Zelienople time capsule reveals community efforts to honor WWI soldiers
ZELIENOPLE — More than 200 years of Zelienople history converged Saturday, Nov. 14 at the Buhl House on South Main Street.
The Zelienople Historical Society unveiled a capsule that had been hidden away inside the World War I monument that was erected in 1919, which left the items inside untouched for 107 years. The capsule was found by chance, thanks to recent construction and improvements at the park.
The house, recognized as Zelienople’s oldest standing structure by a plaque on its front side, was built by Christian and Fredericka Goehring Buhl, natives of Bavaria, Germany, who’s descendants held influential legal, political and business positions.
“The company that was removing the monuments for cleaning, when they were putting them back, they found this tube inside the base of the World War I monument. These names were all donors for the project itself,” said Jason Pepe, a member of the Zelienople Historical Society and American Legion Post 474. “They’re the ones who donated to putting in the original World War I monument, which went in 1919.”
Unsure of what the capsule would contain, the historical society discovered it held a list of names of those who contributed to the monument. At the top, it read: “List of Contributors to The Zelienople Memorial Tablet, Erected in The Public Square and dedicated on the Fifteenth of October, 1919, in honor of the Boys who offered their services in the Great World’s War of the Nations 1914-1918.”
Of those listed, families, individuals and businesses were included.
“There’s a lot of local names that stick out, a lot of interesting names found on there,” Pepe said. “People who were involved with the community over the years.”
