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#21 I Found Some Old Medical Equipment In The Trash, And Inside The Box Was Apparently The Pen Used To Sign The Mental Health Act Of 1966. I Found A Photo Of The Event And It’s Definitely The One. What A Strange Thing To Come Across
The ‘Ephemera’ community has been intriguing, entertaining, and providing nostalgia trips for everyone online for nearly a decade and a half. It was initially created in mid-2012 as a way for internet users to feature written, printed, and other recorded matter that was never intended to be kept or saved.
The friendly team of moderators who run the group invites everyone to share their “advertising trade cards, airsickness bags, matchbooks, postcards, ticket stubs, old certificates—anything someone else might find interesting, enjoyable, or discussion worthy.”
The goal is to show off “interesting bits of historical detritus.”
According to the mods of ‘Ephemera,’ items should have writing on them, be printed, but they do not have to be paper.
“The item must have been created for a TEMPORARY purpose, with the express or implied understanding that it would serve no practical future use.”
What this means, in practice, is that most books, some souvenirs, and special commemorative items do NOT count as ephemera.
#25 Roy Teleh, "The Greatest Detective" The Complete 1910 Detective Series Written By A French Child, Secret Codes And Hypnotism Included
#26 This Is One Of My Favourite Pieces Of Ephemera
After you’ve enjoyed these images and upvoted your favorite ones, we’d love to hear from you! Share your perspective, stories, and photos in the comments at the very bottom of this list.
On a scale of 1 to 10, how sentimental would you say you are? Do you save and keep lots of ephemeral things?
What are the most sentimental items that you have that you could never part with?
Where do you personally think the line between sentimentality and hoarding lies? Let us know.
#28 Pin And Ribbon From My Father Who Lived In NYC In The 60’s And 70’s
#30 How Do We Feel About Making Art From Ephemera? Cool Or Sin?
#33 I Found A School Atlas From 1854, And It Had Some Drawings Made By Schoolchildren Over 150 Years Ago
#34 1945 Postcard The Sweater Girls
The term “sweater girl” was originally from a publicity campaign used to describe a young Lana Turner in the late 1930s—the studio released a (somewhat dubious) story that the then teenage Lana was spotted on the street in a “sweater” and an entire movie scene was written to recreate this alleged event.
Afterward, it became a term used to describe young, voluptuous ingenues (similar to the term “bombshell” which was originally coined for Jean Harlow, and then became ubiquitous with busty blondes in the industry till this day).
#35 After My Mother Passed Away I Found A Box Of Old Coupons And Green Stamps She Had Saved
#37 I Bought A 1980s Yves Saint Laurent Exhibition Catalog At The Strand Bookstore, And While Leafing Through It I Discovered A Piece Of Diana Vreeland's Personal Stationery. She Co-Authored The Catalog, So Maybe It Was Her Copy At One Point
#38 Going Through My Old Photos. Found This One In A Junk Shop In Brooklyn. A WWII Nurse, And It’s So Worn That The Paper Is Soft. I Can Only Imagine The Story Behind It
#39 Burned Book Page Found In My Yard After Los Angeles Fires
