Person says wants to know how to get letters back to family, asks if I'm Kin.

[mozartbach1971]

I have some letters listed and a person messaged me and said they are his great aunt and uncle, and says I don't know who you are or how you got these, but I would like to know if we are kin and says my mom wants them please let me know how we can get them back to our family. Later they sent another message and asked if I'm getting the e-mails and the family is anxious to know how they are on here. I do from time to time get messages somewhat similar to this, however not that often.  I usually try to ignore these messages. Would that be the right thing to do in this case?

[maxine*j]

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@this*old*attic wrote:

@maxine*j 

...  You realize you can find everything from army discharges to baptism records to literal photographs of dead relative's head stones on a variety of sites? Family history is all the rage now.

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@this*old*attic 

Not without names, and even names I do not have.  I think my family never considered itself important enough to keep a history and maybe lacked the time and resources, given the effort it took just to keep the wolf from the door.  My parents were sharercroppers in the Ozarks, the folks Shahn and Lange and Bourke-White made a living photographing, you know?  They were then part of the WW2 Ozarks diaspora, because even ignorant hillbillies could get jobs in the munitions plants. 

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[nobody*s_perfect]

But if you know our parents' names, start with any good genealogical site.

[katzrul15]

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@a_c_green wrote:

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@katzrul15 wrote:

Just wondered if there was anything overly personal in them.  Was guessing no, but who knows.

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I think if I was a genuine family member trying to recover some family letters that had leaked to the outside world, especially if there was anything "overly personal" in them, I'd shut up about it, bid to win, and quietly take back possession of them.

The last thing I'd do is contact the seller to plead about how badly I wanted them back.

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Agreed.  Not doubting the OP at all, but we do not "have" the email exchanges.  Just wondered if that was part of the "urgency" of contact.

ETA:  and I have been thinking for 2 days now, if the person who contact the OP is savy enough to find the auctions, they are likely savy enough to find these boards?  Just keep thinking the less posted on this topic for the world to read, might be the better.

[toysaver]

If you look through the OP's listings of letters it's not to hard to figure out which listing is likely involved.  It's a bunch of letters a dentist during WW11 wrote home to his parents in Oklahoma.  Auction bids are up to $27.   

[maxine*j]

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@nobody*s_perfect wrote:

But if you know our parents' names, start with any good genealogical site.

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Partial names and uncertain birth dates.  Anyhow, I am no more interested than were my kin before me and I have no kids, so there you go.    🙂

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[this*old*attic]

True, you need ONE name. I don't think people realize how easy geneological work is TODAY. With computers, you can sit at home and never riffle through a file drawer of original documents in a county clerk's office.

We had a head start - already savers back 3 generations.

And, yet, some of the neatest stuff has been lost (a 2nd wife threw away some marvelous letters about the first 5 or so years after coming to America as an indentured servant.

[policequilts]

Boy, I would love to find out about my father's side.  I believe they were BLACK SHEEP.

There was 2 families with the same last name in Ely. Nobody remembers my father's family, but knew the other family even with living in Ely over 60 years. They came off the boat and traveled to Ely where a lot of Croations were.

I have found both family grave stones, but dad's removed one of the head stone marker.

They would have a cement stump with a looped rope on it as a sign of suicide, which his dad did do.

On the other hand, mom's dad shot a man dead, spent one day in jail and was released because it was justice. The man molested mom and her sister.  (WORSE part, it was mom's mother's boyfriend.)  Couldn't stand "grandma".

[d-k_treasures]

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@toysaver wrote:

It's not unheard of for family members to buy items they want from a deceased family member's estate sale. 

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And if there are a couple who want the same thing, and nothing was in writing, then bidding on the items that they want in an estate auction IS the way to go.

Although they can pay more than a dealer since they most likely get part of that money.

I've watched 50.00 items get ran up to 1-2k just because one family member wants to beat out another. 

[soh.maryl]

Why would it be a problem if the person who contacted the OP were smart enough to find these boards?

I don't believe anything that has been written here is not truthful.  Or did you mean the part where we questioned the veracity of that person's quest? Anyone with any common sense would do the same. 

[katzrul15]

Yes, that and the back and forth about how the OP obtained them, etc, etc.

Just think the less posted on here might be the better, but who knows.  If you were that bidder and came across this thread, it might not be well received.  

[d-k_treasures]

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@this*old*attic wrote:

I remember this too (wow, some of us are OLD!!!). LOL.

My dad put it on his stereo equipment, our bikes, the t.v.'s.....

Speaking of tvs, is anyone here old enough to remember taking the tubes out of your tv, going down to the local grocery store, checking them in some kind of tester machine, and then replacing the ones that turned out bad?

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I loved doing that with my dad!

[glasser]

I haven't read through the 100 replies on not sure if anyone mentioned, didn't see in the couple of pages I read.

If the request is legitimate (could ask for some form or proof), my guess is the interest is in the content of the letters not necessarily the letters themselves. Perhaps you could offer to make a copy of the letters and send them those. They get the family history you keep your sale.

If its not a scam I think they would jump at that offer,

[thebookhill]

Op, I would block them and never talk to them again.

Years ago, I was contacted about some postcards I had for sale.

The person told me a whole lot of information including the correct address and names, etc. of the people involved in the correspondence.

They even told me how they remember growing up with them and would like the postcards back.

It was all so sincere. And, I know for a fact that the information was nearly 100% correct.

But, when they claimed they were my mom's child and that was why they had the right to ask for the postcards to be sent to them, I blocked and never told them that I am my mother's child.

I smell a rat, and the rat's name is scam.

[bearswatching]

Katz, I thought the exact same thing. Would love to know what the search query looked like. 🤔

[rockyroadtradingpost]

If the story is true, why are they wasting time messaging you instead of simply bidding? If I recognized family letters, I'd place a high bid and wait to win the auction.