ITHACA, N.Y. (WENY) -- On Aug. 8 while digging up the foundation of a home, Ithaca native Dante Shululu came across an old cement block that would soon bring a serendipitous moment to his life. 

Shululu, who works for his father’s company Common Ground Excavation in Ithaca, says with the help of his co-worker they were able to break through the cement that held a time capsule.  

“My coworker Tim and I, we were digging up a foundation for a house and happened to come across this big old cement block. We were about to backfill in the hole, and he accidentally put a tooth in the bottom of his block, and I happened to realize that I saw, on at least one of these pieces of paper.” 

Using a concrete saw, he uncovered a box of newspapers published on Sunday, June 5, 1949, from the Syracuse Herald American and The Post Standard.  

1949 was a pivotal moment in Unites States history under the Truman administration. Sworn in for his second term as the 33rd president, Truman would go on to issue Executive Orders 9980 and 9981, mandating the desegregation of the federal workforce and military just a year before. He was also the first sitting president to recognize the civil rights organization, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).  

The Cold War also remained ongoing and many American soldiers had been stationed in Germany. By April 4, 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty (NATO) would also be signed into law amid the ongoing war against the Soviet Union.  

“I'm a huge history buff, especially when it comes to U. S. History, but I was just ecstatic. I was shaking,” says Shululu. “To find out that this was 75 years old as of June 5th, this year, it just had me shaken.” 

In the bulk of newspapers, Shululu came across one of the original “Popeye” comics as well as “Cheeta,” one of the chimpanzees who became the star of the Tarzan pictures.  

“I was told by an older individual when I was talking about this [at a] party the other day, that there are these chimps here, they're the first chimps in a movie, and they were in the movie Tarzan, recorded in Ithaca, New York at Cascadilla Falls. That's where the first Tarzan was recorded.” 

 While sifting through the stack of newspapers, Shululu’s eyes gravitated to what he describes being the most special out of the collection.  

“Wesley A. Brown, right here at the top, this is his mother giving him a kiss on the cheek as he proudly shows [Rosetta Brown] his diploma, after graduating from the United States Naval Academy, being the first African American to do so.” 

Lieutenant Commander Wesley A. Brown, born in Baltimore, Maryland, was the first graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in May of 1949. Black midshipmen had come before Brown, but none had the opportunity to graduate due to most dropping out after experiencing extreme hostility. Before World War 11, the Navy practiced a policy in which it restricted Black sailors to the messman branch that would allow for segregation.  

Brown would go on to serve 20 years in the Navy Civil Engineering Corp.  

Meanwhile, Shululu in less than one month will be leaving for basic training for the Army and says coming across this front page solidified his decision.  

“Just seeing this and seeing how it was published a day before my birthday [as] you said over the phone, it came full circle,” adding “I'm the third generation on both sides of my family to be in the military and it just hit a certain spot in my heart where I was like, ‘you know what, this is, the decision I'm making is correct. It's definitely right.’ And this right here, this paper definitely proved it to me.”  

According to the Naval History and Heritage Command, as an officer in the Civil Engineer Corps, Brown continued to work in Bayonne, New Jersey; Davisville, Rhode Island; and at the public works department at the Barbers Point Naval Air Station in Hawaii. 

“This is going to be the right decision for me and for my community and the people around me also to be fighting for my country's freedom and knowing that I'm doing the right job and I'm not the only one who thought that.”