1918 World War I Peach Can Label Letter | Staff Pick | ANTIQUES ROADSHOW | PBS

"My perennial favorite, the Peach Can. You can imagine Eddie in the trenches, eating the peaches, filled with appreciation as he wrote home that those peaches 'are worth fighting for.'" - Marsha Bemko, executive producer
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[@bobbynicole10]

He probably thought he was going to die so he treasured everything all the more, including those peaches

[@TheStuport]

I would like to think that the Soldier enjoyed writing this letter in that it possibly took him away from the War in the few minutes it took him to jot down his message and maybe gave him a sense of normalcy in an otherwise unsettling situation. Cheers Everyone

[@Phantom720v3]

RubyTV you

[@elizabradley4797]

I adore vintage fruit labels but this has.quite a story. Keep near & dear. What a glorious momento. 🌹

[@pablojose4890]

If those peaches still existed in the can, there is a guy on KZbin that would still eat it. He's eaten rations as far back as the Civil War. Steve1989MREinfo is his name. Kinda weird and funny to watch.

[@RLucas3000]

1) at 2:21, did someone drop a vase in the background somewhere? 2) I’m shocked this Brand didn’t survive with something like this sent to them that they could use for publicity

[@zzydny]

The appraiser missed a very important point when he was talking about rations because this can is not from rations, and this is a letter of complaint. See 2:03 This soldier is actually writing about how much he had to pay for this can of peaches: $1.26! That was a LOT of money back in 1918 when (for example) chocolate bars still sold for five cents or even less. He has written this letter not only to compliment the manufacturer but undoubtedly also to let him know that soldiers who need this food are being price-gouged. This letter format is very old-fashioned but very viable and effective manner of writing a letter of complaint: 1 begin with high praise, 2 disclose the problem, and 3 end with more hyperbole ("Believe me, they are worth fighting for") that is intended to get the sympathy of the person to whom one is complaining. This format used to be taught in business and secretarial schools so this soldier knows what he is doing and he has made his point even more graphically by using the can label to do so. This appraisal is off the mark in more ways than one.

[@rascallyrabbit717]

definitely be a bidding war at auction

[@smittymcjob2582]

can we all make an effort to find Eddy?

[@smittymcjob2582]

now this'd be a $5000 items if he's also commented about the Spanish Flu.

[@richardheinz]

I think it's funny sometimes when the appraiser asks the people how they acquired the item they brought with them. Sometimes there's this hesitation while they conjure up a backstory of how an old relative had sadly died in their 90's and left the item to them. We all know that after Grandma died, everyone in the family started looting her house and this is what you managed to pry from your sister's hands and now it's here because you need the money.

[@jumpingsloth3963]

That can be a case alot of the times. Or maybe just maybe, everyone else just saw it at face value and didn't want it. It's a peach can label, think about it.

[@smittymcjob2582]

man! you sure have some bad memories from when your folks passed away!! hehe....

[@themonkeyhand]

He paid $1.26 for those peaches. Pretty pricey for 1917 or so. Then again, he was in trench so it was probably a bargain.

[@HughesEnterprises]

About $22 today. 5% of his monthly salary.

[@rascallyrabbit717]

carrying charges

[@jennymoss2122]

This woman wasn’t interested in the history, just the price.

[@ralphlauren7393]

"10 dollars" What an absurd appraisal.

[@captianmorgan7627]

That was just for the label. A 1918 peach can label, by it self, isn't going to be worth much. Add in the documented story and link to WWI (via the letter on the back) and the price goes up to about what the appraiser said at the end of the video, which you apparently didn't watch to.

[@ralphlauren7393]

@@captianmorgan7627 Shut up. Nerd.