Always err on the side of preservation. Once they're gone they're gone for good! But they can always be disposed of. I really don't understand where all the work comes in in disposing of hundreds of photos. It's just not a very difficult task no matter how you look at it. That is one medium-sized box that must be carried to the trash! What could be simpler?

Your concern for your children is admirable, but don't sell them short. I don't think they would consider one box of trash a major inconvenience! It's hardly even worth mentioning! So, I think you're after a different answer such as, "Do adult children typically value photos of their ancestors?"

Yes, they typically do, unless the parent has been the worst parent, and indulged the child in every way! Spoiled rotten brats care about nothing but what they want in the moment, no matter what that is! They have no nostalgia, because they couldn't care less about anyone but themselves, and others only to the extent that they demonstrate some utility in whatever manipulative game the child wants to play at that moment!

You could do like my father. Pass on mementos--things once owned by deceased members of the family: trinkets, memoirs, photos, figurines, books; insignificant in objective value. In his will he stipulated that for each item of this sort, from a list he supplied to the executor, that each child could produce, (s)he would receive $5,000,000.00 from his portfolio.

That is an excellent way to distribute an estate, because it separates the quality individuals who value their heritage from the greedy, selfish manipulators who will blow their inheritances like drunken sailors! But all without judgment. The descendants judge themselves by their own choices! At least one Bible from the past, of the disposition spoken of above, was given to each child at one time or another.

Those are a favorite of rotten kids to toss almost immediately! He also wrote a quiz regarding his maternal Grandfather's memoirs, of which each child received a copy. Depending on the number of correct answers, a sum was disbursed as a condition of the will!

Once again, children who care about their heritage, and are therefore interested iin perpetuating it, receive more, because the entire purpose of an inheritance is to preserve one's genetic legacy into the future. Otherwise there wouldn't be much point to reproduction. DNA survives or perishes. One or the other, nothing in between. And the goal of each man is to leave in the world part of himself, to make it a better place for everyone!

Famous artists, writers and composers many times forgo reproduction in pursuit of excellence in their craft. They leave behind the beauty of their artistic creations, whereas most people leave it with the beauty of their biological creations! And they want their efforts to have the greatest impact for good for the longest duration possible!

If we make one simple observation of who the most famous people are, they are Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary. The most enduring legacy is the Roman Catholic Church, with over 1700 years of continuous succession of Popes, and a body of law--The Code of Canon Law--in effect for the longest duration in history!

So, if people want their legacies to survive the test of time, they would be wise to emulate those who also have! It is written,

"I AM The Lord your God, Who brought you out of the house of bondage. I am a jealous God, visiting the sins of the the fathers upon the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness down to the thousandh generation of those who love Me and keep My Commandments!"

Which implies that the second group will go on for a 1,000 generations! So, we need ways to divide the wise children from the fools, and subsidize the wise while depriving the foolish! The only thing more laborious to bear than a fool's words are a rich fool's words!

But how does any of this tie into photography? How many times has one sought to behold the likeness of an ancient person, but none exists due to lack of drawing and painting materials in that era! Many people are famous for their likenesses alone, because it was preserved.

No one knows what the future brings. But I anticipate one day the entire gene pool back to the beginning will be mapped! We will be able to identify which individuals originated beneficial genetic mutations. It would be a great asset to that knowledge if the likenesses of these pioneers were preserved, so everyone knew what they looked like when they were alive.

I possess an impressive lineage chart of both sides of my family of origin, together with likenesses of many members, even ancestors who never left europe!

It is a fundamental longing to know who and where we came from, which is testified to by the popularity of gene mapping websites. A perfect fit for that is photographic records! Going into the future, seemingly insignificant personalities from the past may take on grest significence in the present time, and the photographic record is integral to the historical and biographical records!

Those who value not their own ancestral heritage neither value themselves, their country and police wnd military security forces, their race, or anything else of any kind, because they have no gratitude! Gratitude is the strong bulwark of humility, and only arrogance exists without it! Gratitude and humility are essential to truly love one's self and others! Love is what makes life worth living!

Therefore, without gratitude, life is only a series of encounters in which the individual tries to get more for himself than (s)he gives, so as to come out ahead in life! To these, old photos are so much junk, because they have no respect for others, least of all those they came from! Then, to place no value on the likenesses of those one came from is to lack gratitude in general, which is to mwke life not worth living, because one cannot receive love unless (s)he is capable of also giving love!

Maybe I answered a bit more than just the question. But now everyone has an understanding of the concepts involved. Knowledge is power!

Waiting too long to pass things on to your kids can be a big mistake. I'm almost 72. My dad is still alive and still holding on to all the stuff he has promised to me and to my siblings. Some of it was pretty notable...a Steinway piano, some nice china, some nice furniture, you get the idea. We each figured out quite a while ago how it was going to work and bought our own things. I no longer want or need the piano...the one I bought is nicer and now much more familiar to me. Not sure how I feel about the Kodachromes now, but there was a time when I would have liked to have some of them, which he hasn't viewed in 50 years. Same with "baby books" and similar materials.

Just a thought from the other side of the equation...

I am in the process of scanning old photographs that my parents had in albums, some picture going back to the early 1900's with pictures of my parents when they were in their teens and my grandparents, plus other members of my family back in the early 20th century. After I scan and label this pictures, I am torn as to weather I should toss the pictures, or continue to save them. I'm pretty sure when I'm gone, my kids will inherit these and most likely will throw them out. I will be transferring these photos to various forms of digital storage; SD card, flash drives, external hard drives etc. So, should I save my kids the job of throwing these pictures out or should I hang on to them for a little longer. We're talking hundreds of photos by the way. Trying to purge as much as I can. Thanks.

I am in the process of scanning old photographs that my parents had in albums, some picture going back to the early 1900's with pictures of my parents when they were in their teens and my grandparents, plus other members of my family back in the early 20th century. After I scan and label this pictures, I am torn as to weather I should toss the pictures, or continue to save them. I'm pretty sure when I'm gone, my kids will inherit these and most likely will throw them out. I will be transferring these photos to various forms of digital storage; SD card, flash drives, external hard drives etc. So, should I save my kids the job of throwing these pictures out or should I hang on to them for a little longer. We're talking hundreds of photos by the way. Trying to purge as much as I can. Thanks.

Electronic storage media can obviously fail, become obsolete, etc over time. Am glad my ancestors did not pass along priceless photo’s on floppy disc. (And, time is important in this question since it is often not the next generation, but subsequent generations, that have the higher interest in old family pictures.). With photographs, I assume there will long continue to be ways to scan a print or a tangible medium such as a slide or film. So, I recommend saving them, in addition to passing along the digital forms. Leave the choice to them. (And, be sure to identify the individuals in a picture.)

Electronic storage media can obviously fail, become obsolete, etc over time. Am glad my ancestors did not pass along priceless photo’s on floppy disc. (And, time is important in this question since it is often not the next generation, but subsequent generations, that have the higher interest in old family pictures.). With photographs, I assume there will long continue to be ways to scan a print or a tangible medium such as a slide or film. So, I recommend saving them, in addition to passing along the digital forms. Leave the choice to them. (And, be sure to identify the individuals in a picture.)