On April 16, 1977 at the Nucla Cemetery, a time capsule was buried. Some in the West End might remember this happening. While there are people who attended the time capsule event that may have passed on, there are those 50 years later still here.
Back then, Monte, Betty and Lars Naslund attended the event, as did Bob, Barbara, Lori and George Freeman. So did Brenda Barnes, Gale and Kim Bunker, Lana Tovrea and her youngest daughter, along with Colleen Rice, plus George, Corey and Joan Elliot. Also present were Bob Madole and Roger Culver, the former owner of the San Miguel Basin Forum. Notes about the time capsule also say a little boy “wandered in from one of the neighboring ranches,” though attendants were not sure of his name.
Instructions made for the 1977 time capsule state that “the Nucla Time Capsule is to be opened in 2026, then resealed and reopened in 2076 for the Tricentennial Celebration.” After that, the contents are to be placed in the local museum and then held by the Rimrocker Historical Society.
Records say the time capsule contents and instructions are kept at Nucla Town Hall, the Colorado Cooperative Company and also the Rimrocker museum on Main Street.
Notes say the capsule is made of fiberglass to protect against moisture and decay. It’s sealed with waterproof tape, and many of the photos and materials have been protected in other ways too.
It’s buried six-feet deep “for long-lasting preservation,” and John Reed told the Forum last weekend he thinks the goods are in an actual coffin. Those who attend the resurrection will find out when it’s exhumed.
Inside the capsule are various items: histories and essays of the time, photographs, newspaper clippings, information on the bicentennial that happened in 1976, a street banner, a retired American flag, posters, bumper stickers and other memorabilia.
There are also government artifacts like ballots, historical documents and books, pamphlets and items from the school. This includes a picture of the sixth-grade class, taught by Martha Borcherdt, some school supplies and 4-H booklets.
There’s a health packet with birth control pills, information on drinking and driving, along with information on the danger of drugs, and references for mental health services.
Included are various calendars of the time, recipes and clothing items. Gale Bunker donated a pair of Levis jeans to be encapsulated. There is also a collection of materials on hunting and fishing that relate to that year. Does anyone remember Latta Tire Service of Naturita? They donated a steel-reinforced polyester tire. Joan Elliot put in a pack of cigarettes.
In the notes, it does say that there is a list of those buried at the Pinion Cemetery too, something that may or may not add to the work that the Booth family has undertaken in their work of caretaking the historic cemetery.
There are also documents on the Dominguez-Escalante Bicentennial Expedition too, something Carol Hunter, of Nucla, has been resurfacing in the West End through the modern-day Dominguez Escalante Expedition Education Project.
Representatives at Nucla Town Hall have been discussing the time capsule, but they’re not sure when the exhumation will occur. Likely it will not happen during July 4 festivities.
Jane Thompson, of Rimrocker Historical Society, said the time capsule was more of a Town of Nucla event.
“After reading the information, it will be interesting to see what the committee thought was important,” Thompson said.
