'A trip down memory lane': N.S. man reunited with wallet lost 51 years ago

Richard Gilroy was excited to reclaim his wallet lost in 1975, with everything in it fully intact. (Submitted by Donna Gilroy)Social SharingAn accidental discovery at a house renovation site in Dartmouth, N.S., and a social media post have reunited a wallet lost 51 years ago with its owner.

While renovating a house for his company on Victoria Road, carpenter Matty Goldsmith found a wallet under the old floors containing identification documents including a driver's licence and student ID, as well as a 1975 theatre ticket for Hamlet and a dollar bill.

Goldsmith and his colleagues were surprised that everything was fully intact, and they guessed that the owner was a high school student who used to work there as a construction labourer.

"I decided like, why not try our luck with the internet and see if we can track this person down," he said.

His post quickly drew responses from the community, including owner Richard Gilroy's wife. Three days later, they met up and returned the wallet to Gilroy.

"I was very surprised to say the least," 68-year-old Gilroy told CBC News on Wednesday. "I'm very pleased to get it all back."

Matty Goldsmith found the wallet containing Richard Gilroy's identification documents, including a high school student ID, a birth certificate and a driver's licence. (Submitted by Matty Goldsmith)Although Gilroy remembers when and where he lost the wallet, his memory of what's inside has faded.

"It's very interesting that my original handwritten birth certificate was in my wallet, and I have no idea why my parents would have even given it to me,” Gilroy said.

As for the Hamlet ticket, he had no recollection of having seen the play, but said the $1.50 ticket price is "amazing."

Gilroy said he's thankful for Goldsmith, and he's planning to frame everything in his wallet to put on display.

Goldsmith said his job often brings him "little treasures and time capsules."

He once found some letters written in Chinese in a Vancouver renovation site, and a bottle of cobra whisky.

But this is the first time he uncovered someone's ID. Goldsmith said he quickly realized it's a long-lost item.

"It's always neat to think about like who left this here or what their life was like," he said.

He said it was pleasant to meet with Gilroy and his wife, and Gilroy was excited to "have that little piece of his past back in his hands."

"He was able to have a bit of this luck and get this time capsule," Goldsmith said. "It was such a nice trip down memory lane for him."

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Yuan Wang is a reporter with CBC Nova Scotia. Get in touch with her by emailing yuan.wang@cbc.ca.