50 Years After: Cousins Gather to Check Contents of Time Capsule [Buried by their Grandparents]

After 50 years, Olympia Bynum came back to Loudon, Tennessee, with her cousins. It was because her grandmother instructed her to return on June 20, 2020, for the time capsule buried in Tennessee in 1970.

When Bynum was six years old, her grandmother gave her the note about returning to Loudon for the time capsule. Bynum and her cousins followed the instructions of the note to letter. Earlier this June, they were happy to know that in the time capsule were special notes.

Tracking down the time capsule

Bynum and her cousins have been talking about the message that her grandmother had left all their lives. It was like a conversation starter every time they will get together.

That is why when 2020 approached, Bynum started tracking down the time capsule.

The capsule was buried in 1970 for the celebration of the Loudon County's centennial.

Since 2018, Bynum has been making calls to different organizations to gather details regarding the time capsule. However, banks and the chamber of commerce have no idea on what Bynum was looking for.

In an interview with WIBR, Bynum said, "No one I got in touch with had a clue what I was talking about."

After several calls, Bynum was directed to Rachel Harrell. She did not only know about the time capsule but also part of the team who dug up the capsule a little earlier.

The capsule got water damaged.

After years of waiting for the contents of the time capsule to be exposed, it was a little disappointing for Bynum and her cousins. That is to know that the contents were ruined.

"So when we dug it up, we found that it had had water damage over the years," Harrell said.

There were some letters which survived, but not completely. These letters included that of Bynum's message when she was six years old. The letter was addressed to one of his cousins, David.

The family thought it was exciting news.

Even though not much of the time capsule contents did not survive, they still went back to Loudon, Tennesse last June 20.

Bynum said, "I promised her we'd all be there." That is why they all returned to the house where their grandparents once lived. They thought that it was not the time capsule that would be important for their grandparents, but rather the thought that they gathered together on that day.

Bynum said, "That's what's important. The rest of it, we're going to work around this."

In November, the Loudon County is once again going to bury a time capsule. This time, Bynum and her cousins are the ones who plan to contribute letters for their grandchildren. They think that this will help in continuing a tradition among family members.