Halifax Explosion committee to decide on contents of new time capsule

What message does Halifax want to send to the future?

The advisory committee for the 100thanniversary of the Halifax Explosion will tackle that questionduring a public meeting this week about what to put in a new time capsule tied to the event.

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The capsule will replace one that was encased in 1985 at the memorial monument in Fort Needham Park. Thepark overlooks where the Norwegian steamship Imo, which carried Belgian relief supplies,collidedwith the French munitions ship Mont-Blancon Dec. 6, 1917, sparkingthe fire that set off the explosion, killing about 2,000 and injuring 10,000 more.

The time capsule from 1985 will be opened thisyear.

The committee already has a list of items in mind for a new time capsule, but is open to any suggestionsthat might be brought up at a meeting next Thursday at 3 p.m. at the Leeds Street campus of the Nova Scotia Community College.

"All ideas are on the table as long as we meet the guidelines with regards to preservation," said committee chair Craig Walkington.

Dozens of suggested items

Among the ideas that will be considered on Thursday:

• A program from the 100thanniversary event program.
• A coin.
• A stamp.
• A poem by Nova Scotia-born poet George Elliott Clarke.
• Official letters from the mayor, the premier, the prime minister and the Queen.
• A bibliography of Halifax Explosion publications.
• A catalogue of contemporary works of art specific to the explosion.
• A map of areas damaged by the explosion.
• Explosion artifacts.
• A local restaurant menu.
• A grocery receipt from 2017, along with copies of 1985 and 1917 receipts.

In all, there are 24 line items on the agenda about the time capsule's contents.

"We felt that we needed to set those parameters first so we would be able to arrive at a list of potential items to go in more quickly, and also to ensure that we wouldn't run into a situation where we get so many requests to put in items that we run out of room because there is a limited space for this time capsule," Walkingtonsaid.

The items need to reflect the anniversary event's principles guidelines such as being educational and respectful and also follow conservation guidelines so that the items inside aren't ruined before their scheduled retrieval in 2067.

Walkington said the time capsule will be secreted away after the 100th anniversary event has taken place, to allow items such as newspaper articles about the ceremonies to be placed inside.

After Thursday's meeting, the committee willbegin finalizing the list of time capsule contents and workwith city staff to make sure it's suitable, he said.