Weathervane Time Capsule - Ferro Weathervanes

Imagine 50, 100 years, or more from now, a future family member is restoring the home you built. During the restoration of the weathervane, that you lovingly had made and erected to your roof, a Time Capsule is found inside. Think of the sensation it will cause waiting to see the secret treasure. These future people will be instantly connected to you in the past as they examine the items you carefully packed and left for them to discover. They will be unwrapping your present from the distant past. A gift that only time can enhance. What story have you decided to tell them and what picture have you decided to paint of yourself or of your time? You have now left your mark in the future and have become a part of history. Picture the newspaper byline “Ancient artifacts from the beginning of the millennium found in weathervane!”. This is a perfect time to initiate a Time Capsule.

In the book, Weathervane Secrets, Mabel E. Reavely brings to light the Lore and Legend of over a dozen weathervanes in New and Old England and shares the secrets found inside some of them. She writes “It’s not known, however, when or where this custom of enclosing documents in half or full-bodied weathervanes began. In by gone days, the maker, restorer, or repairer tucked a dated note inside. Later when the vanes were lowered to the ground for repairs, new data, even coins, were added.” Thus began a tradition that Ferro Weathervanes continues today.

Click One Below

In 1999, during the restoration of a weathervane from an historical church in Connecticut, Ferro Weathervanes discovered a Time Capsule inside. Although weathervane Time Capsules can contain information from several repair-openings throughout history, this capsule had remained secret for 191 years. Like the opening of the tomb of Tutankhamen, the contents were found undisturbed. The capsule revealed copper coins dated from 1781-1806, the church’s dedication sermon, and a hand inscribed copper plaque dated and signed by Henry Wadsworth himself. Mr. Wadsworth sealed the capsule with his own hands; hands that may well have shaken the hand of Thomas Jefferson who was president of the United States at the time. Ferro Weathervanes added coins and a plaque of its own and returned the weathervane with its resealed capsule to its spire, per tradition.

Preserving your time by including your ‘message in a bottle’ is a great way of increasing your chances of immortality. Your weathervane can house a capsule for you personally, your family, business, organization, or religious or civic group. The capsule could be the focus of a fundraiser to help pay for the weathervane or its restoration. Preserve a ‘snap shot’ of you and your world by using the magic of a weathervane Time Capsule. It is the ultimate way to personalize your weathervane.

Ferro Weathervanes will create a strong custom copper capsule to fit the size and shape of your weathervane. Before we begin sculpting the weathervane you will receive the capsule in the mail. You will have one to two weeks to gather your artifacts and return everything to us. Make a detailed list of the capsule’s contents. This will also be needed later for the ITCS application. Once we have your items we will introduce a silica gel packet to absorb humidity and wrap everything in a MVP plastic bag and seal it with silicone. That will be wrapped in 100% cotton as a further humidity buffer. This will be placed in the capsule and soldered shut. All seams will be coated inside and out liberally with silicone sealant. The time capsule will be placed into the belly of your custom weathervane so that future generations will be curious as to what’s inside and open it up.