Oldest US Time Capsule Opened Today
Jan 6, 2015, 6:33 PM ET
The oldest time capsule discovered in the country that dates back to
1795 was opened today in Boston as history buffs waited to get a glimpse
of items from the nation's infancy.
Pamela Hatchfield, head of objects conservation at Museum of Fine Arts,
Boston, first removed the lid then inspected a newspaper, after
loosening the screws beforehand for about four or five hours, she said.
"This is clearly a newspaper and it’s really packed in there,"
Hatchfield said, wearing gloves and a white coat and using tools
including a porcupine quill and a dentist's probe.
She also found 24 coins in various denominations dating from the 1650s
to the 1850s, when the capsule was opened then resealed. The folded
newspapers appeared to be in very good condition but it was not possible
to tell the dates or what news was being reported.
A silver plate at the bottom contained information about the laying of
the cornerstone box, which was done by then Gov. Samuel Adams assisted
by Paul Revere. American Revolution patriot Revere and Adams originally placed the relic under a cornerstone of the Boston Statehouse in 1795.
The time capsule was removed from the Massachusetts State House
cornerstone Dec. 11, along with miscellaneous coins. The time capsule,
which was X-rayed at the MFA Dec. 14, weighs 10 pounds and measures 5.5
inches by 7.5 inches by 1.5 inches, officials said.
Museum and state officials removed its contents for the first time since
1855, when its contents were documented and cleaned, officials said.
Additional materials were added then to the time capsule, which was
placed in brass and plastered into the underside of the granite
cornerstone.
"X-rays revealed what is believed to be a collection of silver and
copper coins (dating from 1652 and 1855); an engraved silver plate; a
copper medal depicting George Washington; newspapers; the seal of the
Commonwealth; cards; and a title page from the Massachusetts Colony
Records," the MFA said in a statement last month. "These objects were
described in the 1855 account of the reburying ceremony."
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