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A portal to the past was opened in the ceiling of a kitchen that was filled with treasures just waiting to be discovered.
Jesse Leitch, a land surveyor and data processor in Grand Rapids, Michigan, found a time capsule while his contractors were installing new pipes in his home, Leitch told Fox News Digital.
An assortment of 12 items dating back to the early 1900s were found tucked away in the kitchen ceiling of the home.
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“It wasn’t in a box. It was just kind of sitting on top of the wood,” Leitch said.
The Grand Rapids resident’s home was built in 1910.
Jesse Leitch of Grand Rapids, Michigan found a time capsule in his kitchen ceiling, which includes items dating back to the early 1900s, including this young adult newspaper from Nov. 8, 1913. (Jesse Leitch)
He also said there was “a business card for a music shop [with] an address. And I looked that up, and that place moved from that address in 1907,” he said, based on his research.
In the time capsule, Leitch also found a newspaper with the date Nov. 8, 1913 typed at the top.
One of the most personal items — and Leitch’s favorite — was a handwritten note between “Gertrude” and “Ruth.”
“It just kind of seems like it’s a note from probably a teenager to another teenager. And it just references all first names except for … one first and last name, which we were able to reference to a possible grave in this town,” Leitch added.
Leitch and his family believe they found the gravestone of the woman referenced in the letter, Helen Stuart, who died in 1996.
There was also a small cast iron pan, believed to once belong to a doll set — which his kids love, he said — and a piece that was once part of a music box.
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The Heritage Hill homeowner grew up in Grand Rapids.
He said his own father spent most of his life in the town and has “always been connected to this place.”
Leitch said he’s found a new “connection to the past” after discovering these little treasures — and has become inspired to make something of his own.
“I think I want to take one of the items from [the time capsule] and photos of all the other ones and bury that somewhere else or put it back up in the wall when they patch up the ceiling,” he said.
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“And maybe leave some of our own stuff. I’ve made some music that we put onto vinyl records. And I think that [might be] a good way to preserve music for that for the future.”
Leitch said he plans on displaying a few of the discovered items in his home.
A time capsule from over 100 years ago was found in a Michigan home; the owner hopes to add to the capsule with some items of his own. (Jesse Leitch)
He also intends to reach out to the Grand Rapids Public Museum to see if it would be interested in taking any of the 100-year-old items.
His discovery has inspired him to look more into the history of his town — and he also hopes to dig into the home’s past and find who once owned it.
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Sydney Borchers is a lifestyle production assistant with Fox News Digital.
