Long Beach prepares to open time capsule buried 50 years ago during the 1976 United States Bicentennial celebration

Long Beach, California – The City of Long Beach is preparing to unlock a remarkable piece of its history as officials get ready to open a time capsule that has remained sealed for half a century. The special event is scheduled for Wednesday, July 22, at 1:30 p.m., bringing together city leaders, historians, residents, and community partners to look back at what life in Long Beach was like during the United States Bicentennial celebration in 1976.

The time capsule was buried on July 4, 1976, outside the former Long Beach City Hall, during the dedication of the city’s previous City Hall building and the Long Beach Public Library. Now, exactly 50 years later, it will be opened inside the Long Beach City Hall Council Chambers, located at 411 W. Ocean Blvd., where attendees will get their first look at the many items preserved inside.

Mayor Rex Richardson said the event represents far more than simply opening a container full of old objects.

“A time capsule is more than a collection of artifacts, it’s a promise between generations,” said Mayor Rex Richardson. “Fifty years ago, Long Beach residents captured their hopes for the future. Today we’re honored to open that window into our past as we celebrate how far our city has come and recommit ourselves to building an even brighter future for the generations who follow.”

Residents will revisit childhood memories from 1976

The ceremony will begin with remarks from city officials and representatives from the Historical Society of Long Beach before the contents of the capsule are revealed.

One of the most emotional parts of the event will feature several Long Beach residents who were elementary school students when the capsule was created in 1976. As children, they wrote letters describing their lives and dreams for the future. Those same individuals are expected to attend the ceremony and read their childhood letters aloud, allowing today’s audience to hear the thoughts and hopes of young students from five decades ago.

City officials believe those personal messages will provide a unique connection between the past and the present while showing how much Long Beach has changed over the years.

“As a city, we have such a fascinating and storied local history to celebrate. Hopefully by looking at the past, we’re not only able to reminisce about where we’ve been but also use that history as a guidepost to continue growing and evolving as a community,” said Cathy De Leon, Director of Library, Arts, and Culture.

The time capsule contains more than 84 carefully preserved items, each offering a snapshot of everyday life during America’s Bicentennial year.

Among the objects are Bicentennial flags, newspapers published in 1976, and other printed publications from the era. Visitors will also see handwritten letters from local elementary school students discussing their lives and sharing their expectations for the future.

The collection also includes 1976 yearbooks from Lakewood High School, Millikan High School, Poly High School, and Wilson High School, giving people an opportunity to revisit student life from that period.

City officials also revealed that the capsule contains several surprise gifts that were intended for the mayor and the mayor’s wife, adding another interesting piece of history to the collection.

Julie Bartolotto, Executive Director of the Long Beach Historical Society, said many of the everyday objects inside now tell an unexpected story about how much society has changed over the past 50 years.

“The 1976 bicentennial time capsule offers a window into Long Beach’s past. Alongside optimistic letters written by local 5th and 6th grades, the time capsule holds high school yearbooks, period newspapers, and a collection of full-sized flags,” said Julie Bartolotto, Executive Director of the Long Beach Historical Society. “Its most striking contents may be the once ordinary matchbooks and ashtrays branded for the City of Long Beach and a telephone directory that now read as artifacts of a very different time. Also, contained are images of the grand July 4, 1976, celebration that also marked the “new” now demolished civic center.”

The event is being organized through a partnership between the City of Long Beach and the Historical Society of Long Beach. Additional support comes from the Office of Mayor Rex Richardson, the City Manager’s Office, the Long Beach Public Library, the Department of Technology and Innovation, Rancho Los Cerritos, the Arts Council for Long Beach, and several other community organizations.

The celebration is also part of Seeds of Resilience, a citywide initiative designed to encourage residents to learn more about the events, people, and stories that have shaped the greater Long Beach area as the United States marks its 250th anniversary.

The initiative will conclude later this year with Seeds of Resilience The Story of Long Beach, a public celebration scheduled for Sept. 22, 2026, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. The event will bring residents together through art, live performances, storytelling, and other activities celebrating the city’s diverse history.

By opening the 1976 time capsule, Long Beach is not only uncovering objects that have been hidden for 50 years but also giving today’s residents a rare opportunity to hear the voices, hopes, and dreams of an earlier generation. City leaders hope the event will inspire people to appreciate the community’s past while looking ahead to the future that those earlier residents once imagined.