Keys to the ‘City of Kalamazoo’ Up For Grabs on Ebay

Silly me, I thought you had to earn something like this! I keep forgetting that money can't buy happiness- but it can sure help.

A rare treasure recently popped up on popular auction site Ebay.com. Not much is known about the item listed for sale, but the pictures seem to back up this seller's claims. An Ebay seller out of Mattawan, MI has just listed a "Key to the City of Kalamazoo" and it's up for grabs to the highest bidder!

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According to the key's seller, dwhindy500, there's not much that's known for certain about the key other than it was produced by "TBW Industries" of Los Gatos, California. However,

Story has it that this key was presented to the conductor of the Kalamazoo symphony orchestra. Sounds good I bought it over 10 years ago.

I think I have more questions than answers: Who did the key belong to? Why did it end up for sale? Who is dwhindy500 and where did they purchase the key? How does one get a Key to the City in the first place?

According to Brown University, the origins of giving keys to the city goes back to Medieval times. Back then cities were walled up so giving the literal key to the city was a symbol of trust and honor, and meant the recipient could come and go as they pleased.

In modern times, an ornamental (non-functional) key is presented to esteemed visitors, residents, or others the city wishes to honor.

It seems to me that a conductor of the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra would fit that criteria!

Looking back at past conductors of the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra I would guess that Gregory Millar, who conducted the orchestra from the early to late '60s and shared a stage with such talented artists as Duke Ellington, could be the key's original owner. Or perhaps Canada's Pierre Hetu, who led the symphony from 1968-74, could be the right fit too.

We may never know to whom the key belonged to, but at least seller dwhindy500 has given you a start-- now it's your turn to fill in the blanks and choose your own ending! Would you pay $99 to own a Key to the City of Kalamazoo?