The Delaware Historical Society was founded in May of 1864 and over the next 15 decades,&nbsp;the organization refined its stated purpose to reflect both a changing society and the evolution of the public history profession. The mission of the Delaware Historical Society today is to serve as the statewide, non-profit organization that preserves, explores, shares and promotes Delaware history, heritage and culture to strengthen our community. Buildings and exhibits located near the site include gardens, historical homes, and statues.

The Delaware History Museum is across the street from the Historical Society.

The Delaware Historical Society was founded in 1864.

Website

The Delaware Historical Society is one of the premier resources for history about Delaware.  On display are collections of objects, published materials, images, maps, and manuscripts relating to Delaware history and genealogy, dating from earliest settlements to the present. Materials include important documents, literature, photography, and artwork. It operates the Delaware History Museum located across the street.

Delaware Historical Society

This tour of downtown Wilmington starts at Hotel DuPont and includes historic buildings, landmarks, and monuments such as the statue of Delaware’s most cherished patriot, Caesar Rodney. New entries will be added to the tour soon. 

Howard High School was founded in 1867. It was the first school in Delaware that would offer a high school education to Black students and was also one of the first known Black secondary schools in the United States. In the early 1870s, Edwina B. Kruse became the first African American principal and served until 1920. Two years later, the school&nbsp; was under the control of the local board of education and was called School 16. The records show that there were four teachers: Annie D. Evans, Nellie Graves, Susan Goodwin and Arean Ruffin. Howard High School was originally mentioned in Belton v. Gebhart. In Belton v. Gebhart, parents of Black students living in Claymont sued to enroll their children in an all-white high school. Prior to Brown V Board, Black students were bused to Howard High School, which was nine miles away in an undesirable part of town. Not only was the distance a factor, class size, teacher qualifications, and the incomplete curriculum also angered African American parents. In 1927 the school was given a large financial contribution from General Motors Chairman Pierre S. du Pont. The original building was replaced with a larger and more modern schoolhouse. At the time, the school was considered to be among the finest in the country.Today the school is known as the Howard High School of Technology. Howard was named a 2014 Bronze Medal School by U.S. News and World Report. It also was recognized as a Delaware Blue Ribbon School in the years of 1997 and 1999.

Named after General Otis Howard, a Union General in the Civil War, Howard High School is one of the schools directly linked with the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Brown v. Board of Education. The school's name has changed from Howard High School to Howard Career Center and today it goes by the name Howard High School of Technology. For most of its history, the school taught African American children in the era of segregation. Owing to its significance, the school was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 5, 2005.

Howard High School

The historic building, <a href="https://www.theclio.com/entry/126528" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">along with the warehouse built a few blocks to its north</a>, enjoys an association with two world-renown leather companies: New Castle Leather Company and the Allied Kid Company. Both companies were leaders in their field and employed significant numbers of people in Wilmington. The fireproof office building, erected in 1917, enjoys Spanish Colonial architecture -- a unique style for Wilmington -- and served the companies from 1917 to 1977. The main office building survives as a lasting reminder of Wilmington's once bustling leather industry.Wilmington once stood as the world's second-largest producer of Moroccan leather. The manufacturing of Moroccan leather in Wilmington got its start in 1828, and the leather trade grew rapidly throughout the 19th century. Wilmington's location near the Atlantic Ocean (thirty miles closer than Philadelphia) and at the apex of the Christina, Brandywine, and Delaware Rivers, along with an established seaport, allowed for easy transportation of leather goods to other markets. By 1870 larger mechanized leather factories replaced neighborhood tanyards, and mechanization allowed for increased production and profit. By the late nineteenth century, many of the employees involved with leather manufacturing trades comprised of Polish immigrants. At the turn of the century, Wilmington supported forty plants that employed 3,000 leatherworkers, which climbed to 6,000 leather-industry workers by 1933. Richard Patzowsky started New Castle Leather Company when he built a tannery on 11th and Poplar Streets in 1901. Patzowsky came to America from Prague at the age of eighteen and then spent seven years learning the trade by working as a manager for F. Blumenthal and Company. His New Castle Leather Company grew into the world's leading Moroccan leather manufacturer. On November 24, 1916, Richard Patzowsky died, leaving the company to his friend and co-worker, J. Wirt Willis. Under his leadership, New Castle Leather Company served as the first tannery to develop colored glazed leather. The rapid success forced the company to expand its tannery warehouse to a size of eight city blocks. The warehouse construction (located blocks away from the main office building) consisted of steel beams, concrete floors, brick and tiles laid between floor joists, and an expansive sprinkler system, all of which served as excellent designs to protect the tannery from fire. Still, a large fire on December 22, 1921, damaged the warehouses and leather. Regardless, the company recovered and continued to grow.The culmination of several leather makers merging during the 1920s led to the Allied Kid Company's establishment in 1929. Four years later, in 1933, Allied Kid purchased New Castle Leather Company and, consequently, became Wilmington's largest manufacturer. Along with a large Polish workforce, Allied employed numerous women. Regardless of their ethnicity or gender, the Allied crew managed to unite and unionize. Allied dominated the markets for years, but market changes and consumer habits ultimately led to the decline of the leather market; Allied closed its facility in 1977. The main office survives and sits vacated today, it is the goal of the African American Heritage Center of Delaware to establish a Black-controlled site at the former Allied Kid Building. In addition to supporting their needs, it will preserve the historic building for years to come. Most of the other tannery buildings that once dominated eastern Wilmington's have long since been demolished or converted in such a way that makes them unrecognizable as former tanneries. Hence, the historic building, which supported the New Leather Castle Company and Allied Kid, survives as a distinct reminder of an industry that once substantially boosted Wilmington's economy and helped its population grow.

