12/9/2014
Reed Hollinshead
ITD Communication
208-334-8881
reed.hollinshead@itd.idaho.gov
ITD’s 25-year time capsule full of memories, peculiarities of the late '80s
BOISE – Given a quarter-century of hindsight, the items unearthed from ITD’s 1989 time capsule today (Tuesday, Dec. 9) provided an atmosphere of nostalgia and amusement. The capsule was unearthed at 9 a.m. from the corner of the department's East Annex parking lot, in the same location where it was buried as part of a dedication of a grove of trees donated by the University of Idaho’s forestry department for their centennial celebration. Trees were planted in all 44 Idaho counties as part of that effort.
The time capsule, a section of conduit three feet long and 10 inches in diameter, was glued shut. The end was cut open, and 25 years of memories spilled onto a dark blue tarp used as a dropcloth.
Click here for the video of the unveiling.
Along with many old photos and department memorabilia, there also were laughable newspaper headlines comparing Jose Canseco to Willie Mays, an advertisement for now-defunct Yugo vehicles, a Transporter with a lead article about office romance – ironically right next to an article titled “Good Ideas” – and a “Highwaymen” calendar featuring the men of ITD 25 years ago.
A Friday-evening television guide was also preserved, showing long-deceased programs like Dallas, Falcon Crest and Miami Vice, and the still-thriving Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune.
Big hair, mullets, acid- or stone-washed jeans, ladies’ shirts with shoulder pads — iconic symbols of the era — were in abundance in the pictures and advertisements stowed in the time capsule.
Also prominent were newspaper articles about Bush senior beating Dukakis for the Presidency, the AIDS epidemic, home loans at 9.5 percent interest, and locally about the just-passed-by-voters state lottery system.
“All the materials were well preserved in a watertight container,” said Gary Sanderson, who attended the burial of the time capsule 25 years ago and for the unearthing today. “All except the bag of microwave popcorn - its oil was quite rancid,” he explained.
Sanderson had been with ITD for three years, and was an Engineer-in-Training in the Design section in 1988. He is now a Technical Engineer 2 (traffic engineer) and, interestingly, back in the Design/Traffic section.
The event had a family feel to it, with 40 to 50 mostly longtime employees, as well as those since retired and a contingent from the Idaho State Police, surrounding the time capsule’s contents. ISP shared space with the transportation department back then, first near where the Print Shop is today, and then near Motor Vehicles to provide an armed presence to defuse heated discussions about titles and licenses.
The time capsule was one of two buried back then — the second container is to remain intact until 2090. The opening of the time capsule today corresponds to U of I’s 125th anniversary. The opening of the older capsule Dec. 9, 2090 is to correspond to Idaho’s bi-centennial.
Reymundo Rodriguez helped bury that container of history years ago. He was just 23 when the effort was immortalized in a photograph published in the February 1989 issue of ITD's Transporter. Click here for a picture of Rodriguez today with the old newspaper clipping.
Rodriguez is now the Idaho Motor Carrier Services Manager, but was a Data Entry Operator for the Accounting unit a quarter-century ago. When asked his memories of that day, Mundo says, “it was a long time ago, but I remember that there were quite a few people there and the mood was festive as we buried the time capsule. They allowed people to come up and put a bit of dirt on the capsule if they wanted. It seemed like folks felt that 2014 was a very long way off — it is surprising to me how quickly the years went by.”
Rodriguez unfortunately did not get an opportunity to be at the unearthing Tuesday, and added, “I don’t think I will be around for the next one.”
Click here for Photo 1, Photo 2 and Photo 3 of the time capsule unearthing today.
“We had many fond memories of retired friends pictured from long ago,” said Sanderson. “We were all younger then and most of us were thinner,” he quipped.
In a paying-it-forward moment, Sanderson added “as I read about various policies and practices from 25 years ago, I wonder what will be the legacy of the department we leave for the next generation."