By Mark Yokoyama
Ephemera
In the film Raiders of the Lost Ark, there is a key scene in a Cairo cafe. Evil archaeologist Belloq holds out a cheap watch and says that if he buries it for a thousand years, it will become priceless. Although his character was on the wrong side of history, he had a point.
Today’s newspaper is worth about 75 cents. Yesterday’s is basically worth nothing. A newspaper from 30 years ago? It may not have cash value, but it might be priceless in its own way.
Today I was reading through an issue of The Chronicle from February 3, 1989. There was an article about the ground-breaking of a new museum, which was why this particular copy was probably saved. The paper was thin and full of international news from the wire. But even one issue was full of insights into the island at the time.
“No Cause for Alarm over Brown Water” read one headline. There was a lengthy exposé titled “Sewage: Where It Goes Nobody Knows” that spoke of trucks pumping waste water off the cliff in Point Blanche. A few pages later, a real estate ad proclaimed Point Blanche as “suddenly the place to be!”
Over time, even the most trivial items become interesting in their own way. The 1980 program for the July 14 festivities on the French side is full of great sounding concerts: the Superfly Brothers, Genius and Three Kings. The schedule was done on a typewriter, and all the accents were added by hand.
A hurricane tracking map was distributed by Esso and was touted as “a sign of progress.” A letter from Romelia Dollison identified her as “the only woman candidate in this election.” The sleeve of the seven-inch record for “O Sweet St. Maarten’s Land” is notable for using the Dutch spelling of St. Martin.
So many things pass through our hands each day, it would be impossible to save them all. But even the most ordinary things eventually become fascinating in time. We should be thankful for the savers who left us with these glimpses into the past. We should also take seriously the task of preserving and documenting what we have so that it can survive in some form into the future.
Do you have ordinary items that have survived the years against all odds? Share them by writing to The Daily Herald or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
