Tools of the Trade

What did your ancestor do for a living? Items from your family packrat might give you an answer. Sometimes that answer is not what you expected.

My great-great-grandfather was supposedly a simple farmer making a living in Owensboro, Kentucky. However, items discovered in the Bosley Trunk paint a different picture. Not only was he a farmer, but he did a lot more than what I've heard in stories from my grandparents.

Even if an object doesn't have all the answers, it provides you with clues to find more information. One of the most important things to consider when looking through such items is one item's relation to another. You might have one object that suggests part of an unknown story, but if you can find multiple items that are related you will have more support for your argument. This section of the exhibit provides a few examples of grouping items together to strengthen an argument.

Remember, the answers won't always be there for you. You might have to do some research before you come to any definitive conclusions.