Millenium Time Capsule opened after 25 years

Kawartha Lakes – On Tuesday, December 16, the Millennium Time Capsule, located in Queen’s Square (in front of the Library in Lindsay), was opened and removed during a public ceremony.

Installed in 2000 underneath the Eternal Flame, the Time Capsule was created to capture life in our community at that time. The Town of Lindsay Millennium Committee organized the placement of commemorative objects.

The ceremony began with a short speech by Kawartha Lakes Mayor Doug Elmslie. “It is worth noting the care and time it took for [committee members] in choosing to commit their mementos to a container for the future,” said Mayor Elmslie. “What is enclosed represents their thoughts and items of significance for the time. Today, when we reveal the contents, we will see what mattered then, what has changed, and what has stayed the same.”

The Time Capsule was then removed from the pillar by Reenie Brydon, who was one of the children who placed it in the pillar 25 years ago. Following removal, the capsule was opened in front of a large crowd in the atrium of Kent Place Mall.

Items inside the capsule, chosen by committee members and donated by residents and businesses, gave a glimpse back in time to what life was like in 2000, before Kawartha Lakes was a single-tier municipality. Included were a copy of the Lindsay Post, two cassette tapes of a daily radio show, a grocery receipt, a Lindsay Riverfestival t-shirt, and more; a full list of items is below.

For anyone who missed the ceremony, a live-streamed video of the removal and opening of the Time Capsule are available on Instagram.

The following are the people involved in the Millennium Committee and Time Capsule installation:

Lindsay Millennium Committee

Barb Truax, Co-Chair

George Inrig, Co-Chair

Donna Barry

Mel Beatty

Garnet Brydon

Margaret Cunningham

Rob Curtin

Pat Dunn, former CKL Councillor

Barry Harper

Catherine Hennings

Betty Matten

Margaret Maxwell

Karen Park

Shawn Patriquin

Bonnie Ravey

‘Children’ who put the Time Capsule in the Pillar

Reenie Brydon

Mathew Kent

Caelin Nesbit

These three people were children when they put the Time Capsule in the pillar. They are now adults.

Person who Built the Pillar

William ‘Bud’ Barrett

Items in Time Capsule

1.     Canadian one dollar bill and a two dollar bill, donated by the Honourable Judge George Inrig

2.     “Lindsay Riverfestival” event t-shirt

3.     Photograph of the Lindsay Millennium Committee, 2000

4.     Cassette from Y92 (91.9 FM), 10:00am hour, November 1, 2000

5.     Cassette from Y92 FM, 7:30am to 8:00am, November 2, 2000

6.     Cassette from Y92 FM, 7:00am, November 1, 2000

7.     Cassette from Y92 FM, 6:00am, November 1, 2000

8.     Cassette from Y92 FM, 11:00am, November 1, 2000

9.     “Celebrating our past and future” Trans Canada Trail train whistle. Signed by Mayor Art Truax, John O’Reilly M.P., John R. Mocklen (Warden) and Prime Minister Jean Chretien

10. Laminated picture of the Lindsay Armoury, donated by Ruth Minaker

11. Business card for the Town of Lindsay Parks and Open Space Manager Gary Durnan. Text on the back: “I should be in my 70th year of life when this capsule is opened. I would only hope that I’d be retired and enjoying it. Thanks for the employment, Town of Lindsay Parks Departments and on to the City of Kawartha Lakes.”

12. “Celebrating our past and future,” flag, 2000

13. Lindsay Daily Post, December 31, 1999 edition

14. Lindsay Daily Post, January 4, 2000 edition

15. Community Update Booklet from the office of Chris Hodgson, M.P.P. Haliburton- Victoria-Brock

16. Photograph of Riverfestival Committee, 2000

17. A letter written by 7-year-old Caelin Nisbet, November 23, 2000

18. CD, “We are the 21st Century: The school songs and talent of Trillium Lakelands District School Board.”

19. Newspaper copy of The Weekly Post, January 5, 1900 edition

20. Typical grocery bill for the year 2000 (for a family of four children)

21. Copy of “Lindsay My Home Town” song brochure for Lindsay’s Old Home Week June 28 to July 5, 1924

22. Two St. Paul’s Anglican Church bookmarks

23. Parliamentary Report from the office of John O’Reilly, M.P. Haliburton-Victoria- Brock, Summer 2000

24. “Sharing the Memory, Shaping the Dream” paper souvenir from the Government of Canada, 2000

25. Typical gasoline bill in the year 2000