STURGIS, S.D. – An 1894 Meade County Courthouse time capsule discovered in 2016 was reinstalled today, with new items added.
The Sturgis and Meade County Historical Society, in cooperation with the Meade County Commission and the Sturgis Area Arts Council, held a ceremony at the Erskine Building, where the time capsule was reinstalled on the first floor.
The time capsule was originally placed in the corner stone of the original Meade County Courthouse, during the building’s dedication in 1894. Mark Rambow President of the Sturgis and Meade County Historical Society, says the time capsule was discovered in 1964 when the new Meade County Courthouse was being built. The tin box was placed in a compartment under a model of the original courthouse and eventually forgotten – until it was found by Kevin Forrester – at the time, a Meade County employee.
Rambow says the Historical Society purchased an archival-safe container, protective sleeves and binders to secure, not just the original items, but other items that have been added to the time capsule…
Rambow says the new items are intended to fill in some of the gaps in the community and county’s history since 1894 and 1964.
We asked Rambow if there was a set time for the capsule to be opened in the future…
Rambow says since the discovery of the time capsule, it has been the intent of the Meade County Commission to reinstall the time capsule in their Erskine Office Building, which itself is the refurbished historic Erskine School building.
To that end, the Commission authorized the historical society, with the help of the Sturgis Area Arts Council, to plan and prepare the time capsule for today’s reinstallation.
