A Brief History of 'Braintree's Most Unique Monument'

From the Braintree Bi-Centennial Time Capsule Society:

Called "Braintree's Most Unique Monument," the Time Capsule Cairn, which contains hundreds of items of Bi-Centennial memorabilia, also commemorates two very significant dates in the history of the United States of America: July 4, 1776 and September 3, 1783.

The Time Capsule Project was done to honor the Bi-Centennial of the Independence of the United States of America: July 4, 1776 - July 4, 1976; and the stone cairn itself was constructed on September 3, 1976; the 193rd anniversary of the signing of the Peace of Paris which ended the American Revolution, and granted Independence from the British Empire to the United States of America.

The originator of the Braintree Bi-Centennial Time Capsule was Mr. Melvin V. Miller of East Braintree. Mr. Miller decided that a Time Capsule would be an interesting and long term part of the Bi-Centennial Celebration in Braintree in 1976 and he organized and led a committee to carry out the project.

Were it not for his vision in initiating this project, Braintree would never have had a Bi-Centennial Time Capsule. The person who supervised the collection of the hundreds of Bi-Centennial artifacts which are stored in the Time Capsule was Mrs. Nancy G. Nicosia of South Braintree. Mrs. Nicosia gathered photographs, letters, and other items including a $100 United States Savings Bond, donated by the Braintree Savings Bank, which will have a value of $27,508.08 when the Time Capsule is opened on July 4, 2076.

The person who developed the concept of an above ground Time Capsule, designed the stone cairn monument, and assisted the DeLuca Family with its construction, was Mr. Patrick J. Leonard, Sr., of North Braintree. Mr. Leonard's research into the Time Capsules of 1876, which had been buried in the earth, revealed that most could not be found by 1976; and that the contents of many of those which were located were severely damaged. Hence the idea for the 800 pound all steel Time Capsule, and the stone cairn which encases it.

The DeLuca Family of Quincy, under the direction of Mr. Cosmo DeLuca, a master mason originally from Italy, worked with his sons, Mario and Frank, and grandson, Matthew to build the cairn in one day. The steel tank which will protect the Bi-Centennial artifacts from the rigors of a century of New England winters is filled with argon, an inert gas. This was suggested by Harold Lloyd of Hingham, Wally Anderson of Canton, and Dr. Kulbir Singh of Poona, India. Bacteriological decay of the artifacts should be prevented by the atmosphere of argon gas between 1976 and 2076.

The "Braintree, England, Stone," which was placed at the base of the cairn on the Washington Street side, was a gift of the Rotary Club of Braintree and Bocking, Essex, England. The stone came by sea to our Braintree and became part of the monument on Sunday, November 7, 1976, completing the final detail of the construction.

On November 1, 2009 the stone cairn was voluntarily restored by professional stone masons John M. Mahoney and Hilding A. Larson; making the monument ready once again to endure the decades of New England weather until July 4, 2076!

An illustrated book on the history of the monument, entitled: The Braintree Bi- Centennial Time Capsule and Time Capsule Cairn - A Bi-Centennial Project of the People of Braintree, Massachusetts 1975-1976, is available for review in the reference collection of the .