Treasures from the Wardrobe

The Treasure Hunt

It takes no stretch of the imagination to believe me when I tell you that the house in the photo above was full of nasty trash, furniture, rat droppings and general yuckiness. How much imagination would it take to believe that we found some really cool stuff as we pawed through every stinking item wearing latex gloves and respirators?

Before we threw one thing away, Jerry and I went through every box, drawer, and closet in the house item by item. Some folks had already come and stolen items from the house and went through things. Jerry and I were the only ones who could have told that items were disturbed as everything was in disarray. But it was easy to see the missing furniture and how things had been moved and rearranged. Luckily, there were still some very meaningful items left for us to find and treasure.

The Books

James Wood’s copy of “The Light in the East”

Jerry started going through the enormous wardrobe in what was the bathroom. He found James Wood’s Biblical study book that has his name embossed on it. We believe that this book was a gift (probably from his brother, Hugh) as the publication date is after they emigrated to Texas. Tucked inside this book was a smallish blue piece of paper. It was folded and, as we were determined to go through everything, I unfolded it carefully to see what it was. I was stunned.

This is the baggage claim ticket James Wood received when he shipped his goods from Galveston to the Port of Navarro. Notice Capt. MacKenzie’s name!

The Clothing

We found two very old petty coats in the old wardrobe along with some handmade children’s clothing. Here are photos of those items.

infant clothing. The crotch has buttons and hand-sewn button holes.

I don’t know if this is a dress or a gown, but it is a lightweight flannel material

This looks too long to be a dress. I think it could possibly be a Christening gown.

12 Comments

Sonya Dudley

October 5, 2019 at 11:34 am Reply

Those are EXTRAORDINARY finds!!! How exciting to have those treasures!

Susan Copeland

October 7, 2019 at 9:11 am Reply

What treasures you found! Just incredible! Thank you for sharing this rich history!

Jana Burch

October 7, 2019 at 11:05 am Reply

I feel like the luckiest (and dirtiest and most tired) girl in the world. Thank you for stopping by for a visit!

Marcy (Lane) Goodman

October 7, 2019 at 8:23 pm Reply

Jana the dress is a day gown worn by babies. These beautiful antiques can be carefully laundered using Retro Wash. You may need to soak and soak for a few days. Be careful rinsing and getting the water out of them because they can be heavy and tear. Good old sunshine is the best way for drying them and also helps with whitening. You may need to do this process a number of times but it is worth it. To store them wrap them in non acid tissue paper. Let me know how it goes. Maybe I’ll come out and help you. I would love to see you and the beautiful antique clothing!

Jana Burch

October 9, 2019 at 7:55 am Reply

Marcy, can you give me an idea of how old they might be?

Jeanette Janek

October 7, 2019 at 9:00 pm Reply

All of these items are definitely treasures of the past. But the study bible is my favorite treasure as you can imagine the faith of this family. WOW!!!