Local History Club members gather for a photo in front of the time capsule.
The entire student body, faculty, administrators along with board of education and building committee members gathered yesterday in front of Lyme-Old Lyme High School to prepare a time capsule for ceremonial burial. The event was sponsored by the school’s Local History Club and its president, Alison Scott, explained that the purpose of the event was, “to connect the past with the present and the future.”
She noted that the plaque marking the spot where the time capsule is buried has been engraved with the words, “Lyme-Old Lyme High School; Time Capsule to be Opened in 2046; Established 1980 Renewed 2013.” She explained, “We chose the date 2046 because it is 33 years from now; it was 33 years ago that the High School was built.”
After acknowledging and thanking the board of education members and building committee members who, in Local History Club Vice-President Marley Bocian’s words, “made sure we ended up with this beautiful, renovated-as-new building,” members of the club took turns explaining the contents of the capsule. The items had been chosen from suggestions made by students at the high school and included the copper capsule that was placed in a wall when the high school was originally built.
Local History Club President Alison Scott addresses guests at the time capsule ceremony.
Local History Club Treasurer Ian James explained, “We decided that since our current building was “renovated as new,” we should put the original capsule in with the new one. The original capsule was a little longer … but it has been retrofitted to fit in the new capsule.” He quipped, “Kind of like the building!” The contents of the original capsule were retained in situ and these comprised a 1981 black and white yearbook and newspaper articles about the move into the high school.
James also noted that an American flag was added to the new capsule because he questioned, “Who knows? With all the talk about secession and/or adding another state – like Puerto Rico – our flag may take on a different look in 33 years!”
Senior Morgan White inserts a poster showing images of the high school into the capsule.
Senior Morgan White added items representing the present, “Our great, color yearbook … and the pictures, flash drive, and CDs showing the renovation from start to finish.” He commented, “We have heard mixed opinions about whether the flash drive and CD’s will make it another 33 years so we printed out some of the pictures just in case,” adding to laughter, “I guess we’ll all have to come back and see!”
A ‘Decades’ project for the 2000s undertaken as part of a high school program and a poster of the high school were also added to the capsule as were a copy of that day’s edition of The Day, a printed copy of LymeLine.com and some e-books. Bocian asked rhetorically, “Who knows what things like magazines, newspapers, and books will look like in the future?”
Club member Brian Buttrick added the Old Lyme Historical Society’s (OLHS) 2013 calendar, Then and Now, that shows current and past pictures of Lyme and Old Lyme as well as a brochure of the OLHS’s Walking Tour while Club Secretary James Kolb included his own broken i-phone, a high school T-shirt and a picture of the faculty. Regarding the phone, Kolb joked, “Hopefully, someone in the future will have a way to fix it and they will contact me to return it!”
Local History Club members have kept journals of their own personal history, brought in and discussed family antiques and artifacts, heard from our Old Lyme Town Historian, Dr. Pfeiffer, who discussed Lyme and Old Lyme’s role in history, connected with the OLHS and helped at their Vintage! event, which raises funds for a scholarship for a graduating senior from LOLHS, and held a World War II discussion and luncheon event last year.
Editor’s Note: We are honored that the students chose to include a printed copy of LymeLine in the time capsule — thank you for making us a part of Old Lyme’s history!