Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay unearths 1962 time capsule
Boys & Girls Club staff find time capsule
The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Tampa Bay is celebrating its big centennial milestone this year. And to commemorate 100 years, they're going back in time. FOX 13's Ariel Plasencia reports.
TAMPA, Fla. - As the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay prepare for their centennial exhibit at the Tampa Bay History Center, staff discovered a time capsule from 1962.
The copper box
The backstory:
Staff with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay were digging through storage units — searching for items to put in their upcoming exhibit — when they stumbled upon a copper box that had been completely welded shut on all sides.
It took a hammer and a crowbar to finally pry it open. Inside, they found a perfectly preserved snapshot of history: A time capsule from 1962.
The box was packed with items to commemorate the grand opening of the Interbay Boys Club on S. Coolidge Ave. in Tampa — which is no longer open and run by the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay.
Among the meticulously packed items were paper programs from the club’s grand opening, black-and-white photos from a ceremonial dinner, a cigar, and a congratulatory telegram from former U.S. President Herbert Hoover, who was serving as board chairman of the Boys’ Clubs of America, as it was known at the time.
"Even reading these speeches, there were mentions of communism, the Cold War — you know, it’s from the 60s and that’s what their whole lives were about," said Ava Cahoon, the senior director of communications for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Tampa Bay. "Being able to read it, it literally felt like a step back in time."
Where you can see these artifacts
What's next:
This time capsule will be featured in a special 100-year centennial exhibit at the Tampa Bay History Center, running from October 1 through November 30.
As part of the festivities, the organization plans to seal a brand-new time capsule to capture the current era.
The Source: The information in this story was provided by the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Tampa Bay, which detailed the finding of the time capsule.