Imagine you found a penny produced in 1918. What would be different about it compared to today’s penny? Known as a Lincoln wheat penny, it would have wheat stalks engraved on the lower outside edges of the reverse side. In average condition, it would be worth $45 today.

Now imagine living in 2118 and you find a penny manufactured in 2018. What would your reaction be? How different would the 2018 penny be from the 2118 penny? Do pennies even exist in 2118? Does cash even exist in 2118?

On May 19, 2018 Joy of All Who Sorrow will install a time capsule in the front corner of our building and at the same time re-set a date stone marked “1901” to indicate the year our church was constructed.

Background

A few years ago, our original date stone was removed since it was deteriorating and needed to be replaced. Behind the date stone we found a time capsule from 1901. It contained a complete roster of the Congregational Church that built our building. There was also some material from their Sunday School, a list of the members of the Woman’s Aid Society, and a pamphlet written by Pastor Nathaniel Alden Hyde on the significance of the Congregational Church.

“Fast” forward
We want our members and friends to contribute ideas of what to include in our 2018-time capsule. Someone has already suggested a metal icon and some coins. Another suggested a DVD, which raised the question, “Will there be a way to play it in 2118?” Please give this some consideration and jot down your ideas. We will be holding a time capsule workshop soon and will ask you to share your ideas then.

Although we haven’t purchased the time capsule yet (the 1901-time capsule was a mayonnaise jar!), we expect it to be round and about 11 inches long and 4 inches wide, so think of items that will fit inside. We’re hoping to find a company or person who will donate it.

Task Force decision
Not wanting to burden any one person to make the final decision of what goes in the time capsule, we will be forming a Task Force to discuss all the suggestions we receive and make the final decision.

Video taping
We will be making a video that will show the discovery of the 1901-time capsule and its contents, the installation of the new time capsule, and the setting of the replacement date stone. This will be the fourth video in our “Expressions of Joy” four-part series showing restoration projects that have been done on our church. This video series was made possible through a Historic Education Preservation Grant from Indiana Humanities, Indiana Landmarks, and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Bonus
The links to the first three videos on our series are:
The Joy of Stained Glass https://youtu.be/bnPmgd8U3yE
The Search for Matching Sandstone https://youtu.be/dRIBCHwzF_E
The Tower https://youtu.be/wF92zCVBn9I

Questions? Comments? Please send them to annetteglass03@gmail.com