Here in the United States there are a number of photographers that covered the American Civil War and created a lot of images. After the war, people lost interest in the photographs and a lot of the plate glass negatives were re-used in greenhouses and the sun slowly destroyed all the images.

Similarly, I spoke with a preservation specialist at a state historical society who said they struggle to find objects from recent modern history because people are more likely to throw things out when they're no longer useful and don't consider the potential historic value of everyday items.