Lindsay prepares to open 25-year-old time capsule at Queens Square

DARRYL KNIGHT Local Journalism Initiative Reporter for The Standard

KAWARTHA LAKES: Twenty-five years after it was sealed beneath Lindsay’s eternal flame, the community’s Millennium Time Capsule will be opened, on Tuesday, December 16th, in front of the Kawartha Lakes Library’s Lindsay Branch.

The capsule was installed, in the year 2000, during the renovation of Queens Square, a project which blended renewal with reflection, as residents marked the arrival of a new century. The eternal flame, lit at the same time, was intended to symbolize Lindsay’s enduring spirit and the optimism shared by its citizens, at the dawn of the millennium.

Instructions engraved on the stone pillar called for the capsule to be opened, in December of 2025, a moment which has now arrived. Mayor Doug Elmslie will rededicate the flame, during the ceremony, honouring the legacy of Victoria County while acknowledging the ongoing growth of communities across Kawartha Lakes.

Former Lindsay Millennium Committee Co-Chair, Barb Truax said, she’s looking forward to revisiting memories sealed away a quarter-century ago. “It will be both entertaining and exciting to observe the opening of the 2000 Time Capsule,” she said. “It will tug on memories of an earlier time and possibly surprise us.”

Residents say, the event is a chance to connect with the past and reflect on how much the community has changed. Longtime Lindsay resident, Mike Dawson remembers the excitement back in 2000. “Everyone was talking about what should go in,” he said. “You never really expect 25 years to pass so quickly. I’m curious what we thought was important enough to save.”

Others are drawn to the shared experience. “It feels like one of those moments you want to be part of,” said resident Lynn Robertson. “Whether you’ve lived here forever or just arrived, it’s a piece of Lindsay’s history.”

City officials extended their thanks to everyone involved in the original project, such as, members of the Light Up Lindsay Committee, the Lindsay Millennium Committee and the Town of Lindsay Committee of Council’s Events Office, whose efforts helped bring the time capsule and eternal flame to life.

Those who participated in the original initiatives are invited to gather at 9:30 a.m., before the ceremony begins. The public opening of the capsule will take place at 10 a.m., weather permitting. Items retrieved from the capsule will be displayed at the Lindsay library, later in the week, offering residents the chance to explore the snapshots of life, preserved from the year 2000.