Wilmington's leather industry grew substantially during the nineteenth and early twentieth century, which helped Wilmington's economy and population grow. The New Castle Company, created in 1901, grew into the nation's leading leather manufacturer by World War I. Allied Kid purchased the company in 1933 and success continued. Both companies used the main office building, with its unique Spanish-style architecture, from 1917 to 1977. It stands as one of the few reminders of the once thriving leather industry. 

Main Office of the New Castle Leather Company and Allied Kid Company

In an age when African Americans
were largely excluded from many public facilities, the Knotty Pine Restaurant
became a Wilmington institution. Lottie Ewing opened the restaurant in 1959,
and it quickly became a refuge for the city’s African American community. Ewing’s
home-cooked meals became popular with locals as well as visitors to the east
side.&nbsp;

As the Knotty Pine’s popularity
in the city grew, it became a gathering spot for entertainers in the city. When
African American entertainers like Cab Calloway, Ray Charles, and Lena Horne performed
at the Hotel du Pont, segregation prohibited them from eating there, so they
often came to the Knotty Pine. James Brown was a patron, as well as local
politicians and public figures.&nbsp;

Lottie Ewing’s daughter, Stella
Dunning, inherited the Knotty Pine from her mother and ran it until declining
health led her to retire in 2014. There are currently plans to reopen the
restaurant later in 2018. The restaurant will remain in the Dunning family;
Stella Dunning’s grandniece, Lolita Johnson, plans to continue the family
tradition with the Knotty Pine II, located in the same east side building.

&nbsp;

Located on Wilmington’s east side, the Knotty Pine Restaurant was, until a few years ago, the city’s longest continually-operating African-American-owned restaurant. The restaurant closed for a few years following the owner’s retirement but has since reopened. The restaurant served as a welcoming haven for Wilmington’s African American community when segregation kept them from many other establishments. Some of the most well-known entertainers of the day were patrons.

Knotty Pine Restaurant 

On June 30, 1776, delegates to the Continental Congress put forward a motion for independence. After debate, an initial vote was held on July 1st that saw nine colonies vote in favor of independence. There were two colonies who initially voted against the measure while Delaware delegates split their vote. Three delegates, Thomas McKean, George Read, and Caesar Rodney, were sent to the Continental Congress by Delaware but Caesar Rodney was not present on July 1st owing to his duties as Brigadier General of the Delaware militia. In Rodney's absence, the vote in Delaware was tied voted was between Mr. Read who voted against independence and Mr. McKean, who voted for independence.The statue, erected in 1923, was removed in 2020 in response to the nationwide social justice protests associated with the George Floyd murder.Mr. McKean dispatched a rider to notify Rodney of this issue and to inform him that he was needed to break the tie. At almost midnight on July 1, 1776, Rodney rode 80 miles horseback to Philadelphia, and on July 2, 1776, Rodney cast his vote for independence. Caesar Rodney’s vote for independence caused him to be branded a traitor to the Crown, but following a successful revolution, he is regarded by Delaware residents and Americans as a patriot.Rodney suffered from ill-health including asthma and cancer of the jaw in which would have made his ride strenuous. “As history records, Caesar Rodney gave up the possibility of receiving medical treatment in London because he voted and pledged his life, fortune and sacred honor for American Independence” (Howell). Rodney’s heroic act was commemorated by a statute and also by his image appearing on the 1999 U.S. Delaware Quarter. Since its dedication in 1923, Caesar Rodney’s statue has stood at this location in what has been known since that tie as Rodney Square.Delaware remained a slave state even after some neighboring states such as New Jersey and Pennsylvania chose to gradually end slavery through a series of laws in the early 1800s. Rodney and his family members enslaved people of African descent throughout his life. Rodney owned as many as fifteen enslaved persons and did not emancipate these individuals until certain dates set forth in his will. Rodney Square remains, an area deemed a national historical district by the National Register of Historic Places, but the status of the statue remains in flux.

