Penn Avenue Time Capsule Unearthed

inte8821 • March 7, 2012

Penn Avenue Time Capsule Unearthed

Contractors make unexpected find at former school site

Kristin Harty Barkley
Cumberland Times-News
October 26, 2011

CUMBERLAND — Allegany County had 10 high schools and the school board’s annual budget was $1.12 million in February 1925 when officials buried a time capsule at the former Pennsylvania Avenue School.

What a difference almost 100 years make.

Today, after decades of consolidation and inflation, the school system has three high schools and an annual budget of more than $100 million.

Unearthed recently by contractors working on a housing development at the site, the time capsule — actually a weathered tin box about the size of a loaf of bread — contains newspapers, a Rotary Club handbook, the school board’s 1924 annual report and a handful of pennies dating from 1901 to 1920.

It was an unexpected find, said Bryan Lybum, vice president of business operations for Interfaith Housing Authority, in Frederick, the owner and manager of Cumberland Family Homes II, a 25-unit townhouse under construction on Pennsylvania Avenue.

“We wanted to get it in the hands of the city so it would be preserved and dealt with appropriately,” said Lybum, who presented the capsule to Mayor Brian Grim and the Cumberland City Council Tuesday night.

“There’s some really interesting stuff. We didn’t read through everything and handle it too much because it’s ginger. It’s been in here since 1924 or ’25.”

Lybum said contractors were trying to save the cornerstone and dedication stone from the original Pennsylvania Avenue School when they stumbled upon the time capsule. The school was torn down last summer so that work on the housing development could begin.

The yellowing newspapers — a Cumberland Evening Times from Feb. 16, 1925, and a Cumberland Daily News from Feb. 17, 1925, — along with the other items paint a picture of Allegany County in a different era.

You could buy a Ford car battery for $16.50 at Frostburg Motor Co., for example, or a six-room house “on a paved street” in Cumberland for $6,300, a newspaper advertisement says.

Legendary cave explorer Floyd Collins had just been found dead after being stuck in a Kentucky cave for two weeks. “Collins Dead When Found,” an all-caps headline said.

White children and black children still attended separate schools. The former Frostburg Opera House was showing “The Woman Who Sinned.”

City officials plan to pass the time capsule along to Allegany County Public Schools so that items might be displayed.

The 10 high schools in 1925 were Allegany, Bruce, Barton, Central, Beall, Midland, Mount Savage, Flintstone, Oldtown and Frederick Street.

“It’s really cool,” Lybum said as he posed for a photograph with the mayor and council members Tuesday night.

“It really is,” Grim said. “It just makes the whole project more exciting.”

Contact Kristin Harty Barkley at kbarkley @times-news.com.

Gary Free resident at Residences at Railroad Square Apartments

March 3, 2025
Gary Free grew up in Brunswick, MD. The first time he saw the Residences at Railroad Square, he knew he would love to live in the apartments. Now all he can think to himself is, “I am living here!” Gary said the day he signed his lease he was so happy! He has a picture hanging in his apartment that says, “You’re Home.” Gary looks at it often and says to himself, “I am!” He finally feels at peace. Gary feels his home is nice! He also feels one of the ways of living at Residences of Railroad Square is that he now has everything he ever wanted, asked for and needed. The only thing he feels is a concern is that most of the time he gets lonely. His goal is to try to meet people. He says, “I’m a very friendly person.” Gary says his experience living at the Residences at Railroad Square has been rather good. If he has any concerns he can talk to the office staff. He feels it can’t get any better than this!

Lease-up of Residence of Railroad Square

By Crystal Thomas • March 3, 2025
With excitement and anticipation, I watched the groundbreaking on June 29, 2023, with my assistant Vickie and IHA’s Supportive Services coordinator, Sandi. By the middle of September 2023 concrete walls were being set up. We watched as the roof was completed; then the windows and doors were installed. We impatiently waited for the day we received permission to see the inside of the Residences of Railroad Square property. Finally, on September 25, 2024, we had the privilege to tour the inside of this beautiful property. On the weekend of September 27, 2024, the IHA property management team along with the CEO Jodie, held a two-day in-person application event. The owners of First Stop Brunswick generously donated their space at 2. E. Baltimore Street. That lease up kick off generated 56 applications. Over the next three months, ninety more applications were submitted. Each applicant came with their own story which stirred our hearts. No matter how different their stories may have been, they all had the same wish, a place to call home for Christmas! On November 5, 2024, the first resident signed their lease and on December 23, 2024, the last empty unit was filled! Not only were we able to fulfill these residents' Christmas wishes but it also filled our hearts with joy!

Interfaith Housing Alliance (IHA) is proud to announce 4 funding awards received this quarter from community partners.

March 3, 2025
In November 2024, IHA was awarded a $20,000 grant from Delaplaine Foundation, Inc. This grant supports IHA’s three workshop series: Credit Café ; Financial Freedom Bootcamp ; and Ready, Set, Go… Home! In Credit Café, participants work specifically on improving their credit. Financial Freedom Bootcamp builds critical foundational skills for financial success. Ready, Set, Go… Home! walks participants through the entire homebuying process from start to finish. IHA also received a $1,574.37 designated grant from The PNC Homeownership Fund of The Community Foundation of Frederick County. These pass-through funds will directly support low- to moderate-income (LMI) households in achieving homeownership in Frederick County. In December 2024, IHA was awarded a $29,498 grant from the Maryland Affordable Housing Trust (MAHT). MAHT is administered by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) through the Division of Neighborhood Revitalization. This grant program is a valuable resource for the advancement of affordable housing initiatives and will provide operational assistance to IHA’s affordable multifamily community in Cumberland, MD. In January 2025, IHA was awarded a $2,500 grant by The Natelli Communities Charitable Fund of The Community Foundation of Frederick County. These unrestricted funds will support IHA’s work across the multiple counties served by our programs and affordable rental communities.
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