This trunk was purchased on November 17, 2006 from a guy named Henry in Marlboro, MA. He bought it for his wife, but she didn’t care for it, so he sold it to us the next day. The 69 year old lady he bought it from had it in her possession for the last 51 years. It was a graduation gift from her parents in 1954, who had it since her mother also received it as a graduation gift sometime in 1920’s. The lady was told by her Grandmother that she had had it for almost thirty years before she past it on down to her Mother. This trunk had been in the same family for the better part of the last 100 years, which is way she’s in such excellent beautiful condition. With no children of her own & no one else in the family interested in having it stay with the family line, she decided to sell it.

A Gold Rush Stagecoach trunk in this unbelievable condition, don’t come around very often. All the original brass top round tacks, covering the front, sides & lid are still on, though two are missing some of its tops. On the back and bottom all but four of the original brass nails are still in place. Both original three layer leather handles, are almost 9 inches in length & ½” thick are still intact & not at all dried out.  The brass lock plate cover is also original, but she’s missing the slider to cover the key hole. Oh, did I mention the original key is also still with this trunk. The original hold down straps on the front had long ago been lost, so new ones were installed, to give her back that extra locking devices. Plus, it helps the lid stay strong & the fact that thats how it looked way back when. 

Also, the original inlet tray is still complete. The two Oak slats running along the bottom was the only part of the trunk that needed replacements, both were removed & new old Oak slats were attached back their place. The entire trunk was sanded down & the old stain removed. All metal trimmed was stripped of any rust & repainted with a glossy black rust-oleum paint. The brass round top tacks & brass nails were all polished back to a bright brass shine. The entire inside was stripped of the old paper lining, which was not the original to being with, someone had replaced over time. Once the paper was removed, she was given the works on sanding her all down to a smooth finish both inside & out. Afterwards, she had many coats of Formby’s Tung oil applied to the interior & exterior of the trunk. She is now ready to last another hundred years, maybe your family can start a new family heirloom to past down through generations.