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A time capsule containing remnants of the
Cascade Tunnel's
50th Anniversary observance and other memorabilia from the building
of the longest tunnel in the Western Hemisphere was buried Wednesday
at the eastern entrance to the tunnel.
The capsule will be dug up 50 years from now
and its contents will play a part in the tunnel's 100th anniversary
observances. The Tunnel's anniversary was actually January 12,
the date the tunnel was opened in 1929, and Burlington Northern
Railroad celebrated the occasion then. There was too much snow
at the tunnel site to bury the capsule then and officials decided
to wait until later.
The time capsule was buried in the floor of
the fan house at the east end and marked "1979 T.C."
The T.C. stands for time capsule.
Only two Burlington Northern officials were
at the burial ceremony, along with one or two interested in the
event. Representing the company were Walt Grecula, Seattle District
engineer, electrical, and Kim Foreman, public relations officer
for the Seattle District. Especially interested in the event
was Myles Mustoe Jr. of East Wenatchee whose poster of the Cascade
Tunnel opening was amongst the items included in the stainless
steel capsule.
Mustoe is a longtime railroad buff whose father
once worked for the railroads. He drafted the poster and had
it signed by railroad officials and convinced them to include
it in the capsule.
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Also in the capsule were such things as a
copy of "Rails Across the Cascades" by Dr. Eva Anderson,
Wenatchee; a copy of the original dedication brochure and a replica;
current timetables , items of early day passenger trains, and
from AMTRAK; a set of slides from the original construction project
and a tape recording of the 1929 NBC radio coverage of the opening
of the tunnel.
An unscheduled inclusion were two letters
by Willie Jones, whose job it is to make daily tunnel inspections.
The letters, to his children, Christina, 8, and Shane, 7, wished
them good health and told what they were doing at present. He
also included some pictures of the youngsters.
There was some argument as to whether the
letters would be included but Foreman convinced officials that
such letters are the type of things historians would be extremely
interested in 50 years from now.
The capsule was placed in protective wrappings
and put in a concrete vault already buried in the floor. Then
the vault lid was sealed with hot wax and the floor was re-concreted
to wait for the 100th anniversary.
Also see: Cascade Tunnel Capsule To Include
Many Items 2-6-79 The Wenatchee World.
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THE CASCADE TUNNEL
Commemorative Poster
19 X 25 inches
$75.00 Postage Paid (U.S.A.)
Tap on the image above for a larger view.
For Questions E-mail: latchart@tinynet.com |