Dedicated on July 4, 1923, this Wilmington statue honors colonial Delaware patriot Caesar Rodney. At almost midnight on July 1, 1776, Caesar Rodney was informed that he was needed in Congress to cast a tie-breaking vote for the colony of Delaware on the matter of declaring independence from Britain. Rodney rode 80 miles on horseback to Philadelphia and on the next day, July 2, 1776, Rodney cast his vote which broke the tie and paved the way for the passage of the Declaration of Independence. However, its status as of 2021 remains unclear as it was removed during the nationwide social justice protests associated with the murder of George Floyd. Rodney owned several slaves, and in response to concerns about having this statue continue to serve as a prominent symbol of Delaware, city leaders chose to remove the statue temporarily pending future discussions and a final decision regarding this statue's location. Rodney Square, where the statue once stood, remains as an anchor of the city's downtown historical district.

Caesar Rodney Statue (1923-2021)

The John Merrick House, also known as Wilmington Club, built in 1864, reflects the nineteenth-century trend of moguls constructing lavish dwellings just outside of the commercial and industrial district. The Wilmington Club, founded in 1876, moved into the home in 1900. John Merrick gained fame as one of Wilmington's most successful carriage makers and gets credit for creating the nation's first steam-powered carriage factory in 1864. Meanwhile, the Wilmington Club promoted the discussion of literature, art, and history while also providing a place of leisure for members who existed among the top earners in Wilmington; thus, the historic building exhibits the city's increasing social and economic stratification around the turn of the twentieth century. John Merrick's financial success coincided with the rise and decline of Wilmington's carriage-making industry. During Merrick's lifetime, carriage making evolved from a small, craft-oriented business to a significant enterprise that sold locally, nationally, and internationally. Despite losing southern markets during the Civil War, smart carriage businesses, including Merrick's operation -- shifted their production to filling government contracts related to the war effort, making the 1860s a time of prosperity. Unlike most who remained cautious during the Civil War, John Merrick (1814-1889) commissioned his home in 1864, making his house one of the earliest examples of Wilmington industrialists building lavish homes as it preceded the post-war building boom. Delaware frequently lagged in architectural trends, but the Merrick House emerged at the height of Italianate popularity, which speaks to Merrick's business travels to Baltimore and other cities where the style was in vogue. The grand Italian Renaissance Revival townhouse represents the peak of upward mobility possible for Wilmington's industrious entrepreneurs during the middle nineteenth-century. Moreover, a class-conscious attitude arose, which included a geographical distinction as specific neighborhoods comprised of mainly wealthy citizens. Other grand homes that arrived later included Physician Thomas Draper's Greek Revival mansion, Civil War veteran Col. Henry McComb's Second Empire house, as well as the homes of bankers, merchants, and the first president of the Wilmington Association (later called the Wilmington Club). By the 1880s, Wilmington's ironworking and shipbuilding industries became the town's most profitable businesses, and carriage makers of the Midwest also hurt carriage makers in Wilmington. Merrick died in 1889 as the industry declined, and just before the rise of the automobile relegated carriage making into a local craft business. Nevertheless, Wilmington's economy mostly enjoyed growth for several decades after Merrick's death, and the disparity between the town's most wealthy residents and its workers grew. Indeed, just as the construction of the Merrick residence speaks of John Merrick's climb from a carriage-building tradesman to industrialist, the Wilmington Club's place in the home demonstrates the growing distance between the working class and Wilmington's wealthy. Purchased in 1900, the building served as the new home of The Wilmington Club, whose origins began in 1855 as The Wilmington Association. (In 1876, the Wilmington Association merged with the Delaware Club, formerly called the Attic Club, to become the Wilmington Club.) Its 1877 constitution noted that the Wilmington Club promoted "social intercourse among Delawareans and encouraging the advancements of literature and art and the preservation of our State history and traditions and by such means as they [the members] may deem expedient and proper for such purpose." Mainly though, it served as a social club for wealthy businessmen. The club enjoyed perks that few in the community had, such as a telephone booth in 1905, electricity in 1906, and a telegraph wire for receiving election results installed by 1908. While certainly not accessible to women, people of color, or laborers (the working class), the club also did not invite members of the middle class even as they enjoyed increasing wealth. Instead, the Wilmington Club, like many of its kind, remained exclusive for those whose wealth had been established for years, if not generations. In other words, the club was not open to people looking to elevate their social position, only those who sat at the top of the social strata. It wasn't until 1982 that African Americans were allowed to become members, and women were not admitted prior to 1992.

This historic Wilmington structure was the home of the carriage-making mogul, John Merrick (who had the home built for him), from 1864 to 1900. The former mansion was acquired by the Wilmington Club in 1900 and has served as that organization's headquarters to the present day. Merrick built his home during the Civil War in a neighborhood that was increasingly populated by wealthy residents. In 1900, the Wilmington Club purchased the house. The club catered to the wealthiest of Wilmington's population, and limited its membership to white men until the 1980s when African Americans were allowed. The organization did not allow women to join until the 1990s. The Wilmington Club is the nation's third oldest dining club. 

