The city of Aurora held a journey back in time on Saturday with the unsealing of a time capsule that was more than 100 years old.
The time capsule was found just before the emergency demolition of the historic Lincoln Masonic Temple at Benton and Lincoln streets in Aurora, which took place in 2019 following a three-alarm fire there, city officials said. The structure was erected between 1921 and 1924 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. The time capsule is estimated to be from 1921 through 1924, as the building’s cornerstone was laid in 1921, officials said.
Before 5 p.m. Saturday, visitors began gathering in the plaza outside the Grand Army of the Republic Military Museum in downtown Aurora to witness the opening of the capsule.
Visitor Ruth Grams of Aurora said she “was curious about the contents,” adding that she grew up in Aurora,
“When it burned down it was pretty sad but I am curious,” Grams said of the Masonic Temple and the time capsule found there. “As far as what’s in (the capsule), I don’t know.”
Jon Zaghloul, director of communications for the city of Aurora, said the discovery of the time capsule was fortuitous given it was made just before the historic Masonic Temple’s demolition.
“There was a fire there is 2019 and the discovery was made just before the building was torn down,” he said.
He said the opening of the time capsule opens a window into Aurora’s past.
“I think it’s extraordinary,” he said. “It’s pretty remarkable from an historical perspective to have on hand a 100-year-plus time capsule and then get to unveil it to the public.”
Aurora Historical Society Executive Director John Jaros, just prior to the opening of the time capsule, said “stuff like this is very interesting and it’s rare.”
“Personally, I’ve witnessed just two of these,” he said. “I’ve been in Aurora over 40 years doing this job and in 1987 – during the (city’s) sesquicentennial celebration – they opened the G.A.R time capsule that was placed in 1877 – over 100 years. Then when the old Second Bank did their 80-year anniversary of the building they opened one too. You can’t put a lot of stuff in them. You find pictures and newspaper clippings and things like that.”
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The opening took place in front of an estimated crowd of nearly 100 who packed the plaza and sidewalks along Downer Place near the G.A.R. Museum. It took at least 10 minutes for three people who took turns with a chisel and a hammer to pry open the lid of the time capsule.
Once finally pried open, reams of paper that Jaros said “looked to be in pretty good shape” gave way to a tube containing blueprints and a lot of small books featuring Masonic by-laws, a temple manual from 1884, by-laws from another Masonic lodge in Aurora, manuals from 1897 and 1922 and a Mason’s apron.
Kevin Hoover of Aurora, a Freemason and member of Jerusalem Temple Lodge 90, was one of the three who worked to open the time capsule, and declared the contents “as history.”
“Over 100 years has passed and this has been encapsulated into our old Masonic lodge and we have over 12 members of our lodge that came,” he said. “Everyone was eager to see what was inside. There’s a certain amount of destiny that this was found and not destroyed. I think fate is the determining factor. It was a strange chain of events that led to this.”
Kyle Reeves of Aurora said the showcasing of the Masonic items was compelling.
“I thought it was interesting that there were so many different groups of Masons involved in doing their thing in Aurora at that time,” he said. “I was curious about all the different documents they brought out and what the by-laws were and the significance of the aprons they wore.”
David Sharos is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.