This article was originally published on Kueez
1. A Gift For His Mother
Megan and Bobby Kapsidis are one of those couples that are just made for each other. They are both driven by logic and are passionate about achieving things together. Bobby, in particular, has the perfect hobbies for a successful renovation project. He loves fixing things and making them more effective, which easily explains his choice to become an aircraft mechanic.
The couple decided to buy a home in 2009 with the intent of helping Bobby’s mom. But when they did, they were aware that a lot of work had to be done in order to make the place a dream home for his mother, starting with the kitchen, his mom’s favorite place.
2. Documenting The DIY Project
So instead of paying a fortune to someone to fix it, the couple decided to take on the challenge of doing the entire process themselves. While both of them loved working with their hands, the couple agreed that Bobby would start working right away while she documented the process on social media. It turns out that documenting the process would end being extremely important since their story would actually go viral.
She kept uploading pictures with details and descriptions of the adventure while making sure to update their friends and family. The process was exciting, since it had been more than nine years since they had officially bought the house, and not one inch of the renovation had been done.
3. They Started With The Ceiling
When Bobby’s mother moved in all of her things to the house, the place didn’t look as they remembered. Sure, there was a lot of work to do, but most of that work was concentrated in very specific places around the house, including the kitchen and the ceiling. Though Bobby was directly working on the renovation, Megan already had great plans for the structure and decoration of the place.
So they started with the ceiling since that was the most obvious and difficult place. Though they estimated that it would take them about one or two days to finish working on that area, at the end of the first day Bobby was still working well through the night.
4. Things Got A Bit Sloppy
The ceiling had been badly damaged due to some water, which resulted in a big part of the ceiling peeling down. By midnight Megan had already gone to bed, and Bobby continued working away. He was determined to get as much work done as possible, and if that meant sleeping a bit less that day then he thought, “So be it.”
The thing is that lack of sleep can really take a toll on us, and that’s what happened to Bobby. His tiredness made him become a little bit sloppy, which in turn resulted in his decision to simply rip away a part of the ceiling. He thought that wouldn’t damage things too much and would make the process end faster.
5. A Purse He Had Never Seen Before
But as he was tearing the ceiling apart, he suddenly noticed something heavy falling on him. He didn’t have enough time to properly use his reflexes but knew right away that what had fallen wasn’t a piece of the ceiling for sure. If he needed something to wake him up, then that certainly did the job.
He looked down at the floor hoping to figure out what had just fallen and saw what looked like a brown leather purse. He picked it up right away and started examining it. He couldn’t say exactly what it was, but the strange object looked like either an e purse or a bag. But it wasn’t an ordinary object for sure. When he turned it, he saw the drawing of an alligator carved in it but wasn’t sure what to make of it at all.
6. A Mix Of Curiosity And Fear At The Same Time
Curious and a tiny bit concerned, he decided to go to his wife and wake her up, together they would try to find out what the object was. Naturally, she was incredibly curious too as soon as her husband woke her up. Though they were definitely curious, they were certainly worried too. What if they had found the purse of some sort of bad omen?
They decided to open the purse and check what could possibly be inside of it. They simply had to know what kind of secret was hidden in there. Obviously, someone had hidden the purse in the kitchen ceiling, so something was definitely being hidden from everyone else, and they were surely going to find out what it was.
7. A Hit In The Face
The entire time, Megan made sure to document the entire process to their social media followers, who would be as shocked as they were when they finally opened the purse. To their disappointment, when they opened it, there was nothing inside - the purse was completely empty.
That instantly raised a bunch of questions in the couple’s mind, including why on earth was the purse hidden for so long in the kitchen ceiling? As they discussed the situation between the two of them, more and more questions continued to come up.
8. A Portal To The Past
Was the purse the thing they were trying to hide? The more they thought about it, the more they figured that since the purse was empty, then there must have been something valuable about it.
But just to make sure, they put the purse on the side for a bit and decided to start drilling away hoping that the attic that was located above the kitchen had some hidden answers. In no time they realized that they had made the right decision. The attic did end up having some very needed answers, and some other things hidden away.
