The Benny Franklin time capsule in San Fran's Washington square

Standing a smidge over two meters tall, the bronze statue of Benny Franklin standing in San Fran's Washington Square looks a bit quaint yet familiarly nostalgic to any casual passerby. But there's a whacky secret hiding beneath its granite base – a time capsule filled with history waiting to be rediscovered. Originally commissioned by the temperance crusader Henry D. Cogswell, this statue – also called the Benjamin Franklin Memorial, the Benny Franklin Statue, and the Cogswell Historical Monument – was initially unveiled at Kearny and Market Streets in 1879.

Fast forward to 1904, and the statue was relocated to its current spot. In 1979, 100 years after its creation, a time capsule hidden in the base was unearthed and it contained Cogswell's personal papers. A new time capsule, to be unearthed in 2079, now resides in its place. The water spigots may be gone, but the statue remains, a testament to the city's yesteryears.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons