Christ Church in Warwick prepares to bury time capsule

Community hopes to offer descendents a view of current times 100 years hence Warwick - In October 2004, 11-year-old Sam Barker wrapped his hands around a dusty, 146-year-old copper box unearthed from its resting place in the basement foundation of Christ Church on South Street, pulling it into the light of day for the first time in over a century. The soldered, copper box, inscribed “J.L Sutton, Maker, July 16, 1866,” was a time capsule placed in the church’s wall in a ceremony on July 17, 1866. The Rev. Dr. Tyng, the rector of Christ Church at the time, blessed the capsule, which contained church documents and prayer books, currency of the day and newspapers of the time, including a copy of The Warwick Advertiser of July 14, 1866. The discovery of the time capsule was made in the early fall of 2004 by Ivy Tulin, a Christ Church parishioner, retired teacher, author, and Victorian history buff. She had offered to organize a mountain of neglected church paperwork stored for decades in deteriorating boxes in the church’s attic. While archiving papers, she read of a buried time capsule. She discovered an itemized list of the contents, but she found no information on the actual location of the buried artifact. An urgent search and help from her family as well as Rev. J. Scott Barker, the current Christ Church rector, and his young son, Sam, yielded the box’s location in the church’s basement wall. Fast forward to 2006 Christ Church’s rich history of service to its community and its struggle to establish itself in the difficult days after the Civil War are now well-known, thanks to Tulin’s curatorial efforts and the history provided by the time capsule documents and attic papers. The documents have been carefully archived, copied, preserved, and displayed at Christ Church during the last two years for the congregation and community to review. Now, inspired by the actions of the Christ Church community of 1866, it is time to offer this history and the tradition of a time capsule, forward to future generations. On Nov. 1 at 7:30 p.m., Christ Church invites the entire Warwick community and those with historic interests or family ties to Christ Church to participate in a candlelight All Saints’ Day ceremony at the church at 50 South St. in the Village of Warwick. The ceremony will culminate in the interment of a new time capsule on the church property, intended for opening in 2106. The original time capsule offered a window into the historic times in which the congregation of 1866 lived, recording the life of church ministries, social history, tenets of faith and church canons. The new capsule has been fashioned in copper and inscribed by box maker Rick Shone of “The Tin Knocker” of Newton, N.J. It will be about one-third bigger than the 1866 capsule to provide an opportunity for today’s parishioners to place personal messages to those who will open the box in one hundred years. The new box also will include today’s currency, church documents and prayer books, newspapers and a bible to provide historic context. Hopes and dreams “The 2006 box will show who the people of Christ Church are at this moment, how their dreams and talents are used as an expression of their faith,” Tulin said. The 2006 time capsule will be interred in the building’s original iron-lined coal chute located on the sidewall of the church. The chute is accessible from the building’s exterior and is by design, a strong and weather impervious space. For safety, the chute has been lined with cement board and reinforced. The iron door of the chute will be permanently sealed after the interment ceremony and a commemorative plaque affixed, only to be opened in 2106. All of the original contents of the July 17, 1866, will be wrapped and replaced and the box re-soldered for interment in its original spot in the church basement upon completion of masonry repairs to the foundation. Both capsules will be solder-sealed at 9 a.m. on Nov. 1. In 1866, the people of Christ Church, torn by Civil War and economic hardship, extended a hopeful hand across time by leaving for future generations some of themselves and their world in a small copper box buried in a church basement. Today, the people of Christ Church and the community of Warwick will extend the same gift to future generations so that they too may come to know their places in the history of this community and this church better. For additional information on the All Saints’ Service and time capsule interment ceremony on Nov. 1, call the Christ Church office at 986 -3440 or visit www.christchurch.org. This story was provided by Joan Tirrell.