9. There Was So Much More
As they dug into the ceiling, they felt like they were entering a time machine or something out of a portal to the past. What they found was definitely not from the era they were in. They were in complete shock. In Megan’s words: “My husband decided he wanted to tear it down at 8:00 in the evening, and when he did, that’s when everything started falling out of the ceiling."
You heard it right, things literally started falling off the ceiling and they were simply not prepared for what they were about to find. The more Bobby drilled, the closer they were to find out what this house had been hiding for decades. Object after object continued to fall, with both Bobby and Megan being completely covered with some very old dust.
10. Things Kept Falling From The Ceiling
The amount of dust actually made it really difficult for the couple to figure out what they were looking at, and they couldn’t feel more anxious at this point. The anticipation was killing them, but Megan was dedicated to updating her followers. She wrote: “Stuff just keeps falling from our ceiling!” posting it with a picture of the entire ordeal. The couple sat on the floor to process the situation, and to begin digging to find out what they were looking at.
They kept talking through each object they had found until Bobby suddenly went quiet. Megan wasn’t sure why, but she let Bobby take a moment to get himself together before explaining why he had been taken aback so suddenly.
11. Someone’s Wedding Pictures
He had found a note buried in the ceiling, reassuring him that those objects hadn’t been there by mistake. That really made the couple understand that someone’s real story was behind all of this, which only made them more curious. Why had someone gone to such great lengths to hide all of this? But that was not it.
After folding up the letter that was completely covered in cement and dust they found the item that would be the key to everything, a wedding photo album! In disbelief, they looked at each other and their excitement continued to grow. The wedding album meant that they might have found the key to someone’s past, a past that person had chosen to hide from the world.
12. Going Through The Entire Album
Together, they sat down on the floor and began going through the mysterious album. With a bunch of dust and debris surrounding them, the couple looked at each picture of the thick album. When Bobby later gave an interview about the entire process, he shared: “I reached in the installation, and I pulled out this wedding book. It’s old, and kind of dusty, and I said, ‘This is pretty incredible.’"
In fact, he had never stumbled upon something so mysteriously incredible in his life. He continued saying: “Just seeing something nostalgic like that. I have no idea why they’d keep it up in the attic.” But at that point, they knew they would have to get to the bottom of it and find out the entire story behind the photo album.
13. A Beautiful Wedding
The wedding photos were definitely old, but they had no idea just how old they were. To their happiness, the album was full of wedding photos of a couple and a family they obviously did not recognize. The pages were yellowish and really fragile because of their old state, and though it had a ton of photos, at least 50 pages of it were completely empty.
The more they looked, the more they realized how much of a traditional wedding the bride and groom had. The bride was wearing a stunning white gown and veil, while the groom looked impeccable in his black tux. By the style and the look of the photos, Bobby and Megan assumed that the wedding had taken place sometime in the 1960s.
14. They Needed To Find Them
The photos were definitely vintage, and the bride and groom’s style was undeniably related to a few decades prior to that day. But although the album was a huge find, the couple still had so many questions unanswered. Why on earth would this couple hide their wedding photos? From whom?
As Megan documented it online she shared the following about her feelings at that moment, "‘Wow, what a beautiful wedding. We need to find these people.” In unison, the couple decided that it wouldn’t be a bad idea to continue looking through the ceiling, just in case there were some other clues up there.
15. What Could They Possibly Be Missing?
They had already been hours through the night, meaning that Bobby and Megan were very determined to figure this out. But as much as they tried to push through, they understood that a good night of sleep was not only necessary but would probably help them clear their minds. There were more finds the day after.
According to Megan: "The next day, when we had more light, he went back up in there, and he found what would have been the parents’ little small version of the same album.” When Bobby and Megan bought Bobby's house back in 2009, no one really gave them any information on the people who had previously owned the home.
16. The Note Could Be The Key
They were pretty sure that the album they had found would definitely belong to people who had previously owned the house, so they had to find them. There had to be a link there that Bobby and Megan weren’t aware of. And they thought to themselves, the person who decided to hide the album could have thrown it away or burnt it, but they didn’t, there had to be a reason.