Wilmington Club (Also known as the John Merrick House)

Construction of the grand dame of Wilmington began in 1911. Commissioned by DuPont Company president Pierre DuPont, no expense was spared in the construction of the hotel. Craftsmen were brought in from France and Italy to use their skills on the property's marble and wood, creating a finely detailed interior that is still regarded as one of the grandest in the United States. The hotel opened in January of 1913 and in its first week, more than 25,000 people toured its lavish interior. Then as now, the hotel's showpieces were the dining room, known as the Green Room, where wood paneling rises two-and-a-half stories above mosaic floors, and the expansive lobby. The hotel also featured the works of local artists, some of whom went on to become among the most highly regarded artists of the twentieth century, including Howard Pyle and the Wyeths. Over the years, the Hotel DuPont hosted and entertained a long list of Hollywood stars as well as political figures and royalty. The hotel counts eight sitting presidents among its guests, including John Kennedy. Charles Lindbergh, Amelia Earhart, Joe DiMaggio, Eleanor Roosevelt, Ingrid Bergman, Elizabeth Taylor, and Katherine Hepburn are just a few of the celebrities who were hosted by the Hotel Dupont. Prince Rainier of Monaco and King Carl XVI were also guests. The Hotel DuPont immediately became one of the country's classic luxury hotels, recognized as one of the finest properties on the East Coast. In 1918, additions were made, including the Gold Ballroom and the theatre, which is now known as the Playhouse on Rodney Square. The DuPont Hotel remains one of the most elegant properties in the United States. But it has seen changes in recent years. In 2017, the hotel was sold and in the months since its purchase, the hotel has undergone numerous renovations. Much of its historic art collection was sold at auction. The hotel is currently operated by PM Hotel Group and additional renovations are planned.

Commissioned in the early 1900s by DuPont Company president Pierre DuPont, the hotel that bears his name is a Wilmington landmark. When it opened in 1913, the hotel instantly became one of the most fashionable properties in the United States, rivaling any in New York or London. Over its long history, the Hotel DuPont has hosted a long list of celebrities and leading political and business figures. Because of its central location overlooking Rodney Square and the central place it holds in the history of Wilmington, the hotel is often thought of as the city's "front door."

Hotel DuPont

On April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr., was assassinated in Memphis. News reports of the assassination triggered riots in numerous American cities in the following days, while Wilmington remained largely calm, with only minor disturbances. On Sunday, April 7, there was a gathering of several hundred people in Rodney Square to honor Dr. King and his legacy. The memorial was peaceful, but moments afterward, protesters took to the streets. On the afternoon and evening of April 8, the mood in Wilmington became angrier. A group of African-American men who called themselves the "Goon Squad" and patrolled the city's streets attempting to prevent gang violence were assaulted by teens throwing rocks. Local ministers and representatives from the NAACP urged calm to no avail. Governor Charles Terry declared a state of emergency in the city and activated over 1,000 National Guard troops, but after the 10:30 PM curfew passed, it appeared that the worst was over. Over the next two nights, however, rioting spread through West Center City. Historians differ on the extent of the damage caused by rioting. Roughly fifteen buildings--some of which were slated for demolition--were destroyed by arson. Several dozen people were injured, and nearly 160 people were arrested on the April 9 and 10.&nbsp; On April 9, Governor Terry ordered 2,800 National Guardsmen to Wilmington to maintain order, and many residents expected that the troops would be removed once the rioting ended. Though the rioting in Wilmington was short-lived and led to comparatively minimal damage, the governor announced his plans to keep the National Guard in the city until it was safe. The troops remained in Wilmington for nine months--the longest occupation of an American city since the Civil War.&nbsp; Wilmington of 1968 was a divided city before the occupation. The construction of I-95 through the city led to the destruction of numerous inner city neighborhoods and led to lingering bad blood. There was two days of race-related riots in July of 1967. But the prolonged occupation of the city in 1968-69 heightened the distrust that many residents felt toward the government. Many working-class families left West Center City and other inner city neighborhoods in the aftermath, and many businesses and white families fled to the suburbs. That part of Wilmington has never completely rebounded from the events of 1968.

In the aftermath of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination in April of 1968, cities across the United States experienced a wave of riots and violence. Following a memorial for Dr. King that was held in Rodney Square three days after the assassination, angry residents began rioting in the city. There are disagreements about the extent of the damage, but in response to the rioting, Delaware governor ordered 2,800 National Guardsmen to the city to maintain order. They remained in the city for nine months, long after the rioting ended.

