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DILLONVALE - Time stood still for a few moments Saturday afternoon when area residents gathered in the lower level of the Dillonvale City Building for a ceremony dedicated to honoring the community's former school and to dedicate the community park which now fills the site on which the school once stood.

The key point of interest for those gathered in the standing-room-only crowd was the opening of a small sealed metal box that had been housed in the cornerstone of the former Dillonvale High School for a century.

Handwritten documents were found in the box, and though they were in generally poor condition due to moisture inside the container, listings of names and businesses which were part of the school's community when the box was sealed a century ago were read aloud by Frank Zerla, president of the Dillonvale High School Alumni Association.

The documents then were placed on a nearby table for the public to view. Many of those attending the ceremony had family and community ties several generations old to individuals listed on the documents.

The school stood from 1911 until 1972.

Anyone wanting to hold onto a piece of the school's history are invited to contact Dillonvale Mayor Bill Morse or Danene Hutkay at (740) 769-2570 to request a brick rescued from the school building as it was being razed.

Among the dignitaries attending the event were U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson, D-St. Clairsville; state Rep. John Domenick, D-Smithfield; and internationally known photographer and author Jay Stock.

A community park now sits on the site of the former. high school. Benches were donated by the Dillonvale Mount Pleasant Lions Club.

Ohio Department of Development Brownfield grants in the amount of $200,000 funded the project.