Saving The Family Prized Possessions

When a family's home is threatened by a natural disaster or fire, the first possession that is most likely grabbed, is the family photographs. Most photographs are stored in a protective album with sleeves. The album does keep the photos from light, which is the worst offender.
I had a silly photo taken in a crab shack in Florida while I was on vacation with my daughter. We had these silly crab claw antlers on and look totally happy!!! The photograph was a magnet for the refrigerator and that is where it has stayed. I did not have a copy made, and neither did my daughter. The light and pollutants from the kitchen have darkened my prized picture and the ends have curled.
Pets can also be a hazard to you family photo history. Are you thinking that this is a little far out. I had a beautiful black rabbit named Rosey and she had the run of the house most of the time. My photograph albums were under my bed and that was Rosey's best hiding place. Spring cleaning time came and discovered that Rosey also enjoyed chewing the corners of my albums. Years ago, my daughter had Mrytle, her pet hamster . Mrytle disappeared for a week. We found her in the bottom drawer of the desk. She had chewed and shredded some loose photographs and made a comfortable nest.
Duplicates can not be stressed enough. If framing a picture, make sure it is the duplicate. Dust and light are the worst offenders. If handling the pictures, hold at the corners only, your fingers can also leave a damaging residue.
If you live in an area of the country where bugs could be a problem. Keep your albums in a polypropylene storage container. Good advice also if you have four legged pets! Extremely particular, wear cotton gloves when handling your photographs.