Unearthing a real time capsule car......

[gold-n-rod]

How cool is this?


Wanted: People who helped bury Plymouth
TULSA, Okla. (AP) -- Organizers of a coming out party for a brand new 1957 Plymouth Belvedere could use some help. The car, buried under the lawn of the Tulsa County Courthouse in 1957, is scheduled to be unearthed June 15 as part of the Oklahoma Centennial.
Promoters are looking for people who helped lower the car into its crypt in 1957 to perhaps shed some light on what to expect when the car is unearthed.
There's speculation the car may have turned into a pile of rust. Or that it's in pristine condition and worth thousands of dollars.
Sharon King Davis, who has chaired Tulsa's centennial efforts, looked at photos of the people responsible for burying the car in 1957 and found her grandfather.
"I wish grandpa had left me some instructions," she told the Tulsa World.
The car had been largely forgotten until Davis and her group started work on the centennial. Files on the car have vanished, so it's not clear what to expect when the lid is lifted.
What's known is that the car is on a steel pallet with jacks under the axles. Efforts were made to preserve it, but it's unclear if moisture has gotten to the metal and caused rust.
"There's a kind of Rip Van Winkle reaction," Davis says. "Most people had long ago forgotten the buried car, but as the time to dig it up nears, they are waking up and wondering about life in 1957."
Another unknown is who will be able to claim the car.
When the car was buried, a contest was announced to award the car and a $100 savings account to the person who came closest to guessing Tulsa's population in 2007.
Organizers concede that finding that person or his or her heirs may not be easy.
At the time, the guesses were recorded on microfilm and sealed in a steel container buried with the car.

[rustnrot]

Where's Geraldo?

[Craig S]

I hope it was a convertible with two fours...
Would the 2x4s be on a poly 318, or a 361???

[RickSE]

I just read this on CNN. I hope they keep this in the news and keep the car out of the hands of investors J-offs.

[glashole]

Barrett-Jackson here we come

proceeds to charity

or rebury it with the matching car of today into another time capsule

[hardcrab]

The burial was 11 days before I was born :happy_bi:

[Formula Jr]

I don't think anyone need to worry about this car and collectors.
It has most likely been above and underwater off and on for 40 plus years in an aerobic environment full of bacteria.

It will be fun to see what happens when they dig it up.....

There might even be an engine block and some glass left

[rustnrot]

"It has most likely been above and underwater off and on for 40 plus years in an aerobic environment full of bacteria."

Quote from the new book "Jacques Cousteau--The Younger Years"

[Last Tango]

Well, for some of you young whippersnappers who believe there was no intelligent life on this planet before you were born, the chemical processes of oxidation were quite well solved and understood. WD40 and vaseline and Rustoleum and polystyrene plastic where all here long long ago. I'm thinking moisture may have done some damage, but not enough to be too embarassing.
I did like the idea about putting it back in right away with a current edition. Since Plymouth is no longer a nameplate, I suggest they put in the most recent and coolest Plymouth ever to leave the factory as a production car - a Prowler! What a confusing sight that will be in another 50 years! "Hey, they are both here and in great shape. But I thought the Belvedere was supposed to be the older car!"

[Formula Jr]

Well, it was one year before I was born.
Maybe we should just bury a Chery next to it with its original Walmart receipt.
LOL.

[DONZI]

More info here- http://www.buriedcar.com/

Wrapped in Styrolene.:convertib

[Craig S]

More info here- http://www.buriedcar.com/
Wrapped in Styrolene.:convertib

Well, its a good looking rig!

[apollo24]

Did they bury Mrs. Tulsarama in the car, too? I don't know how she'd fare with the polysterene and Dub-Dee 40.... Prolly not as well as the Plymouth. :wink:

[Hubjeep]

I am really curious about what kind of condition it is in. :D

[RickSE]

She's coming up next week.:hyper:

http://www.buriedcar.com/events.asp

[f_inscreenname]

The burial was 11 days before I was born :happy_bi:

More like 11 years for me but I still cant wait to see it.

[pmreed]

My father had a '57 Plymouth station wagon...I remember it well. Sort of a mauve I recall.

Phil

[Craig S]

That's also the time and place for the Mid-America Shelby Meet. Always a lot of fun...for Ford owners. If the Plymouth is easy to find, I may have a look.

www.midamericafordmeet.com

[SMLDONZI]

Too bad its not a buried boat!

http://www.kotv.com:80/news/topstory/?id=129390

[gold-n-rod]

Full story from above linky:


Water Discovered In Vault Holding Buried Car

KOTV - 6/13/2007 11:13 AM - Updated 6/13/2007 1:22 PM

TULSA, Okla. (AP) _ Workers unearthing the 1957 Plymouth Belvedere buried under the city's courthouse lawn were dealt an early setback Wednesday, as several feet of water were found in the concrete vault supposedly strong enough to withstand a nuclear attack.

The two-door hardtop, buried in 1957 to celebrate Oklahoma's 50 years of statehood, is set to be lifted out of the 12-foot-by-20-foot time capsule Friday morning to commemorate the state's centennial year. As many as 50,000 people from all over the world are expected at the event, and more than 260 media credentials have been handed out to reporters from New York to New Zealand.

But news of the standing water was crushing to event organizers. As heavy rain fell at the site, the Belvedere's fate remained unknown.

The vault was briefly opened Wednesday so hazardous materials crews could inspect the 10 gallons of gasoline and motor oil cans that had been placed in the time capsule in case internal combustion engines became obsolete by 2007.

