Time Capsules are created with the hope of sharing present experiences with future communities, and their interment and discovery are often of great community and local media interest. But whose responsibility is it to select, handle, or preserve the materials and how should this be done? Using the time capsules already discovered and processed as well as the one most recently created by Delaware State University and its archives, this presentation explores the role of time capsules in local history. Topics include: the types of time capsules institutions may work with; the idea of “collective memory” and how time capsules can shape future perceptions of the present; and some of the best practices and current literature available for those planning to exhume, process, and preserve a recently found capsule.
