform and Clothes Photographs

It is very simple to make clothes and accessories photogenic. Think of yourself as a department store window dresser; give the clothes some character. The images here are very simple, use your imagination to add even more character.

The above uniform was worn by my father upon discharge from the Army in 1946. it has spent 68 years in a trunk with no one seeing it; and his five grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren have not even known its existence.

Now it can become a part of the written and visual family history, easily distributed to everyone in the family. A special note: When photographing such objects also record what you know about the item. This includes the date, owner, context (he wore this home from the Pacific islands), the names or meanings of the medals and patches. This uniform shows he was a first sergeant in the Army, attached to the Pacific command (left shoulder patch), received three medals, and included three service stripes on sleeve.

During a visit to my brother's home last Christmas, we sorted (again) through family heirloom items. I decided to record them in photographs also.

Trick to Uniform Photographs In stores, clothes are draped around mannequins to fill out the item. I doubt many of you have mannequins handy. We had a hall tree (hat rack) which to hang the uniform from. But, the coat looked a little drab. So, I stuffed the sleeves with some T-shirts to fill them out. This also helped smooth the 68 years of wrinkles. At a whim, I placed his hat and tie in the scene. Use your creativity. It doesn't have to be worthy of 5th Avenue, just get the item documented.