by Audrey Anderson
Hometown Weekly Reporter
On December 10, a lively ceremony was held at the new Walpole Middle School for the filling of Walpole’s 300th anniversary time capsule. This was the final event of Walpole’s yearlong 300th Anniversary Celebration.
Before the program began, attendees looked over a table full of materials removed from 1974’s 250th anniversary time capsule. That time capsule was embedded in the brick wall of the old Walpole Town Hall. Included among those materials were a poster for Walpole’s 250th anniversary celebration, which was held at the King Phillip Ballroom at Lake Pearl in Wrentham. According to the poster, shuttle buses at Blackburn Memorial Hall brought attendees to and from the ballroom several times during the evening. Tickets to the event cost $5 per person. Several bands played during the evening. Three issues of the Walpole Times were also included, among many other photos and mementos from 1974.
Town employee Bill Buckley welcomed attendees gathered around the 2024 time capsule, which is embedded in the wall near the administration office at the new Walpole Middle School. Children proudly carried items for the 300th anniversary time capsule to town employee Mike Mansen, who placed them in the capsule. The 2024 time capsule will be opened in 2074, during the 350th anniversary of the Town of Walpole. Most of the young people that were present at the current ceremony will surely be witnesses to the next one in 50 years.
The items placed in the 2024 time capsule included information and mementos from the town’s 300th anniversary celebration, as well as issues of the “Hometown Weekly” covering the year’s laser light show, the anniversary parade, and the Porkers’ exciting championship.
After the 2024 items were placed in the time capsule, the 1974 items were gathered and placed in a metal box. That box was added to the 2024 time capsule. A decorative cover will be placed over the metal one installed during the ceremony.
During the event, a small group of Walpole Middle School students greeted those attending and answered questions. After the time capsule was sealed, attendees were invited to the cafeteria for refreshments of delicious hot chocolate, warm cider, brownies and cookies. The students also offered tours of the beautiful new middle school.