After a lot of digging, they finally found some information that could help them in the discovery process. Remember the note that made Bobby really quiet when he found it? They realized that the piece of paper had actually fallen from the album. The note had been carefully folded and tucked inside the mysterious album for a reason.
17. Putting Things Together
As they found out, the note was actually the couple’s wedding invitation, which would reveal some much-needed details about who the married couple was. The bride was named Marguerite, and the groom was called Joseph Garguilo. They got married on September 14 in New York, though the house and the album were actually located in New York.
That was their first clue. After the wedding, the couple relocated from New York to Florida. After analyzing the evidence they had in front of them, Bobby and Megan began putting some things together. They found out that the wedding had taken place at St. Thomas Apostle Roman Catholic Church. The said church could be found on 87th Street and 88th Avenue in Woodhaven, Queens, New York. The invitation also allowed them to figure out where the wedding reception had been.
18. The Became Completely Obsessed With It
After what looked like a memorable ceremony, the bride, groom, and guests headed to the reception which took place at the Senior Petty Officers Mess at New York Naval Shipyard in Brooklyn. Megan and Bobby began looking through the different guests in the reception, and it all looked like a movie or something out of reality. Though they had obviously never met the couple, Megan started feeling like somehow she knew them.
The photos showed so much of who this couple was, but nothing could explain why they would have hidden the evidence of their most special day. That made it very clear for Megan that she wouldn’t let this go, at that point, and had even become a bit of an obsession. In Megan’s words: “I want to find the family. It’s easier today. We have the digital age where we can just call the photographer and have him send it over the internet. Back then, they didn’t have that, so this is all they have left of their memories.”
19. Using Facebook As A Helping Tool
With that said, Megan was absolutely determined to do everything in her power to get to the bottom of this. But the more they looked, the more confused they got. Megan wondered, could the couple still be alive? The photos were old, so there was a possibility after all that they could've passed away.
But Megan tried to shove those thoughts away and resorted to Facebook for some help. She updated her status and shared the entire story, and hoped that people would continue to be as diligent as she was. At this point, she really relied on their help to succeed in solving the mystery.
20. Megan Had A Personal Reason
Megan was absolutely set on doing everything in her power to get to the bottom of this. But why was she invested in this, what was her reason? Megan shared: “My husband has digital copies of our wedding album. If one computer crashes, it’s on another one. If we leave them somewhere, we can just get them somewhere else."
They didn’t have that in 1963, so the photos that you have in the book are the only photos that they have of that day, of their memories that day, and to me, that’s really important to have.” Clearly, Megan had very personal reasons to pursue this, she knew first hand how important it would be for the bride and groom to have their album again.
21. The Story Went Viral
Megan continued to say: “If I had lost my wedding album, I would hope that somebody would find it and return it to me. So, there’s no other option for me.” After sharing her heartfelt post, she really had no idea that the post would eventually reach so far. In just a couple of days, Megan’s post went completely viral. The more people read it, the more intrigued and committed they were.
Yet, not everything was positive. Just like anything that goes viral, Megan received both positive and negative feedback from people. A ton of twists and turns also came as a consequence of the post reaching so many people. Thankfully, some people were actually able to provide the couple with some necessary pieces of information.
22. Local News Outlets Picked It Up
In the end, Megan and Bobby weren’t the only curious people out there, so several family members, friends, and random people became really invested in finding out who this couple was. People would tune in every day for more updates and to find out any progress that had been made since the day before. The post was so compelling that the couple even got some media attention, especially from local news channels.
For example, Fox and ABC News featured the story in some of their segments, giving the story even more publicity. But still, Megan and Bobby still had no idea who the couple was. But the more people found out about it, the more praise Bobby and Megan would get for their determination.
23. It Became A Whole Debate
The story had reached people from all over the world, who were as invested to find the mysterious couple as Megan and Bobby were. People focused on the details, such as the bride’s gown to the year the wedding had taken place. Megan began to not feel so comfortable with all of the publicity, that wasn’t really her intention. She just wanted to give the album back to the bride and groom.
