On September 23, 1939, as Europe stood on the brink of World War II, a massive crowd gathered at the New York World's Fair in Flushing Meadows. At noon, to the sound of a solemn carillon, a 7.5-foot-long metallic torpedo weighing over 800 pounds was lowered into a fifty-foot-deep well.
Its name: the Westinghouse Time Capsule. Its mission: to survive for exactly five thousand years and be opened in the year 6939.
This historic ceremony marked the official birth of the modern time capsule concept. But what was hidden inside this metallic sanctuary? And what message did Albert Einstein and the greatest minds of the 20th century bequeath to humans who will be born fifty centuries from now?
An Alloy Designed to Defy Eternity
To resist erosion, seismic tremors, and water infiltration over five millennia, Westinghouse engineers developed a revolutionary material: Cupaloy, an alloy composed of 99.4% copper, chromium, and silver.
Inside this vacuum-sealed shell, purged with pure nitrogen to prevent oxidation, a high-security Pyrex glass inner capsule was placed. Every detail was meticulously engineered so that time would have no power over its contents.
"We have entrusted to the earth our most precious legacy: the record of our knowledge, our doubts, and our faith in the future."
What Does the Capsule for the Year 6939 Contain?
The contents of the Westinghouse capsule represent a breathtaking snapshot of 1930s human civilization:
- A microfilm encyclopedia: Over 22,000 pages of printed text covering science, literature, dictionaries, and over 1,000 photographs.
- Everyday objects: A pack of cigarettes, a woman's watch, a fountain pen, a Mickey Mouse doll, and sealed vials of wheat and cotton seeds.
- A worldwide "Book of Record": Printed on indestructible linen rag paper and distributed to the world's leading libraries and monasteries to preserve the exact coordinates of the site (Latitude 40° 44' 34.089" N, Longitude 73° 50' 39.991" W).
Albert Einstein's Heartfelt Warning
Among the treasures inside is a handwritten message penned by Albert Einstein on August 10, 1938. With profound gravity, the father of relativity addressed his distant descendants:
"Our time is rich in inventive minds, the inventions of which could facilitate our lives considerably. Yet we live in fear of being utterly ruined by conflicts [...] I trust that posterity will read these lines with a feeling of proud and justified superiority."
— Albert Einstein, Message for the Westinghouse Time Capsule (1938)
Related reading: 10 precious message ideas to send to your children in the future.
From Universal History to Your Personal Story
The story of the Westinghouse capsule reminds us of a fundamental truth: the desire to transmit is humanity's most powerful instinct. Just as scientists buried a capsule for the year 6939, we all feel the need to leave a meaningful trace for those we love.
Today, you don't need a fifty-foot well. Modern digital time capsules let you securely preserve letters, voices, and memories programmed to unlock on a milestone birthday or wedding anniversary.