Excavators found water halfway up on the car's fenders and more evidence water could have been to the top of the vault at one point, said Art Couch, who is heading up the unearthing project.

"I don't know how bad it is, but it's not good,'' Couch said. ``We were hoping it would be dry in there.''

Some water was pumped out, and the city was to bring in a truck to remove the last foot or so.

"The concrete must not have been as good as we hoped it was,'' Couch said. "It had some failures over the years; the concrete didn't hold.''

The Belvedere was wrapped in a protective plastic material before it was buried, but it was unknown how it held up against the elements.

"Plymouths were very prone to rust to begin with,'' said Jim Benjaminson, a car collector from North Dakota who has written several books on Plymouths. "Depending on this bag, if that car has sat in water for 50 years, I don't hold much hope for it.''

Benjaminson, who plans to be at Friday's unearthing, said he read a recent article that the plastic used to cover the Belvedere was supposed to protect materials "for 1,200 years'' from rust.

"I guess we're going to see if that claim is true,'' he said.

Organizers say this just creates that much more mystery around the car's unveiling. News On 6 anchor Terry Hood hosts our live special Friday evening at 7 o’clock. The unveiling can also be seen live, streaming on the internet at kotv.com.

On The News On 6 at 5 Terry Hood tells us the vault isn't the only thing standing between the Belvedere and the elements. What layers of protection organizers are still counting on to save this celebration is tonight at 5 p.m. on The News On 6.

[Formula Jr]

A Little more info from YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2cPBl6scJk

You will note that the vault was placed upside down like a tub.
Underground vaults are supposed to cover things, trapping air as in a diving bell.
Thats how they keep water out....... a principle known to the Ancient Greeks, but obviously not to Tulsans in 1957. :)

No Great Brainer to predict that it filled with water at some point.

http://www.cityoftulsa.org/CityServices/FloodControl/History.asp

[gold-n-rod]

Pic.....
:confused:

[f_inscreenname]

Now that is sad.

Don't think I will be using that company to build my basement.

[Last Tango]

I'm very disappointed to see that they didn't seal that bunker any better than that. Oh, well. Sad. Very Sad. :o(:(

[hardcrab]

Look for this car on e-bay advertised as "low miles"

[RickSE]

She's out.

I can't believe Boyd Coddington weaseled his way into this gig. I hope whoever wins the car is still around and keeps the car away from him and his nimrod crew.

[f_inscreenname]

She's out.
I can't believe Boyd Coddington weaseled his way into this gig. I hope whoever wins the car is still around and keeps the car away from him and his nimrod crew.

I second that but wasn't today the big unveiling? Anyone find a picture yet?

I hope this is not it.
http://i146.photobucket.com/albums/r265/hot_rod_artist/57plymoth003.jpg

[vonkamp]

Should have been unveiled at 7:00 central. the KOTV website is supposed to have live streaming video but I cant get it on my work computer :(.

[f_inscreenname]

Should have been unveiled at 7:00 central. the KOTV website is supposed to have live streaming video but I cant get it on my work computer :(.

Me neither.:mad:

[pmreed]

It's a rusty wreck:(
Phil

[rustnrot]

Boyd said they will leave it as-is for the next 150 years. You could tell from the video it was hard for everyone to "celebrate" a pile of rust.

I did read one of their other arcticles that for decades it was only 15-20 feet from a major highway and all the vibration. Also they said was supposed to survive a nuclear attack? Hardly.

[vonkamp]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/c/c3/D_oh.jpg/250px-D_oh.jpg

[MOP]

I just looked at the photos, it is not as bad as I thought it would be. I thought it would be much worse.

Phil

[f_inscreenname]

:boggled:

A vid. http://www.ktul.com/news/stories/0607/431908.html
http://www.kotv.com/newsimages/640/6a16d1b0-ba01-4d9b-8496-d9bf6bef105f.jpg

[Darrell]

I'm sure when they came up with this brainstorm at the capital bar, they didn't consult anyone that could have told them the flaws in their plan.:propeller:

Darrell


It is moves like this that allows our oil producing state the need to impose a state income tax of upto 7%.:bonk:

[joel3078]

City budgets are usually pretty tight. Another government low bidder wins project? Must not be too many basements in Tulsa. Everyone knows that a basic concrete box underground floods out. No plastic wrap on concrete box and no drain pipe?

The streaming video did work on my computer. Kinda a joke however. The announcer lady working hard to keep it upbeat and they kept cutting to commercial. Commercials did not get broadcast on the media streaming. I only watched a couple minutes to confirm the junk car status.

The whole project was a great idea but reminded me of Geraldo Rivera live broadcast of Al Capone's vault that contained nothing worthwhile. Even if it sucks, the TV ratings and advertisement spots are worth big jing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P84OKTUx6LY

[f_inscreenname]

I have to say if that was one of todays cars sitting in there for 50 years it would have been a pile of dust.

[dfunde01]

I have to say if that was one of todays cars sitting in there for 50 years it would have been a pile of dust.

And you would be wrong. Even in Tulsa they would know how to seal a vault in 2007, I think.

[Craig S]

Since it was raining pretty hard on Friday morning, we decided to go see the MOPAR pulled out of the ground before going to Hallet. Although the car was still covered up, the event was pretty neat. The big crane, the bleachers and helicopters, the police escort...

I'll try and post some pics of that portion later.As the elderly MOPAR contingent was out in force, the parking lot was pretty...different. Quite a few pre '65 Chrysler products hanging around.

btw, I understand the city burried a Plymouth Prowler in 1998. But it wasn't totally below ground, this time. Craig