Time capsule contents spark memories in McKeesport
The time capsule was recently found, along with two others, after its intended 2020 opening was delayed by the pandemic.
Area residents felt nostalgic Wednesday evening as they uncovered memories of duck races and long-lost relatives while skimming through the contents of a time capsule at the McKeesport Regional History and Heritage Center.
The story of how the capsules were found proved to be interesting, as they were never buried.
Tim Kunes, executive director of the Heritage Center, explained that an intern discovered the three capsules while working in the archives room, where they were tucked away in the back of shelving.
“I would have assumed that they meant to bury them,” Kunes said, “but they never got buried.”
The time capsule project stemmed from a celebration of the city’s bicentennial in 1995.
Executive Director Tim Kunes (right) and Board Director Ronald Minnicks (left) open the time capsule.
Kunes stated that the capsules were found to have been sealed in 1997, and contributions from residents were accepted through the end of 1996.
They were set to be opened at specified intervals — 25 years, 50 years and finally 100 years in 2095. The capsule unveiled Wednesday was supposed to be opened in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic caused it to be delayed.
“After we empty the contents of this one,” Kunes said, “the plan is to have it refilled throughout the remainder of 2026.”
The Heritage Center plans to host a burial event in the spring of 2027 where the refilled capsule will be place in the ground along with the other two.
Among newspaper articles, pennants and medallions from churches, student club magazines and letters, the main focus was on certificates for duck races in 1995. Three decades later, local residents uncovered forgotten memories and reconnected with each other as they searched through the certificates.
Todd Skinner was 7 years old when his mother helped him write his certificate, naming his duck André.
He came to realize that the community is much closer than he once thought, as people were reconnecting with former teachers and elders in their lives, allowing bonds to be rekindled and made.
“For me, it’s just getting a sense of how close-knit the community is, and you realize that there are a lot of connections that you forgot about,” Skinner said. “A lot of the names mentioned today are familiar.”
Upon hearing about the duck race certificates, he felt an immediate wave of forgotten memories that he was grateful to experience again.
“Listening to the presentation and seeing the duck race certificate, it brought back a lot of memories that I completely forgot about,” Skinner said.
Todd’s mother, Jennie Skinner, experienced something similar while watching a VHS film that The Heritage Center removed from the time capsule.
“It is very nostalgic,” she said. “The movie was very nostalgic for me just because I was born and raised in McKeesport. It was really fun to see that.”
She recognized a relative in the film.
“One of the people in the movie, Leonard Tabbish, is a relative of mine,” she said. “He’s my dad’s cousin.”
Some people who attended the event weren’t able to have their family present to witness the opening. Daniel Yeager lost his mother and father before the capsule was opened, and his memory wasn’t as strong when recalling the days surrounding the duck race.
“I’m surprised, excited, curious,” he said. “I have faint memories of the day, but no memories of doing it.”
His father made a certificate with him where they named their ducks “Taz” and “Ryan-Sa-Lad.” The capsule opening proved to be difficult emotionally, but Yeager still found joy in the moment.
“In his, he states that he wishes he would have been here to see it open,” Yeager said.