But she was completely enchanted by it. She said: “I’ve looked through the pictures hundreds of times, and they’re just so pretty. I feel like I want to know the rest of the story. I would love to return it to the family. I’d like to sit down and give them back their memories.” As Megan continued to post the updates on Facebook, people continued to look for any information out there.
24. Finally Finding A Lead
Megan was hopeful: “I’m pretty sure I’m going to find her, if not, her family,” she claimed. “I have a lead that she’s two towns north of where we are now. I’d like to return it and maybe hear a little bit about her wedding day if she’s willing to talk about it.” That surely cheered people up. According to some sources, Marguerite, the bride, was alive and living in Florida. Decisively, Megan chose a date to go and pay a visit to Marguerite.
Sadly though, when she got to the possible house, Marguerite had apparently moved and no one knew where she had gone to. Though we live in a digital age, some answers are a little harder to come by. Megan was now at the starting line again with no leads. Megan realized just how hard this journey would be, but was still hopeful.
25. Finding Some Clues On Her Own
For a while, she wasn’t able to get any more leads, but she was stubborn, and no one would take her hope away. She really believed that she would be able to solve this mystery and get to a happy ending. Eventually, as expected, Megan found a way. Though she hoped that someone would come forward to find more information, Megan ended up finding some more clues on her own.
One particular evening, things completely changed while Megan was surfing the internet. The information had come from someone who knew something about Marguerite’s whereabouts. The crucial piece of information revealed the city and the place where Megan could go in order to find the mysterious bride.
26. A New Location Regarding Where Marguerite Was
Though Megan had come through a disappointing lead already, she tried not to be too excited about it, which proved to be very hard for her. She had been waiting for this for a while after all. She really hoped that the information would be useful and that Marguerite was indeed alive. Though the location was pretty far away from the house, that wasn’t going to stop Megan from starting her journey there to give the woman back her album.
And so she went, full of hope and anxiety, but certain that this was the right thing to do. If only she knew… it wasn’t all perfect. Megan obviously had moments of doubt, and she shared all of her concerns with her friends and family on social media.
27. Finding Her
She also shared her journey to the location where Marguerite could be in, and everyone was braced, waiting to see what would happen. On June 8th, 2017, Megan shared with her followers that she finally found Marguerite. She had not only found her but was also able to give her back her long lost (or hidden) album. She didn’t say anything about the groom, Joseph, though. She wrote: “I would like to ask for privacy for Marguerite and her family."
"She wants to keep her memories personal and enjoy them with her family.” With that said, everyone simply assumed that Joseph had passed away. But everyone remained curious about what had really happened after Megan and Marguerite’s encounter. Why the mystery after that long journey to finding her? The question remained unanswered, why did the couple hide their album?
28. A Tragic Situation
Though it took some time to find out, the story behind the album and the wedding photos was finally revealed. Apparently, behind the happy couple and wedding photos, there was an enormous tragedy behind it all. Though they were happily married, just nine years after the stunning wedding, Joseph passed away. The real reason for his death is unknown, but the tragedy certainly took a toll on Marguerite and her family.
But that wasn’t all. Megan found so much more than she expected, and a completely different story from what she had imagined. Megan found out that after many years of mourning, Margaret was finally able to move on and got remarried to another man. Megan found out that after many years of mourning, Margaret was finally able to move on and got remarried to another man.
29. A New Life
Though it’s completely understandable that Marguerite eventually moved on, Megan felt so many mixed feelings. The anticipation had led her to imagine a story that didn’t exist. She understood right away that that had been the reason why Marguerite had hidden the album. She either didn't want anyone to remember her past, or she was too traumatized by the entire experience. In order to avoid the pain of looking at those photos, she decided to hide the album, instead of keeping it or throwing it away.
That’s why when Megan gave her back the album, Marguerite was confused, puzzled, and shocked. The now old woman had children and grandchildren from her new marriage, so she didn’t even know if she should keep the album. Though Megan did feel a bit guilty for “forcing” those negative memories back on her, Marguerite admired Megan’s determination and decided to put the story to rest.