Antiques Roadshow Treasure Hunt - Who was Catherine?

[ThrelfallYorky]

Bet they won't!

[deejayEn]

Although it was fascinating viewing my feeling was that it was a hoax, not by the people showing it but by someone who owned the house prior to them.

That photograph looks a bit older than 1928 when it should date from (from the woman's clothes and hairstyle I would say just prior to WWI).

If the girl lived at 64 Bullsmore Lane then that would have been the address where the note was found, there would have been no need to include the address on the note. But the people who bought it to the show didn't say the address where it wad found or even which part of the country it was from.

[Martynrb]

For what it's worth, the handwriting in the letter as seen in the TV clip is very neat, and looking at it closely I feel sure she spelt her name 'Catherin' without an 'e'. It looks odd, but that's what it looks like. (The fact that it is so odd perhaps reinforces the hoax theory.)

[AngelFish]

I watching tonight - hope but not expecting an update..

[Mowsehowse]

For what it's worth, the handwriting in the letter as seen in the TV clip is very neat, and looking at it closely I feel sure she spelt her name 'Catherin' without an 'e'. It looks odd, but that's what it looks like. (The fact that it is so odd perhaps reinforces the hoax theory.)

That first "clue" is in several pieces having been folded small to fit in the little tin. I think the name Catherine does have an "e" on the end, but it is precisely on a fold, which is why it is not easy to make out.

The date is in the early stages of WWll (obviously).  Possibly the Short family might have been staying with family or friends for some reason.... ? holiday?.

It does seem incredibly elaborate for other people to have made up. If children decided they wanted to make a treasure hunt, why not just do it in their own name?

[Martynrb]

This will probably turn out to be a red herring but I studied the letter carefully on pause, and if you look at other words ending in 'n' and those ending in 'ne', it definitely looks to me like there is no 'e' on the end of 'Catherin', even with the fold.

Another thought has occurred to me. Does the letter look like it's written in biro/ballpoint? I just did a check and Mr Biro only invented that sort of pen in 1938 and I wouldn't have thought its use would have become widespread so quickly. A child writing in ink in 1940 would surely be using a fountain pen - but it doesn't like that sort of ink to me.

The game is afoot!

[cati]

I don't wish to be cynical, but did no one else think it rather odd that in the intervening years, nobody had cleared out the shed, looked in the trunk (or thrown it out), lifted the lino, looked on the beam in the garage or swept the chimney?

[AngelFish]

I did think it odd about the chimney, it's likely to have been in use but not damaged the items?

[ln4266]

Was this ever resolved? Was it a hoax or was Catherine found?