His "family attempted to throw his photographic collection away"

One of the things about skimming the wikimedia commons: licensing area is the stray photo of Leonard Nimoy.



That and the potential peril's of being a deceased photographer with a legacy awaiting curbside removal.



According to the discussion:

"In July of this year, a truckload of prints and negatives were dropped off at the State Archives by the neighbors of a deceased Ft. Lauderdale photographer, Roy Erickson. When Erickson’s family attempted to throw his photographic collection away, neighbors convinced them that the images might have historical significance. The images, which included no identifications, were delivered to the Archives in dirty, deteriorating boxes. After months of research and review by staff, approximately 1,000 images have been identified, considered to have historical value, and added to the Archives’ Photographic Collection."

So whether or not the "transfer of physical property would imply transfer of copyright" if it were not for convincing neighbors the above image would presumably now be in a landfill.