A unique and spectacular memorial was built in Kansas City, Missouri, the US at the end of the First World War. A First World War Museum was also constructed, alongside the memorial, at that time. The concerned authorities buried a time capsule, made of copper, under the memorial! They sealed and placed the capsule in a metal channel before the burial.

Although people had prior information about the time capsule, it was prohibited to touch the capsule in the next 100 years! As per the instruction given by those who had buried it in 1924, researchers opened the capsule in October 2024. No one was around during the event as researchers opened the lid of the capsule from a distance with a wire carefully, keeping in mind the possibility of explosion.

Researchers found 15 items, including some artefacts, a film, a Bible, a copy of US Constitution, a letter of the US President, a copy of US Declaration of War, several newspapers and some letters, inside the capsule. They are, currently, on display at the First World War Museum in Kansas City. CNN reported on October 16, 2024 that some historians and museum curators had buried the time capsule inside the Liberty Memorial in 1924. They kept various items used while celebrating the victory in the First World War inside it in order to provide a glimpse of life at that time.

In fact, a group of prominent residents of Kansas City formed the Liberty Memorial Association to build the memorial in order to honour those who had served in the First World War. The association also organised an event while laying the cornerstone during the construction of the Liberty Memorial. The museum also hosted a ceremony in 2024 to detail what was placed inside the capsule after retrieving those items. CNN quoted President and CEO of the Museum Matthew Naylor as saying: “So here we are, as they had planned 100 years later to open this capsule. Isn’t that great; who’d have thought that we’d be here.”

The retrieval process was a complicated one as it was difficult to unearth the capsule. Christopher Warren, the Chief Curator of the Museum and Memorial, stressed that workers had to drill inside the wall of Liberty Memorial Tower to retrieve the capsule. Furthermore, the capsule was not in the same location as anticipated. Hence, the facility engineer of the Museum had to probe through 18 inches of thick limestone and concrete to locate the capsule. It may be noted that the nitrate film from the 1920s stored inside the capsule was highly flammable. There was a possibility that the film would combust after coming into contact with oxygen, had it not been stored in a proper manner. Therefore, the workers had to remain cautious. Fortunately, the items were well preserved and nothing was damaged.

Meanwhile, Warren informed the media that curators and staff of the Museum had worked hard to unveil some century-old relics. They took eight hours to meticulously open the interior packages of those artefacts, using tweezers and small razor blades. One of those artefacts is a tube of seeds representing the agricultural community of Kansas City. The capsule also had a host of signatures engraved on the inside of the copper box. The museum authorities thoroughly checked the identities of the individuals, but failed to discover who they were. It is believed that the signatures might have corresponded to people involved in constructing the time capsule.

Warren stated: “What this shows is that it wasn’t just the committee that was putting together the objects for the time capsule.” He added: “It was the whole community, the workers who were actually constructing the time capsule and welding the lid on the top of it itself that wanted to be involved in this celebration.”

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das