Rodney Square and the Wilmington Riots of 1968

The Wilmington Savings Fund Society (WSFS) establishment occurred in 1831 as a "safe depository for the earnings of working people" and whose primary business centered on mortgages and offering loans to home builders. The emergence of WSFS speaks to the Philadelphia-area's creation of savings society banks: mutual savings and savings &amp; loans associations. The first two arose in Philadelphia in 1816 and 1831, with three more nearby, including WSFS in 1832, by the 1850s. The mutual savings idea eventually spread throughout New England with much success. Construction on the historic, Neo-Classic-Revival WSFS Building finished in 1920, which replaced an earlier WSFS structure completed in 1886. Inspired by similar institutions in England and Scotland, the success of the member-owned Philadelphia Saving Fund Society (1816) and Oxford Provident Building Association (1831) helped launch savings societies whose focus involved Americans of modest means. Savings society banks helped people purchase homes, save for retirement, and open small businesses. Savings societies thrived in the Philadelphia region and eventually throughout the nation until the Savings &amp; Loan (S&amp;L) crisis of the 1980s and 1990s; only a few savings societies operated by the end of the twentieth century. Nevertheless, WSFS survived the Great Depression and S&amp;L crisis. WSFS now serves as the largest and longest-standing locally-managed banking facility in the Greater Delaware Valley. Moreover, WSFS Bank stands as one of the nation's ten oldest banks continuously operating under its original name.WSFS emerged in 1832, one year after Oxford Provident in Philadelphia. By 1886, WSFS needed a large structure in downtown Wilmington to accommodate its growing customer base as Wilmington enjoyed an industrial and population boom. By 1920, Wilmington enjoyed continued growth, although its economy had largely transitioned from one centered on industries such as iron and leather to one focused on chemicals, the automobile, and a plethora of white-collar professional jobs. The historic building, which opened in 1920, speaks to the city's and WSFS's continued growth as its lot size doubled that of the 1832 structure.In fact, while some banks folded, several banks enjoyed profound success after World War I and into the "Roaring '20s," and bank's architectural designs often conveyed their success. The general massing of the WSFS building is akin to a Greek temple, featuring colossal Egyptian Revival columns. (A modern addition exists on the south side of the building, and renovations have altered the interior.) In 1932, even as the Great Depression created financial hardships for the nation and its banks, WSFS celebrated its 100th anniversary by adding a 60' x 90' mural to its lobby created by N.C. Wyeth; the mural is one of the six largest murals in the United States.In 2007, WSFS Bank moved its corporate headquarters from its historic location on 838 N. Market Street to a modern skyscraper on 500 Delaware Avenue. The landmark bank underwent a conversion in 2015 into an apartment building, meeting the Historic Preservation committee's specifications. The building is now known as Market Street Village, but the Wilmington Savings Fund Society name remains prominent.

The Wilmington Savings Fund Society (WSFS) opened for business in 1832 as one of the first Philadelphia-area saving society banks, such as Savings & Loan institutions, that expanded rapidly into New England and eventually the nation. WSFS remains in operation today having survived the Great Depression and the S&L crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s.  The historic building arose in 1920, replacing one half its size that was built in 1886. WSFS remained in the building until 2007 when it moved its headquarters to a modern skyscraper. The historic building transitioned recently to Market Street Village, an apartment building, but the Wilmington Savings Fund Society name is easily seen on the building's front facade. 

Wilmington Savings Fund Society (WSFS)

Wilmington's Masonic Hall and Grand Theater stands as one of the finest remaining examples of American, nineteenth-century, cast iron architecture and enjoys ties to numerous historical events in Delaware. The Masonic Hall opened in 1871 as a home for the Grand Lodge of the Masons. However, with its stage, reputed to be the nation's second largest, the theater evolved into the area's home to a wide range of lauded live performances and events. Today, the theater proceeds to serve Wilmington as a major source of live entertainment and events (although the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-2021 has created a notable interruption to its schedule).Masonic Hall and Grand Theater hosted some of the most prominent theater groups, operas, musical performances, and stars of American Theater. The site also hosted meetings conducted by local Masonic Lodges, conventions, lectures, and political events. President Ulysses S. Grant attended a "fair" held in the opera house under the auspices of Company A, First Delaware State Volunteers, on February 6, 1873. In 1889 Lieutenant (later Admiral) Robert E. Peary spoke in the opera house about the Arctic region and his search for the North Pole. The Grand also hosted State Republican and Democratic conventions. Meanwhile, the Grand hosted its first motion picture event on February 8, 1897. By 1906, movies became the dominant form of entertainment and by 1914 had wholly replaced live performances at the Grand. Regardless of the type of entertainment or event, the Grand stood as Wilmington's cultural epicenter for several decades.Warner Brothers took over management from 1930 to 1967. After Warner Brothers left, the theater remained largely closed for four years, minus weekend movies. But, in 1971, the Grand reopened as the home to classical music, produced mainly by the Delaware Symphony Orchestra, Opera Delaware, and the First State Ballet Theatre. Renovations during the 1970s also helped restore the theater to its original beauty, and modern touches allowed it to continue to thrive into the twenty-first century, where it hosts a wide range of shows and events. Indeed, the Grand's official website notes in 2020, "The Grand presents more than 80 shows each season...the building hosts more than 300 events a year, bringing more than 120,000 people into downtown Wilmington and through its doors." (However, the global pandemic of 2020 and 2021 has forced most performances to cancel.)Though its purpose has changed at times, as has the broader entertainment industry, its beautiful architecture remains as striking today as it was in 1871. Delaware architect Thomas Dixon designed the structure in the Second Empire style with a distinguished cast iron façade adorned with Masonic images. So, while the theater goes by the name "Grand Opera House" or "The Grand," the architecture speaks to its 1871 history tied to the Masonic Lodge. And, its interior speaks to the countless events and performances it has hosted for 150 years.

