The District of Choice
Tami Marler, Director
Public Information
(918) 746-6298
TPS News Item: Friday, June 05, 2009
Time Capsule Found at Clinton Middle School
6/5/2009
Location
Clinton Middle School
2224 W. 41 St.
(918) 746-8640
A stone laid in front of Clinton Middle School way back in 1925 was removed today and found tucked away underneath was a time capsule containing old letters, newspapers and a list of then-members of the district’s board of education.
You can read high resolution photos of the documents by clicking on the photos.
The stone was placed at the school by an area Masonic lodge, a common occurrence at the time.
“For over 300 years the Masons have been placing cornerstones in public buildings. It goes back to George Washington’s time,” said Richard Bishop, a member of the Red Fork/Brookside Masonic Lodge. ”Back when this school was built all of the prominent businesspeople in the area were lodge members.”
On hand to witness the unearthing of the capsule was 93-year-old Velma Sutherland, who says she graduated Clinton in 1933 and remembers when the site housed the Clinton family.
“We used to play up in the old Clinton house before they tore it down,” she said. “I loved this old school. Most of the teachers that taught here also lived in town.”
Also among the scores attending the capsule's opening was Sara Short, a 2001 Clinton graduate currently teaching at the school as a paraprofessional.
“I love the new building to death but at the same time it’s sad to see the old one go,” Short said.
The capsule contained a copy of the Tulsa Tribune dated May 3, 1925. The paper’s circulation as listed on the front page: 38,466.
Clinton was a high school until Webster High opened in 1938. The stone and a sign above the school’s front entrance reading “19 Clinton High School 25” is being moved to the school’s new location, literally next door to the west.