The Legacy of the Hope Chest

The Legacy of the Hope Chest

By

Karen Utter Jennings 

            Hoping and wishing and thinking and dreaming…..

            Weddings play a big part of nearly every little girl’s dreams. The tradition of the hope chest began in the middle Ages when all families expected that their girls would marry a handsome man and live a blissful life. Preparations began as soon as the daughter was born and a family’s hopes and dreams for their young girl were placed in a wooden chest or box.

            In Italy, these highly- decorated boxes were called “cassones,” in Germany they were “shranks” and when European immigrants arrived in America, they brought their idea of chests with them. They were called “hope chests” or “blanket chests” and were made of cedar wood to protect the contents from bugs.  

            During Word War I, the Lane Company, based in Virginia, manufactured wood ammunition boxes for the United States government. After the war, the market for the boxes faded, and they turned to producing wooden chests geared to the natural romantic spirit of girls. The Lane Hope Chest was born. Today, Lane chests are a popular choice for hope chests.

            But, what goes into a hope chest? The answer depends on the personal ideas, choices and thoughts for the chest’s owner. Typically, things such as collections of all types, books, photos and albums, linens and quilts, dishes, antiques, and baby items may be placed inside.  

            Today, the idea of a hope chest does not necessarily mean a young woman’s dream is to get married. She may dream of being an entrepreneur and having her own business after she graduates university and decides to remain single. Anything that represents your interests should be cherished. Hope chests are just that: place your hopes and dreams of whatever kind of life you want, inside. When you are ready for that life, the hope chest is there with all your planning inside.

            Hope chests are not just for girls. Boys, too, need to be encouraged to keep their memorabilia and keepsakes. One might want to title a chest for their son as a “treasure chest.” You can envision what a treasure chest might look like. Explore the possibilities with your son or grandson to peek his interest in keeping such a chest.

            Today’s market offers plenty of styles, shapes, sizes and colors. From the traditional “folk art” piece to the modern sleek chest, explore the possibilities before you choose which chest will hold your hopes and dreams. The future can be placed in a chest.            

            I have my own hope chest. As a child, we lived in the same small town as my paternal great-grandmother, Ollie Johnson Utter Brier.  And I was in her house just as much as I was in my own home.

            One of the pieces of furniture Ollie owned was an old cedar chest. The chest is made of cedar wood and is a traditional size. It sets on the floor (there are no legs) and has carved-wood handles on each end of the lid. Rectangular diamond-shaped wooden pieces adorn the front and sides of the cedar chest and it is very heavy.    

            As I grew into a young girl, one day when I went to visit, the cedar chest was setting in the living room under the front window. Great-grandma Ollie and I sat on the hardwood floor next to the chest. She explained that the chest would be mine when she died or when I got married, whichever came first. She called the cedar chest a hope chest and explained the meaning of it.  She encouraged me to cherish my keepsakes. She said she was “setting things back” for me when I grew up and married, so the things inside were mine for my new life that lay ahead of me.

            She told me that my grandfather, her only son, Perry Utter, made the chest when he was a boy.  She said Perry was talented in woodworking and he loved to make things.  Ollie’s father, Thomas “Bud” Johnson, was a logger and hewed lumber on the old home place in McDonald County, Missouri. Perry learned the wood making trade from his Pa Johnson.

            As Ollie’s gnarled hands lifted the lid, I saw several things inside wrapped up with doilies and handkerchiefs (hankies as we called them) and laying next to each other. She lifted the first item out of the chest, unwrapped it, and handed me a German pickle dish that was very old and worth a lot of money. She told the story of the dish and that it had belonged to a female family member.  

            Ollie brought out a square box that housed her Kodak Brownie Hawkeye camera. Her story about cameras and her love of taking pictures is one that I will always remember.  As soon as cameras became available, she bought her first one and began snapping pictures of everything around her, especially her family. Along with the camera, she gave me her photo album.

            When we reached the bottom of the cedar chest, we rewrapped each item and placed them back into their safe place. She closed the lid on the chest and I ran off to play.   

            I am happy to say, I got married before her death, so the cedar chest came to live at my house.  Over the years, it lost its strong scent of cedar and it needed a good cleaning and a few repairs. I used soap for wooden furniture and left it as it is. I never want to refinish it, as doing so would diminish the vintage charm.

            As time goes by, I add things to the old hope chest and someday I will sit with my granddaughter to explain the history of the ephemera and memorabilia. I have placed my hopes and dreams that they will one-day carryon the tradition of passing down heirlooms through the generations into my hope chest.

            What about you? Have you created legacy for your children or grandchildren? Do you have a hope chest filled with your hopes and dreams?

* * * 

Disclaimer: in my legacy writing, I do not intend to be sexist, bias, or unethical toward gender or nationality. I merely write and report the facts that I have found and those that I know from my own personal experience.