The Grand, or Masonic Hall and Grand Theater, opened in 1871 as a home to the Freemasons, but quickly grew into Wilmington's cultural epicenter. For several decades, it stood as the home to almost every major social, political and entertainment event in Delaware. Tougher times for the theater prevailed during the mid-twentieth century, but a 1970s restoration project and community support gave new life to the theater. Until the global pandemic arrived to the U.S. in 2020, the theater continued to thrive; more than 120,000 guests frequented the theater each year. Though the pandemic has profoundly interrupted its operations in 2020 and 2021, it remains a beautiful example of fine architecture. 

Masonic Hall and Grand Theater (Modern: The Grand or The Grand Opera House)

The Keil family, Jewish Immigrants, moved to Wilmington from Austria in the early 1900s and established several successful businesses. For instance, Max and his brothers (and their sons) collectively owned and managed Keil Investment Company, Keil Motor Company, Keil Real Estate and Keil's Family Liquor Store, to name a few. As part of Max Keil's real estate and investment ventures, he purchased two nineteenth-century buildings at 700 and 712 N. Market Street and subsequently renovated them in the Art Moderne and Art Deco style. Both renovations demonstrate an adaption movement in downtown Wilmington involving the modernization of nineteenth-century buildings to accommodate newer businesses' needs. By World War I, Wilmington transitioned from a purely industrial city dominated by factories into a more white-collar, corporate city, primarily tied to chemical companies and automobiles. The shift pushed business leaders to invest in creating uptown office buildings, often by renovating and repurposing structures constructed during the last half of the nineteenth century. 700 North Market Street The Max Keil Building is an example of the late style Art Moderne commercial building, and it represents the start of a trend in Wilmington of fabricating blank facades to emphasize the merchandise in the display windows. The building (circa 1875) is a single unit comprised of two, four-story mid-to-late nineteenth-century Italianate commercial buildings combined into a single unit. Max Keil purchased the first unit (702) in 1911 and the second unite (700) in 1918. They remained separate units until 1938 when he combined both properties into a single store by removing the party wall and replacing the facades with the present Art Deco style. The building has mainly served retail stores since Keil leased it as a single property.  712 Market Street The Max Keil Building at 71'2 North Market Street also serves an exemplary Art Deco - Art Moderne commercial style. Keil purchased the property in 1929, a three-story brick Italianate commercial building completed in 1850. As he did with the 700 Market Street property, Keil replaced in 1936 the original facade with a new Art Deco front. Keil also renovated the interior and added a single-story rear wing. For much of its twentieth-century history, it served as the home to retailers selling women's clothing and shoes.

The Keil Family, Jewish Immigrants from Austria, arrived in Wilmington in the early 1900s and opened numerous, prosperous businesses including retail and investments to automobiles and real estate. Max Keil purchased the nineteenth-century buildings at 700 and 712 Market Street over a period from 1911 to 1929. He then updated them during the 1930s to accommodate retailers, emblematic of a broader downtown Wilmington trend of updating and renovating nineteenth-century structures. Indeed, the 700 Market Street movement is located next door to the Braunstein's Building, which underwent a similar transformation in 1924. 

Max Keil Buildings at 700 and 712 Market Street

Henry Townsend purchased the lot in 1912 and subsequently demolished an existing three-story commercial building facing Market Street and a smaller two-story shop on Shipley Street. One year later, in 1913, he built the present four-story, five-bay Henry Townsend Building, which fills the entire lot. The building demonstrates that even as late as the twentieth century, construction of buildings designed for residential use continued to appear along Market Street, which had evolved into a commercial area by the turn of the twentieth century. The Civil War had a profound effect on the Wilmington economy. By 1868, Wilmington was producing more iron ships than the rest of the U.S. combined. The city also ranked first in gunpowder production and second in carriages and leather. The post-war prosperity spurred a residential and business construction boom, especially west of the existing city (the genesis of the area's suburban development). Wilmington's population exploded from 21,250 in 1860 to 110,168 in 1920. The hillier, west side of Market Street had always been more attractive for residents dating back to the mid-eighteenth-century Quakers. Meanwhile, much of Market Street grew into a hub of commercial activity. Despite the commercialization of downtown Wilmington, the erection of the Henry Townsend Building in 1913 shows that there existed a demand for downtown living spaces. The lower floor supported retail outlets while apartment spaces filled the top three floors. Jacob Rosen Ladies Wear Shop occupied the first floor when it opened, while the upper levels consisting of apartments and offices. From 1922 and 1964, the W. T.Grant Department Store moved into the first-floor space. The Grant chain began in Massachusetts with one store in 1906 and grew to 1,200 stores nationwide and $100 million in total sales by the 1970s. Several retail stores have used the first floor since the 1970s. The top floors continue to function as rental apartment housing.Architecturally, it stands as a fine example of a Beaux-Arts Renaissance Revival mixed commercial-residential design. The building has a limestone facade with three center windows in a shallow recess on the buildings' upper levels. The building also features an ornate denticulated cornice supported by four large brackets.

