Covenant News

Copper Time Capsule Reveals Timeless Treasures

TURLOCK, CA (October 6, 2005) - Members of the Turlock Covenant Church did some time traveling Wednesday of last week when they unsealed a time capsule that had been placed in the church's foundation in 1928.

Seventy-seven years ago, church leaders placed in the copper box a number of items - a postage stamp, a dollar bill, a group photo, a plumber's business card, and newspapers in both English and Swedish.

Also found was a typewritten list of prize winners from the Sunday school, which included the name of Millie Hillberg, who along with her sister, Gladys Liner, was present at the opening of the time capsule. Now in her early nineties, Millie told the Modesto Bee that her father, C.A. Hillberg, was the superintendent of the church's construction project and was the one who cemented the box into the foundation.

An article in the Modesto News-Herald reported the story of the time capsule in 1928 that was cemented in "the cornerstone of Beulah Tabernacle." The Modesto Bee reprinted the story in 2003, and that raised the interest of church leaders.

It took some time before leaders could find the box in the foundation and eventually had to use a metal detector to find the treasure behind a plaque near the northwest corner of the foundation. The box was found about a month and a half ago.

Members opened the box in the basement of the church during a special gathering. The church plans to display the items in a glass-enclosed case, says Pastor Jeff Woods, adding, "It's pretty exciting."

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