Thornwell Jacobs
Encyclopedia
Early life
Jacobs was born in ClintonClinton, South Carolina
Clinton is a city in Laurens County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 8,091 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Greenville–Mauldin–Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area. Clinton was first settled by Scots-Irish immigrants two decades before the American Revolutionary...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, February 15, 1877, at the Thornwell Orphanage. The orphanage was founded by his father, Reverend William Plumer Jacobs. His mother was Mary Jane (Dillard) Jacobs.
Jacobs learned the printing trade while he was still quite young. Later he earned the Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree and Master of Arts
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degree from South Carolina's Presbyterian College in 1895, also founded by his father. He also graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton Theological Seminary is a theological seminary of the Presbyterian Church located in the Borough of Princeton, New Jersey in the United States...
in New Jersey in 1899.
His grandfather Ferdinand Jacobs taught Mathematics and Astronomy at the antebellum Oglethorpe University, based in Milledgeville, GA, from 1845-1849.
Adult life
Jacobs served as a Presbyterian pastorate in MorgantonMorganton, North Carolina
Morganton is a city in Burke County, North Carolina, United States. Reader's Digest included Morganton in its list of top ten places to raise a family. The town was recently profiled in The 50 Best Small Southern Towns. The population was 17,310 at the 2000 census...
at the Presbyterian Church from 1900-1903. He then worked in advertising in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, until 1905. After this time Jacobs began institutional support for the Thornwell Orphanage.
Career
Jacobs is noted for revitalizing and rebuilding the antebellum college of Oglethorpe UniversityOglethorpe University
Oglethorpe University is a private liberal arts college in Brookhaven, Georgia, an inner suburb of Atlanta. It was chartered in 1835 and named after James Edward Oglethorpe, the state's founder.-History:...
. He became its president on January 21, 1915 and continued in that position for nearly three decades. Oglethorpe University, named after James Edward Oglethorpe, the founder of the colony of Georgia, had been chartered a Presbyterian institution in 1835. It had been shut down during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and did not successfully reopen until Jacobs intervened.
Other
In 1922 Jacobs rediscovered the burial place of General James Edward Oglethorpe in CranhamCranham
Cranham is a residential suburb in northeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross and comprises an extensive built-up area to the north and a low density conservation area surrounded by open land to the south. It was historically...
, England.
Crypt of Civilization
Jacobs originated the Crypt of CivilizationCrypt of Civilization
The Crypt of Civilization is a sealed airtight chamber located at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia. The crypt consists of preserved artifacts scheduled to be opened in the year AD 8113...
time capsule at Oglethorpe University. It was sealed off with steel doors in 1940. According to the Guinness Book of World Records it is "the first successful attempt to bury a record of this culture for any future inhabitants or visitors to the planet Earth."
Jacobs initially planned and designed the Crypt of Civilization
Crypt of Civilization
The Crypt of Civilization is a sealed airtight chamber located at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia. The crypt consists of preserved artifacts scheduled to be opened in the year AD 8113...
storage space to preserve information of the early 20th century in 1935. He discussed this proposal in an article in Scientific American
Scientific American
Scientific American is a popular science magazine. It is notable for its long history of presenting science monthly to an educated but not necessarily scientific public, through its careful attention to the clarity of its text as well as the quality of its specially commissioned color graphics...
, November 1936, because he was struck by the dearth of information on the ancient civilizations. Jacobs wrote of a unique plan to present a "running story" of life and customs. He wanted to show the accumulated knowledge of mankind up until his time.
The Crypt was sealed on May 28, 1940. It is intended to be opened May 28, 8113 C.E.
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
. Jacobs is known as the "father of the modern time capsule." George Edward Pendray
George Edward Pendray
George Edward Pendray was an American public relations counselor, author, foundation executive, and an early advocate of rockets and spaceflight.-Early life:...
is the person responsible for coining the term time capsule
Time capsule
A time capsule is an historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a method of communication with future people and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians...
. Pendray is also the one responsible for the Westinghouse time capsule
Westinghouse Time Capsules
The Westinghouse Time Capsules are two time capsules prepared by the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company: "Time Capsule I", created for the 1939 New York World's Fair; and "Time Capsule II", created for the 1964 New York World's Fair. Both are buried 50 feet below Flushing Meadows Park,...
that was buried in 1938 for the 1939 New York World's Fair
1939 New York World's Fair
The 1939–40 New York World's Fair, which covered the of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park , was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people...
. Pendray "borrowed" the original idea from Jacobs. Originally Westinghouse's project was named "time bomb".
The date of 8113 C.E.
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
was calculated by Jacobs from the first fixed date in history, 4241 B.C.E.
Common Era
Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...
This is the time that most historians believe was when the Egyptian calendar was established. The Crypt's projected intended opening is in exactly 6177 years. This is the number of years between 4241 BCE and 1936 CE. Jacobs projected the same period of time forward from 1936 giving this opening date of 8113.
Death
Jacobs died August 4, 1956. He is buried at the First Presbyterian Church cemetery in Clinton, South CarolinaClinton, South Carolina
Clinton is a city in Laurens County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 8,091 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Greenville–Mauldin–Easley Metropolitan Statistical Area. Clinton was first settled by Scots-Irish immigrants two decades before the American Revolutionary...
.
Works
- Sinful Saddy (1907)
- The Law of the White Circle (1908), a novellaNovellaA novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
.
- Midnight Mummer (poems) (1911)
- The Oglethorpe Story (1916)
- Life of William Plumer Jacobs (1918)
- New Science and the Old Religion (1927)
- Islands of the Blest (poems) (1928)
- Oglethorpe Book of Georgia Verse (1930)
- Diary of William Plumber Jacobs (1937)
- William Plumber Jacobs Memorabilla (1942)
- Red Lanterns on St. Michael's (1940), an historical novelHistorical novelAccording to Encyclopædia Britannica, a historical novel is-Development:An early example of historical prose fiction is Luó Guànzhōng's 14th century Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which covers one of the most important periods of Chinese history and left a lasting impact on Chinese culture.The...
about the Siege of CharlestonSecond Battle of Charleston HarborThe Second Battle of Charleston Harbor, also known as the Siege of Charleston Harbor, Siege of Fort Wagner, or Battle of Morris Island, took place during the American Civil War in the late summer of 1863 between a combined Union Army/Navy force and the Confederate defenses of Charleston, South...
during the American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
- Story of Christmas (1941)
- Drums of Doomsday (1942), a novel about a visionary Presbyterian minister who attempts to bring religion to Hollywood.
- Step down, Dr. Jacobs (1945)
See also
- Time capsuleTime capsuleA time capsule is an historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a method of communication with future people and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians...
- Westinghouse Time CapsulesWestinghouse Time CapsulesThe Westinghouse Time Capsules are two time capsules prepared by the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company: "Time Capsule I", created for the 1939 New York World's Fair; and "Time Capsule II", created for the 1964 New York World's Fair. Both are buried 50 feet below Flushing Meadows Park,...
- International Time Capsule SocietyInternational Time Capsule SocietyThe International Time Capsule Society , based at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia, is an organization established to promote the study of time capsules...