What is your most valued memory? Do you keep something that reminds you of that moment? Maybe you’ve saved photographs of the childhood friends you played with in the neighborhood cul-de-sac. Maybe you have your grandmother’s quilts that still smell of her and you can remember curling up next to her listening to her tell a story. These things don’t cost much, not as much as a car or a house, but they mean something to you and you want them to be preserved throughout the course of your life. Rather than use plastic bins to store these things that represent precious memories, consider a cedar chest to keep them safe.
Wooden chests have been timeless places to hold valuable possessions. Even in ancient times, Egyptians used chests for storing precious stones, gold, and documents. To build them, craftsmen used an entire tree to carve a chest made in one piece. It was sturdy, solid, and a reliable place to keep the things the Egyptians valued most.
When families crossed the Atlantic and came to America from Europe, many only brought a wooden chest full of their possessions with them. As these families settled and their descendants moved out west, what do you think they took with them? Their wooden chests filled with their possessions. In colonial America, there were few places to store things like clothes, blankets, and linens. Basements were damp and not appropriate places to keep these items. Few homes had closets to store things in, certainly not like the walk-in closets we have today. Wooden chests were used to keep possessions dry and out of sight during warm summer months, or simply when they were not being used. They also were used as a place to sit since chairs were not very easy to come by.
Cedar chests are traditionally known as “hope chests,” since these were what women brought with them to their marriages; they were filled with blankets, towels, and quilts to begin their own families. Though few women do this today, cedar chests are still used to preserve the things that we cherish. In addition to the practical elements, a cedar chest can bring warmth and familiarity to any room.
Of course, these chests don’t always have to be made from cedar. Chests are also made from wood like oak, pine, walnut, cherry, and mahogany. Cedar just happens to be the best material for these chests because of their natural ability to keep insects out, prevent the items inside from decaying, and give the things that are stored inside it a fresh, comforting scent. Some models, to incorporate the desirability of cedar with the affordability of other less expensive woods, some chests are simply lined with cedar rather than made entirely of it.
Traditionally designed cedar chests are still produced today, but they come in contemporary models as well. Whether you would like to add one to your home or give it as a gift to someone you love, it can be the perfect way to begin a new tradition as well as preserve the possessions and memories of your past. These chests will retain their beauty and serve their function for many, many years.
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