Woman, Jean Filson, Finds 100-Year-Old Family Letters And Personal Documents In Old Trunk

Akin to a storybook adventure, a woman in California has found unexpected treasure in an old trunk, Fox News reports.

Jean Filson from Sacramento said a friend had given her the trunk without knowing its contents. When Filson opened it, she was amazed at what she found -- several letters and personal documents, some dating back more than 100 years.

Fox News reports that these pieces of history are likely the property of a serviceman named Otto Witesel.

Among the treasures that Filson found are letters that Witesel wrote to his mother, his cousins and a lover. The oldest of these dates from 1907.

Filson said she has come forward with her discovery in the hope that these lost memories can be reunited with the right people. She's hoping that someone will come forward with information about the Witesels.

"I’m hoping something comes of it, maybe we’ll meet the family," she said.

Note: Jean's last name was not printed by Fox News. However, in the video, she was referred to as 'Jean Filson.'

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Comments

[pamihami]

08:40 AM on 05/22/2012

My parents married in 1947 and it's been years since they both passed. Recently, my brothers and I had a small family get together and i brought out an old photo album of my folks. There were pictures of my teenage mom in nursing school and hanging out with friends, towards the back of the album was pictures of my folks taken in Hawaii, while my dad was stationed at Pearl Harbor. We all looked and laughed at each picture of Billy and Jackie before they became moma and daddy. After everyone left, i went to put up the photo album and stopped to take one last look. Each picture had been carefully taped to each page for 65 years. For an instant, i thought i would check the back of one picture to see if it was dated so i slowly peeled back the taped to find a love note from my mom to my dad. I replaced the tape and checked another and found another love noted. One by one, each leading up to their wedding day and after. My mom's love and devotion carefully scripted on the back of each picture. It was worth more than all the gold in the world.

[ruthtruth]

01:34 PM on 05/21/2012

Something similar happened to my husband and I when we had to clean out an attic. We found some real nice antique jewelry, jewelry box, old books and a map from 1849.

[Lisa Waterman]

11:51 AM on 05/21/2012

May you should you post them on Ancestry.com, where thousands of people that are doing there family research may see them.

[Man is God]

11:09 AM on 05/21/2012

Faux must have made this story up.

[stnkyv]

01:01 PM on 05/21/2012

and god gets the word out threw fox news=how does keiths boots taste now

[robin85751]

11:03 AM on 05/21/2012

it's really cool when you find these items but post them some readers can enjoy them!

[NatTurner1]

03:57 PM on 05/21/2012

Im convinced that people that take time out of their life to read and commnet on a story really cares about it one way or another.

[Blackwing]

10:14 AM on 05/21/2012

Wow, those guys from Faux News don't miss a thing.

[Gray Mouser]

10:14 AM on 05/21/2012

These type of things will become increasingly rare. Today's digital society's records will not be collected as previous generations used to collect things. Nor do the modern generations even care to collect them.

[cenourinha]

10:46 AM on 05/21/2012

As a genealogy enthusiast, I think about this every time I write an email.

[fillipper]

10:13 AM on 05/21/2012

Why is this even news. Plenty of people find old letters and mementos from relatives. I have german letters from 1800 of ancesters. Its nice to find but unless it is some extremely rare document it is nice but not news worthy.

[luvthebeach19]

10:21 AM on 05/21/2012

In this day of mostly negative and disturbing news, its nice to have a simple, light hearted piece come out. Wonderful that you have your family archives. This person is trying to find the people this pertains to to return their family treasure. Maybe that's the premise behind the story!

[TheIpsoFactory]

09:51 AM on 05/21/2012

Such unexpected time capsules are always and truely treasures. The past reaching out to the present. Love it - I hope she takes good care of it, for the coming generations.
If she's just flauniting it on Fox to work up the price - I would be disappointed...

[MiddleRiver]

09:34 AM on 05/21/2012

HuffPo tabloid editors take note. Not everything is "shocking," "horrific,' or "astounding."

Finding old letters in an old trunk is perhaps interesting, but certainly not "incredible."

[snowpotato]

09:54 AM on 05/21/2012

Amen!

[kinnelonkid]

10:16 AM on 05/21/2012

Yeah, it's funny how this headline on the front page:
"Woman Makes Incredible Discovery In Old Trunk"
Becomes this headline on the page containing the story:
"Woman, Jean Filson, Finds 100-Year-Old Family Letters And Personal Documents In Old Trunk"
Hey Huffpo, how about a little honesty instead of sensationalizing in headlining.

[j masiulewicz]

10:38 AM on 05/21/2012

It appears that all I have to do in order to get my picture and a sensational headline on HuffPost is to go to my grandmother's basement and open a few old boxes. Astounding.

[MiddleRiver]

10:39 AM on 05/21/2012

I have noticed an extreme shift toward tabloid sensationalism since the takeover by AOL. I do not think it is a coincidence.

[Gnarkill]

09:24 AM on 05/21/2012

I was hoping she found my car keys... I'm never going to find em' .....

[OhMyDog]

11:18 AM on 05/21/2012

" Of all the things I've lost in my life, I miss my mind the most." Wonder if someone ever found it.

[mountainlora]

02:15 PM on 05/21/2012

I lost my glasses. Again.

[philliplojek]

09:22 AM on 05/21/2012

100 years from today, people will still be looking for Obama's Hope and Change.

[Spacecowboy64]

09:35 AM on 05/21/2012

Congratulations. You are the winner of the morning dumdum award.

[fred53]

09:41 AM on 05/21/2012

Be a futile effort...

[n1k2r3]

09:20 AM on 05/21/2012

My mother kept a complete list ( handwritten ) of all the births, marriages and deaths in her family since 1860. It is an absolute treasure to all of us now, and those seeking answers as to who was whom . Documents of this type should never be destroyed or turned over to someone who may not care.

[HPost Bear]

09:11 AM on 05/21/2012

ROAR? RAAWWRRR? grrr.