The Henry Townsend Building (circa 1913) is an exemplary Beaux-Arts Renaissance Revival mixed purpose building, with the ground floor supporting retail and apartment housing on the upper floors. One of its longest retail occupants was the W. T.Grant Department Store from 1922 to 1964, a chain that grew from one store in 1906 to 1,200 nationally by the 1970s. Though Market Street evolved into a street filled with commercial buildings, the Townsend Building demonstrates a demand for residential housing remained into the World War I era, and beyond; the building's purpose remains the same today as it did in 1913. 

Henry Townsend Building

Braunstein's Building is truly two historic commercial buildings built in 1900 and then combined in 1924 as a single unit. The unification of the two buildings speaks to the adaption process trend occurring during Wilmington's Urban Growth Phase from the late nineteenth century and into the 1920s. By World War I, Wilmington, the once-booming industrial city, had transitioned into a more white-collar, corporate city, primarily tied to chemical companies. The shift of Wilmington's economic center from the factories to uptown office buildings existed as one of many changes occurring in twentieth-century Wilmington, such as the introduction of the automobile, Black migration from the South, the decline of European immigration, and movement of white, middle-class workers to nearby suburbs. The economic leaders may have moved away from the city, but they owned buildings in the city and invested in their growth and modernization. The Clayton House converted into the Queen Theatre in 1913; the Mullins Building addition -- doubling the building's size -- finished in 1917. And, the Crosby and Hill building had its Second Empire facade replaced with a commercial-style design in 1920. Along with the Braunstein Building in 1924, those buildings reflect a dynamic growth and transition period in Wilmington. The modern needs of new and expanding businesses resulted in numerous structures undergoing renovations and additions as a means of adapting. Both buildings rise four stories, with 704 Market Street a two-bay brick building, and 706 a three-bay brick building with an ornate Beaux-Art central bay on the second and third floors. The unifying, pressed-metal storefront and display window on the ground floor also enjoys Beaux-Arts detailing. Frank O'Donnell's Men's Clothing Store occupied the 704 building in its early years while 706 supported several businesses: a tailor, the Kitchens Collection Agency, and the National Protective Agency. Braunstein's clothing store occupied both buildings in 1924 after the unification commenced, hence its historic name.

Construction of the two buildings at 704 and 706 Market Street that now make up Braunstein's Building finished in 1900, but they were unified in 1924 via a ground-floor storefront. The 1920s unification reflects the many changes to Wilmington's downtown commercial structures that underwent additions, renovations and conversions in order to meet the needs of a changing economy; Wilmington changed from a city of industrial factories to one dominated by corporations and white collar workers. 

Braunstein's Building 

The Reynold's Candy Company (sometimes spelled "Reynolds Candy Company) building is a prime example of an ornately decorated 1920s mixed-use commercial building. Built in 1929, The three-story masonry building displays a finely-detailed Beaux-Art Italian Renaissance terra-cotta facade and a curved cast metal canopy mounted above the first-floor storefront. Unlike many buildings on Market Street, it largely retains its original design -- it served the Reynold's Candy Company for more than forty years as a factory and store.  Shortly before World War I, Elwood Griffenberg purchased Reynold's Candy Company, initially located in York, Lancaster, and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In 1923, the Pennsylvania factories closed, and the company subsequently moved to Wilmington; construction on the historic building finished in 1929. A tea room and candy shop occupied the first floor while the candy factory, which employed fifty people at its height, operated on the second and third floors. Along with offering 500 varieties of Reynold's candies, the store supported one of the most expansive soda fountain counters known to exist, spanning seventy-five feet. (More than 200 people could fill the candy shop and restaurant.) The Reynold's Candy Company ceased making candy in 1961, but the candy shop remained in business until 1971.  Although its most recent occupant is Cavanaugh's Restaurant, metal letters on the building's facade that spell "Reynold's Candy Company," offer a tangible reminder of its history and when Market Street abound in retailers.

Reynold's (sometimes spelled "Reynolds") Candy Company moved to Wilmington from Pennsylvania during the early 1920s and opened its historic building in 1929, just before the Great Depression. The upper floors served as the company's manufacturing facility while the lowest floor, similar to many mixed-use commercial buildings on Market Street during that era, served as its retail outlet. The candy store offered guests more than 500 candies and an expansive soda fountain counter spanning nearly seventy five feet. Its Beaux-Art Italian Renaissance style and terra-cotta facade, along with the Reynold's Candy name, speak to its 1920s construction and the forty years the company used the facility. 

