Discovery of Family Treasure in a Safe Deposit Box Part Three



NAUPA LogoWhile waiting to collect all the proper documentation to lay claim to the contents of my grandparents’ 1940s safe deposit box, I even tried contacting the Nations Bank which was now named Bank of America in Frederick. I was hoping to gain further insight about this safe deposit box and why it had been left untouched for decades.

The various customer service representatives were very understanding, but really had no answers for me. In fact, it was bank policy to turn over safe deposit box contents after just a few years when there has been no activity with the box or rent payment. This became a great mystery, first why it was left with no one having any knowledge about it and second, what was in the box?


I was just thrilled at the realization that I might be getting something from my grandparents that had been concealed for so many years. No matter what it was; a paperclip, billfold, a letter, anything . . . it didn’t matter to me, just the knowledge it was from my grandparents was reward enough. The rest of my family was just as excited as I was at this unknown box.
Two months after first locating this unclaimed property on the Internet and contacting the State Treasury of Maryland, I now had my official Letters of Administration from the Register of Wills for Frederick County. All the proper documentation and claim forms were completed and in the hands of the State Treasury. I just needed to wait and hope that I was accepted as the true next-of-kin for my grandparents.


Almost three months to the day after starting this quest a phone message was left on my answer machine from the Maryland State Treasury. It stated I was deemed the new rightful owner and that the full contents of the safe deposit box would be put into the mail as of Monday and that I should receive it by Friday of that week.

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