I've tried to figure out what this large crate would have been used for --with the hand-painted "WRITE IT!" painted across one side, and "XMTER" on the others, clearly it had a very specific purpose. It feels like something that might have been used in a newsroom--the box perhaps a repository for potential newspaper story ideas, with the "write it!" a mandate to write them up! Or, perhaps it was installed in a public place, filled with some sort of forms that the public was encourage to fill out? (If you know, please share!) Definitely the crate itself was expertly painted over for the purposes--one can see "Orange, N.J." and other little bits here and there showing through the gray paint. I just love the look of it, and the lettering especially, and think it would be perfect now for holding, say, a mass of scattered notes for a novel! (Or, in my case, a bunch of finds to write up listings for!)
18 3/4 l x 12 5/8" d x 7 3/4" t. Heavyweight paper board over steel wire structure. Good condition, dry and pretty clean, with wear around the edges and a bit of corner loss as evident. Structurally sound and stable and still looks great to me; strong enough to put a fairly amount of weight in and carry around the handles. I would guess 1920s-30s or so.
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