A Geelong homeowner has reunited two families after uncovering a handwritten birthday message sealed inside a glass bottle and hidden within the wall of a shed during demolition works — a note that had been sitting undisturbed since 18 June 1972.
Brent Taylor first came across the bottle around three years ago while carrying out works at his St Albans Park property in Geelong, Victoria. At the time, he set it aside without fully investigating it. It was only recently, while sorting through boxes, that he rediscovered the bottle and took a closer look at what was inside.
What the Note Said — and Who Signed It
The handwritten message inside the bottle is dated and bears the inscription "Pat Finn's birthday", accompanied by five signatures. Intrigued by the find, Taylor uploaded a photograph of both the bottle and the note to local community groups on Facebook, hoping someone might recognise the names.
The response exceeded his expectations. Taylor said he quickly identified a direct link to the note's subject.
"I've actually found the son of the person 'Pat' whose birthday it was," Taylor said. "Pat's wife Laura has also signed it — sadly Pat has passed, but she is now in her 90s."
As of now, four of the five signatures have been matched to real people, with Taylor expressing hope that the final name can also be identified.
The Finn Family's Reaction
Pat's son, Damian Finn, said he had no knowledge of the note — largely because he hadn't yet been born when it was placed in the wall. He does, however, recall growing up next door to the Fox family, whose name appears among the signatures.
"Dad passed away 16 years ago and hadn't mentioned this to me," Damian said. "I'm calling in on mum, who has also signed the paper. She's now 90 and not going great."
He also offered an insight into his father's character that made the discovery feel entirely in keeping with who Pat was as a person. "My parents were always in for a bit of fun. Dad would sign his name and date on every house he ever worked on — in wall cavities and so on — so this may be the start of more finds," Damian said.
A Time Capsule Placed With Purpose
The Fox family, who also feature in the note, provided additional context about why the bottle may have been placed there. Barry Fox's father Maurice — one of the signatories — believes the bottle was placed inside the wall cavity as "a sort of time capsule to remember the building of the garage."
That small act of commemoration, tucked quietly into the framework of a suburban shed, has now bridged more than five decades to reconnect the descendants of those who placed it there.
What Happens to the Bottle Now?
Taylor says he is keen for the families involved to decide the bottle's fate collectively. "I'm hoping they can come to an agreement as to what happens with the bottle, as I'm sure it would be something the families would like," he said.
The discovery carries an added personal resonance for Taylor himself. He revealed that a message in a bottle connected to one of his own relatives was found just last year on Wharton Beach, near Esperance in Western Australia. That bottle, which experts believe had been buried for over a century, contained a note from two Australian soldiers in 1916 who had dropped it into the ocean while travelling to France during the First World War.
For Taylor, stumbling upon one such time capsule might seem remarkable enough — but finding a personal connection to two of them, decades apart and hundreds of kilometres from each other, is the kind of coincidence that is difficult to explain away.
