It could happen. In the 70's my father bought an old house in Cleveland, Ohio that was over 70 yrs old. We found a early WW II M1 carbine (in perfect condition) in a closet along with a period type Civil Defense helmet and armbands etc... . The house had been in the same family forever. the surviving heir died there. It was like a museum in there, alot of pictures and letters from the Spanish-American war, WW I and WW II.