DERIDDER, La. (AP) - The discovery of a time capsule in the foundation of the Beauregard Parish Courthouse has community members wondering about its contents.
The copper capsule was placed in the northeast cornerstone of the courthouse when it was built in 1914 by the local Masonic lodge, and DeRidder lodge past master Ronnie Jackson said it was put there as part of a long-standing Masonic tradition.
“The Masonic lodge often donated the northeast cornerstone to many public buildings, and I would guess maybe even a few large churches, as they were being constructed,” he said. “And in each of those cornerstones they placed inside it a capsule of historical information or items.”
Recently, as construction workers began remodeling the existing walls of the courthouse, they removed the original cornerstone and found a small wooden door - behind which was a small copper box that both time and the community had forgotten.
“No one I have spoken with even knew that time capsule was there,” he said. “There are some who assumed there was one there, but no one recalled it being put there.”
The find has excited people and spurred predictions of what the small box may hold.
“It rattles when you shake it, and I think there must be something metallic inside of it,” Jackson said.
The capsule has been put on display in the window of the Greater Beauregard Chamber of Commerce, on Washington Street, and Executive Director Lisa Adams has her own ideas on its contents.
“I think maybe it could be a Mason coin,” she said. “Something that the Masons would do many times was put a coin in their capsules before sealing it.”
Jackson said that since the Masons placed the time capsule, it is up to the lodge to decide when to open it.
“I have been speaking with the grand master for the state, and he will be traveling here to have the honor of opening it,” he said. “But that date is still being finalized.”
The capsule-opening ceremony will include the continuation of the Masonic tradition, with another capsule placed in the courthouse for another generation to discover.
Other DeRidder buildings that also possess cornerstones donated by the Freemasons include DeRidder High School and Beauregard Memorial Hospital.
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Information from: American Press, https://www.americanpress.com
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