Tips for Buying Family History Artifacts on Ebay

For a family history buff, coming across a listing on Ebay that looks like an item from your family's past can be exciting. Who wouldn't want their Great-Great-Great Uncle William's civil war medal? In a situation like this it's easy to let emotions take over reason as you rush to place an inflated bid, just to ensure no one will win it away from you.

But, before you do, make sure you know what you're buying. Unfortunately, sometimes you don't get what you pay for. In his excitement, my father-in-law paid a ridiculous price for a book he thought was about his family history in 18th century Virginia. Turns out the seller had hastily thrown together an inaccurate description of the book, which was actually about a county in Virginia with a name that closely resembled my father-in-law's family name. Needless to say he was disappointed, and a few hundred dollars poorer.

How can you avoid similar disappointment? Here are a few steps you can take:

1) Contact the Seller.
Ebay allows you to "Ask the Seller A Question" and you should not hesitate to use the service. When you ask your question, be very direct and tell them that you are only interested in the item if the description is accurate and there is a good probability that it relates to your family history.

2) Ask For a Second Opinion.
This doesn't mean hire an appraiser or professional. It means ask a friend or relative to take a look at the item's description. Sometimes in our excitement our minds meld the words into what we want to see, rather than what is actually there. A second opinion can help instill added confidence in your purchase decision.

3) Is it logical?
Sometimes stories are just too good to be true. Ask yourself if it makes sense that the information connected to the item could reasonably be true. For instance, if someone claims to have the bullet that killed your relative in the Civil War, you'd better ask some tough questions about how they know that before you remortgage the house to buy it.

A good seller will be happy to answer your questions and they might even have a few more items lying around the attic that you'd be interested in.