Lee button found in time capsule under Raleigh Confederate monument

RALEIGH — Crews removing the base of the Confederate monument in downtown Raleigh earlier this week discovered a time capsule.

A button that experts believe was from Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee’s dress coat and a strand of hair from his horse are among the items found inside, according to the State Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

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The capsule was placed in the base of the monument in 1894, according to the State Archives. The monument was dedicated one year later.

Also among the discoveries reported by the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources were Confederate money, song books and flags and a stone believed to be from Gettysburg.

Time had taken its toll on the capsule, according to the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. There was rust on the metal box that kept the contents, which the department said were “severely damaged by the elements.”

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