Overview
- The precision‑milled, 900‑pound stainless‑steel cylinder was filled and sealed in mid‑June and will be interred on Independence Mall in Philadelphia on July 4, 2026 to remain closed until 2276.
- America250 collected more than 200 items from all 50 states, six territories and federal partners, including letters, poems, Native artwork, a whale bone, an eagle feather and everyday objects like a Coca‑Cola 'message in a bottle'.
- States chose widely varying contributions to represent identity and history, for example Alabama submitted commissioned poems by James Matthew Wilson and South Carolina added an SC250 challenge coin and pin.
- Scientists and conservators from the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Library of Congress and the National Park Service engineered airtight, corrosion‑resistant sealing and reviewed all submissions to reduce degradation over 250 years.
- Separately, Congress dedicated its own capsule on Capitol Hill to be stored in the Capitol Visitor Center, and officials acknowledge long‑term risks such as environmental damage, custody changes and shifting cultural meanings that could affect how the collection endures and is read in 2276.