General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Stuff it: Millennials nix their parents’ treasures [View all]Mariana
(15,629 posts)are being scanned or photographed and preserved in digital formats. You can save a copy of the content for yourself and the family, before you give up possession of the actual physical item. If it's public domain, you can even put it online so anyone in the world who's interested can see it.
It's a real shame the way these things tend to vanish into oblivion, one way or the other. My great grandfather invented a particular tool, some kind of specialized lathe I think, and the Smithsonian has the first one he built, donated by one of his grandsons decades ago. Will I ever have a chance to see it? Not likely - it's not on display and they aren't going to dig it out of storage just so I can look at it. At least old documents, including journals, diaries, letters, and books can be made available to everyone now.