The Lost Trunk (and photograph)

"My father, Cornelius Campion, was born on a farm at Lisduff (Laois) in 1901. He died in 1949. Three years ago I was told that a cousin of mine in Laois had become aware of a very old trunk, owned by an acquaintance of his, who bought and sold antiques. The name "Cornelius Campion" had been handwritten on the inside of the lid along with a reference to Lisduff Station, Queen's County and was dated 1917. My Grandmother had noted in her diary that Con (her son/my father) had left home for Newbridge College on 21 September 1917. I bought the trunk, hoping that it might have been my father's. When I got it home to Dublin, I checked the writing against a sample of his signature dated 1919. I believe that they are the same. Two years ago another relative (grand daughter of my aunt May who emigrated and settled in Manitoba in 1921) came to visit Ireland and brought with her copies of many old photographs, letters and cards which had been treasured by my aunt (my father's older sister) in Canada. May died in 1933. One of these shows my father, standing beside a donkey and trap which was piled high with baggage obviously ready to leave for Newbridge. A little Jack Russel is sitting on the top-most item - the trunk. We never knew that the trunk existed. It had been hiding somewhere - we don't know where - for 97 years. We never knew that the photograph from 1917 existed, but it pretty-much proves that the trunk was my dad's. "