WESTBROOK – When Westbrook’s bicentennial time capsule is officially closed next week, the life of one of the city’s most beloved residents and historians will also be celebrated.

On Tuesday, Dec. 16, the Westbrook Historical Society will host an open house and ceremony to close the new time capsule. A committee has been working on collecting the contents since June, when a 100-year-old capsule was displayed to the public during a bicentennial celebration.

The city has combined the closing of the new time capsule with a memorial event for Eleanor Conant Saunders, who died Nov. 22 at the age of 94. Saunders, a descendant of the first permanent settlers in Westbrook, was a major player in the establishment of the city’s historical society and was a constant presence in the community.

City Clerk Lynda Adams, who has led the bicentennial committee, said Tuesday it was only fitting that a celebration of Saunders’ life coincided with the historical society’s event. Tuesday’s event will also include a dedication ceremony for the Conant Burying Ground, Saunders’ private family cemetery that was recently transferred to the city.

Prior to her death, Saunders, known as Ellie, had been working with Adams to organize an event for the cemetery transfer, and decided on combining the event with the time capsule closure.

“Because of who she was in Westbrook, we knew that a lot of people would want to pay tribute to her,” Adams said. “She just touched so many people in this city.”

Adams said that when she used to work at the Westbrook Fire Department, she has fond memories of Saunders bringing in lemon cake for the staff there.

“She just did a lot for everyone. It wasn’t just because her husband was the mayor, that’s just who she was. She grew up here,” she said.

In planning the event, Adams spoke with members of Saunders’ family, who agreed that the historical society venue was a great fit.

Saunders’ nephew, Bob Corrigan, who lives in North Conway, N.H., with his wife, Jackie, said the historical society volunteered to host the celebration of life.

“We felt it was very appropriate,” he said Wednesday. “She was a very forward proponent of the historical society. She knew everything that was happening in Westbrook.”

Corrigan said he visited Saunders just a few days after she suffered a heart attack, and was amazed to see her sitting up in bed and cracking jokes like her normal self.

“It was a testament to her strength,” he said.

Corrigan will be serving as the executor of Saunders’ estate, and Corrigan’s brother, Mike, is staying at Saunders’ home on Conant Street. Corrigan believes Saunders’ collection of Westbrook historical items will be donated to the historical society.

“Walking through her home is like walking through a museum,” he added.

Jackie Corrigan said Wednesday that she imagines a lot of people will come out to the event.

“It just made sense that this would be the appropriate venue,” she said. “I don’t know where else we could think of having one.”

On Tuesday, Adams was readying archival supplies to use for the new capsule items. Plastic sleeves will be placed over paper items, (which make up the majority of the contents) to protect them from possible water damage during its 100-year burial.

The committee has gone to great lengths to ensure the capsule’s protection from the elements. The capsule itself, a stainless steel box built by D&G Machine in Westbrook, will be screwed shut and put inside another, larger steel box, which will be welded shut following the ceremony.

“We’re hoping that the combination of the steel, the double protection of the boxes, and using the archival supplies, will preserve everything in there for 100 years in the ground,” she said.

Adams said the capsule, to be buried sometime this spring, will most likely be buried about 6 feet in the ground at Riverbank Park. A cement footing will be poured on top, and the committee is hoping to reuse the same stone that marked the capsule buried in 1914.

The contents of the capsule were decided by members of the committee, as well as suggestions made by Westbrook residents. While the committee has chosen to keep some items confidential, the capsule will include a book of “forever” postage stamps, along with a description of why the Postal Service created it; a 2014 penny; a city of Westbrook flag from the City Council chambers; a phonebook, sample ballots from the June 2014 election; information about the construction of the new Westbrook Middle School and the Performing Arts Center; a number of newspapers, including multiple American Journal articles; information and pictures of city events held in Westbrook in 2014; information about the sister-city relationship with Archangel in Russia; a toy that was invented in the 1940s and can still be purchased today; and various publications to cover demographics and commodity prices, such as heating oil.

During the ceremony Tuesday, Adams will talk about the bicentennial in June and the process the committee took until now. Arty Ledoux, the city’s deputy director of public services, will talk about working with Saunders on the Conant Burying Ground transfer.

Adams, who announced her resignation from City Clerk last month, will officially serve her last day on Dec. 18, just two days after the time-capsule event. For the past year, Adams has taken the lead in multiple city events, on top of organizing the bicentennial and time capsule events.

“It’s been a very interesting year,” she said.

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A CLOSER LOOK

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The bicentennial time capsule closing and Celebration of Life for Ellie Conant Saunders will be held Tuesday, Dec. 16, at the Westbrook Historical Society, located at the Wescott Community Center, 426 Bridge St. The historical society will host an open house at 6 p.m., followed by the ceremony 7 p.m.

New city clerk to be named

The Westbrook City Council will vote to approve the new Westbrook city clerk at a meeting on Monday, Dec. 15, at 7 p.m., in Room 114 at Westbrook High School.

Pending approval, the new city clerk will replace longtime clerk Lynda Adams, who announced her resignation in early November. City officials would not provide the name of the candidate prior to the American Journal’s deadline Wednesday.

Adams has served in the clerk’s office for six years, and has been involved in planning multiple community events. Most recently, Adams led the city’s bicentennial committee in organizing events in June, as well as putting together a new time capsule.

Adams said this week that she is moving into the private sector, and has been slowly building a business part time for about a year. The business acts as an alternative source to provide services such as electricity to residents and businesses.

City Clerk Lynda Adams, who organized the city’s bicentennial celebration earlier this year, takes out a bicentennial coin at City Hall on Tuesday. Next week, a new time capsule will be officially closed during a ceremony at the Westbrook Historical Society.  The Westbrook bicentennial time capsule will officially be closed on Tuesday, Dec. 16, the same date in 1914 that the original centennial capsule was closed. The ceremony will also honor Eleanor Conant Saunders, a prominent member of the Westbrook community.