In June of 2009, I became the owner of a large, heavy black trunk that probably dates back to the 1940s. I came across it while walking my dog down the alley and found it next to a trash container. It came from a house that had just been sold, the owners moving out of state, according to a neighbor. They had already tossed out a vintage lamp and wooden step-stool that I pulled from their trash bin. But there was something different about this big, black, trunk.
It has the initials A.W.J. Jr. painted in white on the top. You can read numerous stickers on it, one from the Univ. of Carolina and another from McCallie School. One label partially covers up a shipping label with the date 1943 with the last name of James.
And I can tell you it is really heavy. I had to have help getting it into the back of my car, then it stayed inside my garage for weeks until a friend helped me carry it into my kitchen. It has become a kitchen fixture, sitting in from of my stove. The trunk measures 41 inches in length, 22 inches in width and it is 14 inches deep.
The question is, what is inside? Five solid brass Yale locks are hiding the answer. Some who have seen it speculate the locked trunk is too heavy to be empty. Yet nothing shifts when it is lifted. And why would people toss it out? Did they know the contents of it? Was nothing of value inside? Did they once have the key and lose it? Or has it remained locked since the 1940s? I keep thinking it might contain personal items from a WWII serviceman.
So now it is 2010 and the big old trunk remains in my kitchen. I have tried to open it occasionally when I come across a Yale key. And I did check with a locksmith who offered to open it for thirty dollars.
I love a mystery and have decided to let the mystery build for a while. I will open it in 2010 one way or another, perhaps on a special occasion or during a party. When the grand opening happens, you’ll be the first to know.
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