Quasquicentennial 2003 Time Capsule & Contents
Buried in the Lobby of the Jester Learning & Performance Center
September 17, 2003
On the 125th Anniversary of the University.

The time capsule is  made of stainless steel.  The special closure is made with an O-ring around a circular opening with a square lid bolted on.  Each bolt was sealed with silicon.  It was buried in a  cavity cut into and beneath the floor of the lobby of the Jester Learning & Performance Center.  The dry cavity was prepared with gravel in the bottom and after the capsule was placed inside, filled with sand and then concrete.  The original tiles with the commemorative plaque were placed over the cement when it had cured.  Dwight Wooderson and his staff prepared the site, laid the capsule in, refilled the remaining space with sand and completed the installation of the commemorative plaque.

The contents of the time capsule were spread over the conference table in the University Library conference room, before final packing.  There was a bit of extra space even after all of this was packed so a few items NOT seen in this photograph were added during packing. An "inventory" of the contents is available if you would like to see more details about what was placed in the capsule.

Many of the items are actually stacks of several sheets of printed materials.  The two ivory colored pages that are displayed side-by-side (near the front left edge of the table), are the two pages of the official Presidential Proclamation which Dr. C. Pat Taylor announced to the university family on September 17, 2002, during the "kick-off" events that began our year-long celebration of the Quasquicentennial.

This 4 X 6 inch commemorative bronze plaque is a lovely reminder of the spot where the time capsule lies buried.  The Quasquicentennial Planning Committee thought this was an important aspect of the project due to the fact that about 50 % of all time capsules are buried and over time, the location forgotten.  It is not uncommon for them never to be found again.  So SBU's 2003 time capsule will not only be remembered but will be easy to locate in the future.  At the time of burial the committee had no specific future time in mind to retrieve and open the capsule.  Perhaps the 150th or 200th anniversary of the opening of the university, but who knows.  That is up to future university leaders to decide.

This page was prepared by the Southwest University Archives following the close of the SBU Quasquicentennial year celebrations which concluded on September 17, 2003.  The page was lasted updated December 07, 2004.  If you have any questions about this page please contact the University Archivist.