Only 100 years old

OK, this letter is not quite as old as the last one I posted, in fact it is one of the most recent letters in my collection. The original of this letter is in the hands of a distant French cousin named Anne-Marie Vaillant, who lives in a house built by her grandfather in 1871. I have the scan pictured here, which is not quite as thrilling as holding the original paper which has been handed down through five generations. But it is still exciting.

Even though I haven't figured out exactly what these letters say, I think it's awfully cool to think that they are still around after that long journey from Los Angeles to France and vice versa, and through five generations of hands. Somehow I can't imagine that anyone will be reading the words on my blog 100 years from now!