100-year-old artifacts kept inside Kansas City time capsule are revealed at World War I museum
The National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City unveiled a century-old time capsule on Wednesday, showcasing a treasure trove of artifacts and relics from the early 20th century. The capsule, buried in 1924, was embedded deep within the limestone and concrete of the Liberty Memorial Tower and was retrieved this summer after a challenging process involving drilling through 18 inches of concrete and limestone.
During the unveiling ceremony, three artifacts were revealed live to an audience including local students. The first item was a tube of seeds symbolizing the agricultural community of Kansas City. Following that was a tube containing letters of congratulations from Allied military leaders who attended the 1921 groundbreaking for the Liberty Memorial, along with a letter from President Calvin Coolidge.
The final artifact revealed was a printing plate from the Kansas City Star, dated November 1, 1921, featuring a headline about 60,000 people participating in a three-mile parade. The museum staff was particularly impressed by the signatures etched inside the copper box, which they could not identify but speculated belonged to those who participated in the construction of the time capsule.
The retrieval process was complicated by the presence of potentially combustible materials, including a film made from nitrate. The Kansas City Police Department’s bomb and arson unit assisted in opening the capsule safely without any incidents.
The artifacts were well-preserved, with no damage from water or mold. Curators and museum staff dedicated eight hours to carefully unpack the items, using tweezers and small blades to ensure the artifacts and their packaging remained intact. The items included a film of the 1921 groundbreaking, the 1917 Declaration of War, and a 1921 Kansas City Star article engraved in copper.
The museum is currently taking submissions for its own centennial time capsule to be buried in 2026, aiming to include a variety of artifacts such as sports memorabilia, entertainment items, and documents about the politics and economy of the day.
