UPDATE DECEMBER 27, 2021:
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam says crews wrapping up the removal of a giant pedestal that once held a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee found what appears to be a second and long-sought-after time capsule. The governor tweeted photos of a box being removed from the Richmond site Monday (Dec. 27, 2021) and said conservators were studying the artifact. The governor said the box would not be opened Monday. The development marked the latest turn in a months-long search for a capsule that news accounts said was placed in 1887. An earlier time capsule found at the site and opened last week turned out to be a different one.
UPDATE DECEMBER 22, 2021:
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A state conservator in Virginia has begun the delicate task of trying to open a 134-year-old time capsule that had sat beneath a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond. Conservator Chelsea Blake with Virginia’s Department of Historic Resources pressed a vibrating tool with a hard metal tip against the rectangular capsule Wednesday afternoon (Dec. 22, 2021). The container is about the size of a large shoe box. Opening it has so far proven to be a challenging and time consuming task. The container is made of lead and is heavily corroded. The capsule was also partly covered in mortar that must be gingerly chipped away. Both the box and its contents are considered artifacts.
UPDATE DECEMBER 17, 2021:
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Crews working to remove the pedestal where a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee had stood believe they’ve found a time capsule buried there in 1887. The massive equestrian statue was taken down in September 2021. At the time, work crews were unable to locate the time capsule. But on Friday (Dec. 17, 2021), crews found a square box embedded in a granite stone. The governor’s chief of staff says crews need to extract the box to be sure it’s the capsule. An 1887 newspaper article suggests the capsule contains Civil War memorabilia and a “picture of Lincoln lying in his coffin,” although historians believe it’s doubtful the picture is an actual photograph.
ORIGINAL STORIES SEPTEMBER 9, 2021:
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Work crews searching for a time capsule they believe is buried inside the pedestal under a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that had towered over Richmond, Virginia, have hit a snag. Crews were having difficulty Thursday morning (Sept. 9, 2021) finding the precise location of the time capsule. Then late Thursday morning, a crane they were using to lift heavy pieces of the cornerstone broke down, stalling work until a another crane was brought in a few hours later. State officials were scheduled to remove the 134-year-old time capsule from the cornerstone a day after the large Confederate statue was taken down.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Now that an iconic statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee has been taken down in Richmond, crews plan to remove a piece of history from its gigantic pedestal. A time capsule from 1887 that state officials believe is tucked inside the statue’s base is set to be removed Thursday (Sept. 9, 2021). It will be replaced with a new capsule that contains items reflective of current times. Those include an expired vial of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and a photo of a Black ballerina with her fist raised near the Lee statue. The 1887 capsule is believed to contain Confederate memorabilia and a picture of Abraham Lincoln in his coffin.
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