On Tuesday night, April 25th, the long-anticipated secrets of the Time-Capsule were revealed. After 45 minutes of cutting and grinding on the copper box, we were able to open the top and reveal the historical contents. Once opened, it was apparent that the box had been sealed with a preservative, and the aroma of Formaldehyde seemed to fill the air. The pictures, paperwork, newspapers, booklets, and American Flag were in great condition and had the appearance relative to a few months old instead of 99 years old.
There were 2 pictures inside, showing the original ground-breaking event, which was held in July of 1924 and a third one of Barberton from 1891, which shows the infamous Malony Farm, with Lake Anna in the background.
Among the artifacts were invitations and programs covering the Cornerstone ceremony from August of 1924. Additionally, there were 5 pocket-sized booklets from 1909, 1910, 1911, 1912 & 1915. They listed members and officers of National Lodge No. 568 and included information from Jeanette Chapter Eastern Star and Portage Chapter RAM. There was a copy of the original business paperwork and bylaws for the ‘New Barberton Masonic Temple Co.’ and a typed roster of National Lodge members from 1924. The newspapers were from the Barberton Herald, Barberton News, the Akron Beacon Journal, The Sunday Times and The Evening Times. The 1911 American Flag was also very impressive to see, it had 46 Star’s.
We are working to catalog these items and put together a display case and maybe a ‘historical room’ for displaying these items for all to see. We also plan to have a link on our website so that you can see these items and read the history of National Lodge No. 568.
