What do a Windows 98 computer textbook, a letter to Rudolph Giuliani, and two bottles of wine have in common?
They’re among the items found inside a 25-year-old time capsule unearthed and opened at Selkirk College’s Castlegar campus last month.
Brier Albano, vice-president of student and external relations, explained in an interview that the time capsule was one of two interred on the college grounds in November 2001. A plaque placed on the spot said that one capsule was to be opened in 2026 and the other in 2101.
The creation of the two capsules was organized by a committee headed by now-retired campus manager Corrine Major. The capsules, consisting of sealed water main pipes, were buried by Harvey Batting. The 2026 capsule was unearthed by college maintenance staff including Paul Rodrigues and had to be sawed open.
In addition to the date on the plaque, Albano said surviving documentation in the president’s office and human resources office alerted them to the impending opening date.
Although instructions on the plaque said the capsule was to be opened during the convocation ceremony, that didn’t turn out to be feasible due to the cspsule’s weight and size as well as the fact that Selkirk now has two such ceremonies each year.
Instead a separate event was hosted on May 19. People involved in the capsule’s creation and burial were invited back to have a look.
“So it ended up being a bit of a college reunion with a lot of the major players coming back on campus,” Albano said. “We had five or six people who are still at the college that were here at the time that the time capsule [was buried].”
And what was inside?
“A lot of fun stuff,” Albano said.
Some items had been documented. Others were surprises. The list includes:
• Windows 98-era computer textbook with 3.5-inch diskette
• RF signal generator (used for repairing radios)
• Nursing student uniform patches and pins
• Climbing helmet
• Basketball style jersey (No. 12)
• 2001 Selkirk College calendar, tuition fee list, application forms
• Regional phone book
• Vancouver Province newspapers from Nov. 11 and 12, 2001 with Osama Bin Laden headlines and the first Harry Potter movie screening times
• Letter from the college to New York mayor Rudy Giuliani about the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks
• Provincial library catalogue on three CD-ROMs
• A jar of honey from professor emeritus Peter Wood (who was present for the reopening ceremony)
• Lots of staff and student photos
But maybe the most unusual items were two bottles of wine — one white, one red — produced by the Selkirk Colleve vintners from grapes grown on campus. “We’re not quite sure what to do with the wine yet,” Albano said.
The capsule’s contents are expected to be displayed on campus once a location is found for them. After a few months, the items will be placed in the college archives.
It will be another 76 years before the second time capsule is opened. “From what we hear,” Albano said, “the really good stuff is in the 2101 capsule.”
