Unusual Find under a porch

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A friend and I decided to try our luck today around an old home that was built in the 1700's. Apparently the yard had been hit hard in the past, so I decided to crawl under the front porch with my machine. As I was crawling along, I saw what looked like a document lying in the dirt next to the foundation. To my surprise, I found a diary from the year 1857 lying open in the dirt. It's torn, wet and dirty, but most of the pages are still readable. I couldn't believe that paper could survive that way. Needless to say, that was the find of the day!
 

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Upvote 23
I've tried my best to read as much of it as I can, but it's very hard to read because of the damage and the hand writing. There appears to be a name written on the front page, but it's too far gone to make out. I've been in touch with the owner of a local museum and I think I'll donate it to them, it should be saved because it's local history.
 

Old books were printed on acid free rag paper so they are much more durable than new paper. A newer book would have been dust.
 

That is one great find. Being able to tie it to an individual of that time is outstanding - even if you cant read it.
 

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