Posted on 08/27/2023 10:40:09 AM PDT by lowbridge
A long-forgotten time capsule at West Point recently discovered inside the base of a monument and believed to have been left by cadets in the late 1820s is expected to be pried open Monday.
The contents of the small lead box could possibly provide a window into the early, more Spartan days of the storied US Military Academy.
It’s not certain exactly when the box was placed in the monument’s marble base or who chose any items inside, though a committee of five cadets that may have been involved with the time capsule included 1829 graduate Robert E. Lee, the future Confederate general.
The box will be opened during a livestreamed event.
“It’s a mystery, right? A mystery of history,” said Jennifer Voigtschild, the academy’s command historian.
The container was discovered in May during restoration to a monument honoring the Revolutionary War hero Thaddeus Kosciuszko.
A construction manager made the surprise find and carefully pulled out the hefty box, which is about a cubic foot.
“After I shut the job down and we roped off the area, then I realized, ‘Oh my gosh, what did we find?’” manager Chris Branson said.
Cadets in the 1820s honored Kosciuszko, a Polish military engineer, with a column near where current classes march and play soccer.
As an officer of the Continental Army, he designed wartime fortifications at the location along the Hudson River, before the military academy was established there in 1802.
A plaque indicates the monument was erected by the corps of cadets in 1828. Other evidence suggests it wasn’t completed until 1829.
That includes a July 1828 letter from a committee of cadets involved in the dedication, including Lee, seeking advice on lettering for the monument.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
The Navy tried to get me Pre-9/11(1998) and I wasn’t feeling particularly Patriotic back then, so I didn’t join.
Lol!
Got to drink a lot of water to swallow that capsule ...
“...discovered inside the base of a monument...”
While they were tearing it DOWN? *SPIT*
Someone will be offended by what’s in the time capsule. Put money on it. :(
Good one! :)
“…the tranny modern day communist generals aren’t going to like what they find.“
My first thought!
You graduated just in time for a fighting war.
When they rebuilt the bridge in NYC named in his honor and announced they wanted to change the name people freaked and they dropped the idea post haste.
Dang, I never saw anything in the Army other than C-Rats in the '70's into the early '80's. Just missed them.
They’ll need a translator for everything written in cursive.
A time when the military was all white and able to actually win wars.
Amen brother. Today it’s being run by neo socialists who loved the idea of removing the portrait of General Lee from the library. Did they also rename Lee hall?
A Black unit did much at Yorktown to win our first war.
A modern day time capsule would be woke as hell.
Didn’t I hear recently that they are considering putting the Tappan Zee name back. I grew up Westchester County and upstate NY and really hate to see those great historic names gutted. The Dutch and Indian names are great.
“The Dutch and Indian names are great.”
Agree. I grew up in Western NY and the Dutch influence was big there, too, even though it was strongest in the Hudson River area. If course, the Indian names are everywhere.
About 25% of the last names in my school stat6e with “van”.
-PJ
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