One man's trash is another man's treasure

One man's trash is another man's treasure. You hear that phrase when you're fairly young and you don't think too much about it. Later in life you look back at some of the things you considered trash at one time and wonder what they'd be worth today.

In 1978, the basement at the radio station was mostly a dumping ground for records and other promotional items dating back to the station's beginnings in 1948.

There was the pink baby grand piano that had once been in the old large studio on the main floor - where live bands actually provided the music that went out on the air.

There were things like a couple of big filing cabinets, filled with 16" transcriptions (discs) of various programming and music. The 16" long playing records dated back to the 40s and early 50s and required a special turntable to play them. There were also a couple of discarded 16" turntables that had been removed from the main studio long ago.

Things like dozens and dozens of  the blue hardback book with a Presidential seal on the cover, "The Warren Report" - the official book from the Government Printing Office on the results of the Warren Commission Report's look at the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.




Boxes and boxes of a small green hardback books on the history the AP Green family in Mexico.

And large cardboard boxes filled with discarded 45 RPM records covering several decades.

A small adult multi-colored bunny rabbit suit - that had been worn by people like Jim Griffin as part of the station's Easter Egg hunt for children. (I know Jim wore it because there was an old photograph of him in the suit at Plunkett Park back in 60s.")

A dark blue apron with three deep pockets that said "Pick Your Prize" - supposedly used by station staff in some giveaway with the staff on location at area businesses where winners would get to reach in and pick from one of the three pockets.

But at the time - the early 80s - it all looked like trash. And that's what happened to most of it when the basement was cleaned up to actually start using the space for offices.

The only item that remained in the basement was one of the filing cabinets for the 16" transcriptions. It was still located behind the furnace when I left. But there were no discs in it.

I wonder what other treasures were hauled off to the dump back then.

So it goes.