BOX, JEWELRY

Description: BLUE SQUARE CARDBOARD JEWELRY BOX MARKED ON THE TOP IN BLUE TEXT "JOHN R. PISKO JEWELLER LETHBRIDGE, ALTA." LID IS SEPARATE FROM THE BOTTOM, AND CONTAINED INSIDE IS PIECE OF WHITE COTTON BATTING. SURFACE IS SLIGHTLY SOILED AND MARKED, BUT OVERALL ITEM IS IN GOOD CONDITION.

History: ACCORDING TO DONOR THE JOHN R. PISKO JEWELLER WAS LOCATED NEAR THE PRESENT LOCATION OF MACABEES, ON 4TH AVENUE BETWEEN 5TH AND 6TH STREET, DURING THE 1930'S. *UPDATE* IN 2015 COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT JANE EDMUNDSON DEVELOPED A BIOGRAPHY OF AB CHERVINSKI, THE DONOR OF THIS OBJECT, WITH INFORMATION FROM LETHBRIDGE HERALD ARTICLES FROM 1982, 1989, AND 2011. ADAM ABRAHAM 'AB" CHERVINSKI WAS BORN ON FEBRUARY 24, 1920 IN LETHBRIDGE. AS A TEENAGER HE WORKED AS A MESSENGER BOY FOR THE CPR TELEGRAPH OFFICE. CHERVINSKI BRIEFLY LIVED IN ONTARIO DURING HIS SERVICE WITH THE AIR FORCE, BUT RETURNED TO LETHBRIDGE WHERE HE WORKED FOR ALBERTA GOVERNMENT TELEPHONES FOR 37 YEARS. HE WAS A LIFELONG COLLECTOR OF ANTIQUES, AVID LOCAL HISTORIAN, AND HEAVILY INVOLVED IN MUSICAL THEATRE. AB CHERVINSKI DIED ON JUNE 2, 2011. SEE PERMANENT FILE P19970107001-GA FOR HARDCOPIES OF NEWSPAPER ARTICLES ABOUT CHERVINSKI. *UPDATE* IN 2018, COLLECTIONS ASSISTANT ELISE PUNDYK CONDUCTED AN ARTIFACT SURVEY, WHICH INCLUDED A NUMBER OF ARTIFACTS DONATED BY ADAM ABRAHAM CHERVINSKI. EXTENSIVE RESEARCH CONDUCTED TO LOCATE THE DONOR'S LIVING NEXT-OF-KIN WAS UNSUCCESSFUL.