The Harrisburg Lions Club is once again preserving the present for the benefit of future generations. On Saturday, the club sealed a new time chest that will remain closed until 2071.

Club members opted to construct a time chest this time around, rather than a time capsule. In August 2021, they unearthed a time capsule buried in 1971, only to find that water had seeped in and ruined nearly everything inside. The only items salvaged were 15 coins, which were on display Saturday.

“All the pictures and letters put in the time capsule in 1971 disintegrated,” Lions Club member Johnny Spry told the crowd on Saturday. 

That disappointment led to the decision to build a time chest that would remain sealed above ground in order to preserve its contents.

The chest was built by Mike Lewis from the timbers of the old 1878 schoolhouse that was torn down recently. It was sealed on Saturday evening by Dale Blakemore, the oldest living man in Harrisburg at 87. 

Several items, including essays by Harrisburg high school and elementary school students, were placed inside the time chest. Parents wrote letters to their children. Four-year-old Emmett Furlong made one final entry into the chest moments before it was sealed.

The dedication came after a day of events that included a vendor/craft fair, a fish fry, and live music.

“I appreciate everyone who came out to be a part of Harrisburg history,” Spry said.

The chest will be opened in 2071 when Harrisburg celebrates its bicentennial. By a show of hands, Spry asked who in attendance was under the ages of 30 and 40 and asked them to swear to be in Harrisburg in 48 years to re-open the chest.