This brings me the opportunity to post a little story (true) of somthing that happened in my life recently. A stranger contacted me by phone a few weeks ago. The only reason I answered the call is that the phone number was long distance and was from my home town in California where I have only one relative left.
The lady introduced herself as someone who had shopped at my mom’s estate sale (which was conducted by someone else) a couple of years ago and purchased a pair of Levis dug out of the back corner of some drawer.
Mom died recently at 101 years, and I wrapped up things best as I could (being the only heir). I haven’t lived in the town where I grew up for at least 60 years, so the people conducting the sale were recommended tome by word of mouth.
Anyway, my mom never wore a pair of jeans in all the years I knew her. She considered denim far too casual for her taste. Purely costume fare. Not that she didn’t wear pants, but her taste ran to tailored slacks or pedal pushers for beach, or boating wear. This lady found my mother’s MAIDEN name sewn inside the pocket. The purchaser is an historical write, artist, and vintage clothing dealer.
She finally took the jeans to the Levis Museum in San Francisco for historical identification. They got really excited and said that they’d never seen that style before and wanted them for the museum. Furthermore they wanted the purchaser to research the owner, etc. So, that’s why I received the call.
I could narrow down the date of the pants to between 1929 and 1937. I figure that my mom wore them at her colleg’s Sierra Summer School where the students and instructors camped out and conducted classes outdoors. (hence the embroidered name). Or, she might have worn them during the same period when she rode horses.
So, I have a release on my desk that Levis can publish her story and pictures. I’m just waiting for their FAX number so that I can send it back.
Of all the things Mom did (she was a world traveler) over 101 years, can you imagine her being commemorated in a museum for never throwing away a pair of old pants?
See #30
You’ll get a laugh.
That is a neat story. Thanks for sharing.
Great story. Thanks for taking the time to put it up for us.
THAT is a great story. How funny that your mom didn’t even wear jeans, and now her jeans - and her story - will be in the Levi museum.
I love shopping estate sales for “treasure” - you just never know what history and stories you might discover.
What a fun story. Glad you answered the call.
“...can you imagine her being commemorated in a museum for never throwing away a pair of old pants?”
Saving this for my wife when she tells me to clean out the garage!
(Cool story! I’m glad that someone got them that appreciated them. Not some guy that fished them out of the Goodwill container.)