I am a Veteran of WWII. My parents received two Western Union Telegrams saying:

Hi There...These would be nice together and I can see why you'd want to preserve them...If you go to any art supply store, you can get what they call an "archival sleeve". It's a mylar type protective cover that has no acid and will not harm paper. Artists use them for their portfolios. I use them to ship etchings that I've sold. They are inexpensive and usually don't cost more than $3 or $4 apiece.....It's just an idea. Good Luck!

Hi there bernie! You're right to not want to laminate those telegrams or alter them at all... you can't "un-do" those things and that would be such a shame. I'm a pretty big fan of the Antiques Roadshow and there is an article online about handling old papers. I'm not sure of the composition of the old Western Union Telegrams but I'll give you the link to the article so you can see what you think. Apparently, they do recommend special sleeves made of Mylar that will not cause trouble with acidity or things of that nature. Anyway, I'll just offer this in case it's of interest to you :) http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/roadshow/series/highlights/2003/hotsprings/hotsprings_fts_laminate.html

I don't understand why you would not want to laminate them. The lamination does nothing to the original document except preserve it. If ever you wanted to take the lamination off you could easily do so. You could also frame them and put them under glass. Either way should be sufficient to protect them.