Various items found while cleaning out my mothers storage

Helping my mother clean out her storage the other day, I stumbled across some neat items from my fathers side of the family. Just looking to get a little information and maybe ball park values for the items.

Items:
I'm going to assume never before seen photos from WW2 depicting piles of dead jews that my grandfather took. (not pictured)
Photos an FBI agent(grandfather) took of the 1971 Alaska Airlines flight 1866 crash depicting them retrieving the bodies and doing what I assume are autopsys. (not pictured)

War Map III featuring the Pacific Theater. Fold out map of the Pacific Theater. The map is in pretty good shape. It's torn in a few areas where the folds are, but the actual visual part is perfect.

Set of pipes. The two dark ones I have information on. The other two I do not. The white one has flowery designs on it(cannot see in picture), I get a Japanese feel from it.

The metal toys are pretty self explanatory.

The golden bar item, not sure if it's all gold or gold at all. Again picture quality sucks, but on the front it has "The Southbridge Lion" On the top, the actual Southbridge lion in the middle with 1829 and 1929 on either side and "The Delaware and Hudson Company on the bottom" On the back it reads "Commemorating the one hundredth anniversary of the first successful trip made in america by a steam locomotive at Honesdale, Pennsylvania August 8 1829 by The Southbridge Lion driven by Horatio Allen"

Sorry for the novel of a post. Any information received is appreciated.

 

The photos may be of value if original.

The rest of the items are 5-10 dollar bits.

 

Some sample photos of the plane crash. The majority of them are very gruesome and I figure not appropriate for the forums, the same goes for the WW2 pictures.

Some of the plane crash pictures have writing on them from my grandfather.

 

While the WW2 photos may have value, I'd question whether it is right to sell them.

I feel the same about photos of body retrieval and autopsies of plane victims

 

You have a meerschaum pipe,,something I'm not sure about and two briar pipes.

Depending on maker, briar pipes can fetch from $5 to $500, so examine them for further information.

 

Regardless of how you feel, it is inappropriate to disregard history. No one learns anything from boxes tucked away and forgotten.

 

I didn't say history should be disregarded so please do not make that connection with my comment.

I questioned whether it was right to sell them.

 

In 2011, a college friend, Leila Levinson, published a book called Gated Grief, a non-fiction account that included info about her father's emotional scars following his service as a US Army surgeon during WWII. It was only after his death that she discovered his part in the liberation of a German concentration camp.

After her father died, Leila found his old Army trunk. It was full of startling things, including stacks of photos, that related to his role as a doctor to scores of camp survivors. His unit had stumbled upon the camp, and the photos were horrific.

She published a number of the photos in her book. They are very hard to look at, yet I have read the book & looked at those pictures several times.

As Terry has said above:

Regardless of how you feel, it is inappropriate to disregard history. No one learns anything from boxes tucked away and forgotten.

I would urge you to find a home for the WWII photos. Perhaps you could donate them to a Holocaust museum or the like. If they are original photos, they will undoubtedly be appreciated for their historical value. If you know your grandfather's military unit, you also can check online & probably find other places that would give those photos the attention they deserve.

As for the Alaskan Airlines photos, I'm of a different mind. Are they actually FBI photos (in which case, I'd find a way to return them to the FBI) or are they of a more voyeuristic nature? (If the latter, I, personally, would destroy them, but that's just ME...)

Hoping you find the right "home" for all of your discoveries.

-C-

 

I agree completely,but the world has changed in regards to boundaries. EVERYTHING is on the internet now,thats just a reality. Distasteful ? I think so. But unfortunately theres a large market for what I call death porn. Id imagine the older stuff is much more rare,since back then most people wouldn't dream of whipping off a few shots for their own amusement. Now,look at any crime scene photos and half the crowd is recording it. Different world now.

 

I enjoyed this post. The WW2 photos, like Leila I found them in my grandfathers trunk along with the plane crash photos. I'm no expert by any means, but if I was a betting man I would say the WW2 photos are original. As for the plane crash crash photos some are voyeuristic. The ones that are are only of fellow workers and helicopters in the air. The rest are like what you see you in crime shows, pictures of the body parts with flash cards that have numbers on them and about half have annotations on them. Again, I would have to say those too are originals.
I guess I just can't relate to the people saying to keep it to myself since I too have been to war and have seen death in person.

 

depicting piles of dead jews

Couldn't you find a different way to describe this.....out of respect for the dead, & the way they died ?

 

I'd donate those to a museum too, but then I can't even sell old medals. Maybe the Alaska Airlines photos too; companies often have libraries. If nothing else they might have a good idea of what to do with them.

 

I know there are a few collectors of various photographs that have their collections on LOAN to museums.

There is a market to sell and I personally dont see anything wrong with it.
But if you arent comfortable Id definitely keep your rights to the photographs as they are of family history, but if youd like them to be shared you could reach out to different museums

 

komokwa, I actually think the phrase used is right. It's stark and horrifying, which is what their deaths were.

 

It may well be right..........................but....while not seeing the photo....

Concentration camp victims stacked one upon another
or
a mass grave of Nazi victims
or
hundreds of Jewish Holocaust victims....

I feel would be a better way to describe it !

Even ...piles of dead Jewish people........would be better !

 

I don't think there IS a better way to describe any of it. Horror show to give Wes Craven nightmares maybe. Some of those people might be my relatives; most of my grandfather's family vanished in that mess.

 

They're words. Just simple words. Why be bothered by them? It's gruesome. The bodies aren't "Stacked on top of each other" It's a pile. There is no way to eloquently describe the photos and i'm sorry you take offense to such trivial things.

Thank you everyone for your input.

 

A museum would place them in a box in the basement . collectors show to anyone who will look.

 

I'm more interested in showing them to people. Specifically the plane crash ones. I looked around and couldn't find any real pictures of the wreckage. Nothing anywhere close to the ones I have.

 

Oh , no you did 'nt !

Words are very powerful things , as a boy of your age should know .
& what you consider trivial & simple , someone else may find disrespectful & rude.

And while I respect your right to post here , & the way in which you chose to do so , you damn well better respect my right to offer up my opinion, & consider that you're not posting in a bubble here ....where what you think is all that matters.

If it crossed your mind for a minute that the way you said what you said really offended me or anyone else, then yes you should be sorry.....but don't be judging me or my sensibilities by stating that what you think is trivial .....I should think the same !