State Capitol Time Capsule

Aloha mai kākou!

The Hawaiʻi State Capitol is celebrating its fiftieth anniversary on March 15, 2019!  In preparation of this event, the committee removed the Time Capsule that was laid in the cornerstone in 1969.  Many wonderful items of a bygone era were there to be found by this generation.

Now we need your help in deciding what should go into the NEW Time Capsule that will be sealed behind the cornerstone on May 1, 2019!  This is your opportunity to communicate to future generations what the Hawaiʻi of today is like: our hopes, our dreams, our struggles, and our culture.  So if you had a chance to tell your future self about what life was like in 2019… how would you do it? If you would like to suggest an item for the 2019 capsule, please follow the instructions below.

In addition to placing new items in the 2019 Time Capsule, the Committee would like to recreate the historic aerial photographs from the 1969 Time Capsule (and add more). If you have a drone, or fly frequently, and would be interested in donating aerial photographs to the project, please click here: Submit an Aerial Photo.

The process:

All suggestions will be ranked by the Capitol 50 Committee on four characteristics:

Preservability – how well will it keep in a sealed box for 50 or 100 years? (Hint: Manapua is yummy in the tummy, but no good over the long haul; and while we have gadgets and gizmos aplenty, electronic items and things with batteries won’t do well 50 years from now.)

Size – will it fit into a box 18x17x8” and leave room for all the other wonderful items? (Hint: While a surf board represents an important part of Hawaiʻi, it simply won’t fit in the box.)

Difficulty in acquiring –  where can the object be obtained, how much will it cost to obtain this item to place into the box? (Hint: gold coins would be an amazing addition, but outside our price range – unless you are willing to donate the object!  In that case MAHALO NUI!  Likewise, travel to neighbor islands to pick something up will be difficult.)

Historical/Cultural Significance –  how does this suggestion represent Hawaiʻi today? (Hint: the committee might not recognize how amazing your suggestion is, so be sure to educate us on why this object is so important to you and in what ways is encapsulates society today.)

So when you are ready and have a really GREAT suggestion, please fill out the form below to send it for consideration.  The Committee will select and announce the TOP TWENTY finalists, but how many of those make it into the time capsule will be kept secret.  We want the future generations of Hawaiʻi to have the joy of discovery when opening the time capsule!

Submissions accepted until May 15, 2019.