A Birthday Present from Beyond the Grave!

[auburn]

I've been lucky and had a few successes this year but this is my favourite!

A year ago I was given a suitcase full of photo albums, letters and cuttings which had belonged to my dear Uncle Ted who died in the 1980s. Happily working through the contents I came across a newspaper cutting showing Ted at a local exhibition with a shepherds smock he had loaned them. It had belonged to my gg grandfather James who had worked in Hampshire & Sussex from 1840-1910. My mum thought Ted had donated it to a museum in Reading.

The Museum of Rural Life in Reading has a great website with photos of their smock collection-so I emailed them and held my breath-but no-my smock wasn't one of theirs.One of their curators kindly emailed all the Southern rural life museums and after a few weeks Chichester confirmed they had it.The day they contacted me was my birthday!
I have been able to send the museum a photo of my gg grandfather(with sheepdog!) and am planning to visit "my" smock.

Needless to say it was my best birthday present-nearly as good as the half-crowns Ted used to give me!

Auburn

[MarkJ]

Nice one! It is always interesting to actually find something which belonged to an ancestor - doubly so when you have a photo of gg grandad wearing the smock in question!

Well done to Readings Museum of Rural Life for taking the trouble to locate the smock too!

What a great present for your birthday!

Mark

[v.wells]

How nice Auburn I am glad that the museum went that extra mile for you. Have a lovely visit with "your smock".

[auburn]

You are so right Mark-thanks to the wonderful Ollie from Reading and to Rosemary from Chichester for checking her collection.
And not forgetting Uncle Ted for donating it and Great Uncle Henry for leaving it to my grandmother in his will in 1939.
By the way-the MERL website is well worth a look-they have excellent photos of many of the catalogued objects.
Cheers
Auburn

[auburn]

Thanks Vanessa-I will!
Better take a supply of tissues in case i get emotional!
Regards
Auburn

[spison]

I love lovely stories. The museum contact certainly did follow this one through really thoroughly.

Jane

[MythicalMarian]

Thanks Vanessa-I will!
Better take a supply of tissues in case i get emotional!
Regards
Auburn

I would be weeping buckets, Auburn. What a gorgeous feeling for you - only we fellow fam historians know how emotional it will be.....

[pipsqueak]

Wow. That's very impressive! I don't suppose the museum will let you touch it...