A time capsule that was buried in Mason 25 years ago as part of a 125th anniversary celebration for the City of Mason was recently extracted.

The capsule was buried in front of the Ingham County Courthouse at the corner of S. Jefferson and Maple Streets in Downtown Mason and was uncovered by Mason City Parks and Forestry staff.  Mason Area Historical Society members Rodney Jewett and Sandy Perry assisted in documenting the items.

However, water seeped through the vault over time and damaged some of the items while destroying others.  According to a City of Mason Newsletter, though, most of the items were found intact.

The Mason 150 Committee considered holding a public event to unveil the items but ultimately decided it would be best to extract the capsule privately to make sure all items were properly salvaged and documented.

Marlon Brown, the chairman of the Mason 150 Committee, said they are setting up a date to hold a public forum where they will announce the findings.

“We recognize that the public has tremendous interest in the time capsule,” said Brown, who is also the Mason Mayor Pro-Tem.  “The Mason 150 Committee is working with the historical society to schedule a public event to discuss the excavation of the 1990 time capsule as well as kick off the process for including items in the new 2015 capsule.”

The 2015 time capsule will be opened in 2040 and residents are encouraged to contribute items to be opened.  Letters, documents, and other items should be able to fit into a 4” by 9.5” envelope and must also be accompanied with a means of identifying each item.

As for the recently uncovered items, a registry was created to distribute them to the right people.  Many of the items were private letters to family members, some of whom have passed away.  The committee is asking recipients to allow for copying of the materials after they are read so the community can enjoy them

-Mason Today will announce the official date of the public forum that is being scheduled when it is set up.  Brown said they are hoping to schedule it sometime in July.  For those wishing to contribute items for the new capsule, send them to the Mason City Administrators Office, Attention: Mary Grace, or wait for more details to be announced at the public forum.