Unearthed West Point time capsule first thought to be empty now yields several coins, medal in sediment

A nearly 200-year-old time capsule that appeared to include only dirt when opened earlier this week at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., has now yielded several old items found in the sediment, officials said Wednesday.

The capsule, a lead box about 1 cubic foot in size, was found a few months ago when workers were renovating the academy’s bronze monument of Thaddeus Kosciuszko, a Polish-born engineer who fortified West Point in the late 18th century. When archaeologists opened the box during an unveiling event on Monday, nothing recognizable was immediately apparent.

“We are not certain if it’s soil or mud or dust,” Paul Hudson, a West Point archaeologist, said at the time. “It may not be anything.”

Not so fast, the academy said in an update Wednesday.

“[The] time capsule from 1828 opened by the U.S. Military Academy’s archeologist team during a ceremony on Monday contained six American silver coins and a commemorative medal,” the academy said in a statement. “The historic artifacts were discovered in the sediment.”

Among the artifacts scientists uncovered were a liberty dollar coin from 1800, a 50 cent piece from 1828, a quarter from 1818, a dime from 1827, a 5 cent coin from 1795, a penny from 1827 and an Erie Canal commemorative medal from 1826, which was issued to celebrate the completion of the Erie Canal in upstate New York in 1825.

“This is an incredible story that involves so many of West Point’s heroes and many of them are the Army’s and our nation’s heroes,” said Brig. Gen. Shane Reeves, the dean of the academy’s academic board. “We should reflect upon and be inspired by our history to pause and realize we have the immense honor and responsibility to continue the legacy that Kosciusko started.”

The academy said the “historical preservation process” is ongoing and there could be more updates on what was found in the box.