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Council Bluffs Community School District opens time capsule from 1953

In 1953, a time capsule was sealed into the cornerstone of Tinley School on the corner of Avenue G and North 8th Street. Eventually, the building was torn down for safety reasons. But more than 57 years later, the contents of the capsule have been revealed in a display at the Council Bluffs Public Library.
Posted at 5:54 PM, Jan 14, 2021
and last updated 2021-01-14 19:09:40-05

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Ia. (KMTV) — In modern times, memories get saved through photos, videos and Snapchat stories. But students and staff in 1953 saved old memorabilia, drawings and black and white photos for the world to uncover in 2021.

Alumna Sharon Stapleton says seeing all the contents makes her look back to the "good old days."

"It just made me feel happy that I'm actually still alive when everything was opened," Stapleton said.

While the school building no longer exists, there is one thing that remains: close relationships.

"Some of those friends I have to this day, that's more important to me than the actual building, although I did spend a lot of time in the school yard playing jacks and things like that which nobody probably plays anymore," Stapleton said.

Marylyn Heenan was in Kindergarten during the year of the time capsule. Seeing it also makes her nostalgic.

"You could walk to school, you could go home after school to one of your friends and make sure you were home by five," Heenan said. "Even if they lived on Oak Park Road, and down on Avenue G or something, you could ride your bike, you could just do so many things."

Roughly - more than 200 items made it into the time capsule. This is just a small sampling of what was inside. Still - graduates hope the class photos, student artwork and newspaper articles give an inkling of what staff and students were once a part of.

"Whether you think it was a better time or not, just nice to see, where we were and where we've come," Heenan said.

The display will be up at the library until the end of January.