Reynold's Candy Company Building

The Foord &amp; Massey Furniture Company Building, a five-story brick building, was constructed from 1917 to 1919 in the Commercial Style with Collegiate Gothic Revival elements by local Wilmington architect, John J. Kennedy. A railroad in 1838 followed by a horse-car line in 1864 helped Market Street evolve into Wilmington's business center. The arrival of the commercial retail space in 1917 coincided with a transition period for Market Street, reflecting Wilmington's economic shift from a largely shipping, ironworks, and industrial town to one with corporations and increasing residents who enjoyed wealth. Those with financial means began moving west of Market Street into developing suburbs, leaving Market Street to become a place for several mixed-use commercial structures and retail spaces. In 1908, William Beadenkopf, a local investor, purchased 701 N. Shipley while business partners, Robert L. Foord and Frank B. Massey, established the Foord &amp; Massey Furniture Company in another location. After a destructive fire in 1915, Beadenkopf decided to build a much bigger structure at 701, designed by locally renowned Architect John J. Kennedy. Finally, in 1919, Robert L. Foord of Foord &amp; Massey Furniture Company purchased the new commercial structure from Beadenkopf and used the building until 1924. Although multitudes of twentieth-century commercial buildings followed the Chicago School, or Commercial Style, concepts, the Foord &amp; Massey Furniture Company structure included Collegiate Gothic accents, a style typically reserved for ecclesiastical and educational buildings. Typical Commercial Style traits include its simple rectangular box shape, steel beam construction, and numerous windows to supply natural light. The Collegiate Gothic twist consists of its ornamentation, which provides refinement to the building's form. Stern &amp; Company Furniture moved into the facility in 1924 and stayed in the space for ten years before selling to Sears, Roebuck &amp; Company, who occupied the building from 1934 through 1950. After ownership changed for a little more than a decade, the United Community Fund of Delaware owned the historic commercial building from 1964 through 1990, followed by another period of uncertainty for the former furniture store. Finally, in 2010, the Shipley opened in the building as Downtown Wilmington's first inexpensive artist live-work rental housing. Each floor contains a prominent display space, while the Chris White Gallery on the first floor offers residents space for residents to showcase their work and host events.

Construction of the Foord & Massey Furniture Company Building took place from 1917 to 1919 at a time when Market Street enjoyed a transformation from its once industrial-heavy look of the nineteenth century to one catering to retail, apartments, and professional jobs. The company only remained the building until 1924 followed by the Stern & Company Furniture, Sears & Roebuck, and then United Community Fund of Delaware, who departed in 1990. Today, it goes by the name Shipley Artist Lofts, an affordable apartment complex that not only caters to artists, but offers them space to showcase their work. 

Foord & Massey Furniture Company Building (Modern: Shipley Lofts)

Constructed in 1859, the Crosby and Hill Building, originally known as the McClary Building, is an exemplary mid-nineteenth-century commercial building, although its facade was added in 1920. The structure has supported a church, professional offices, and various retail operations for more than a century. The building emerged at a time when Wilmington enjoyed a population boom, and its economy began to grow rapidly mainly due to its place as a port city, its highly successful iron industry, and several other commercial operations.The four-story 1859 building filled an entire lot, comprised of 605, 607, and 609 Market Street. Samuel and Thomas McClary opened a cabinetmaking shop in 605 while two pharmacists, Dr. C. Tuller and Otto Zahrzewski, occupied 607 and lived in apartments above the store. Another pharmacist, A.H. Grinshaw, leased 609. Between 1877 and 1880, the Household of Faith Church occupied the building's upper floors after they had split from Asbury Methodist Church over a doctrinal dispute.In 1887, William Crosby of Crosby and Hill Company, a wholesale and retail dealer of foreign and domestic dry goods, purchased the building. Two years later, the store evolved into Wilmington's largest retailing establishment. They remained in the historic building until 1959. The Wilmington Board of Trade Builders Exchange used the upper floors until 1898 when the Diamond Silk Shirt and Waist Company, (a manufacturer of shirts and other garments) moved into the building's top floors and remained until 1901. A three-story rear wing was added in 1901, and the current building's three-bay commercial-style facade arrived in 1920, replacing the original Second Empire style facade.Crosby and Hill Company sold the building to John's Bargain Basement Department Store in 1959, who used the structure until the store folded in 1968. Today, the building functions as a commercial space on the lowest floor with apartments on the upper floors. But, it survives today as an example of Wilmington's growth around the time of the Civil War.

The Crosby and Hill Building, originally known as the McClary Building, has served downtown Wilmington as a commercial and residential space since it opened in 1859. The building has housed numerous businesses including pharmacies, the Household of Faith Church, the Crosby and Hill dry goods wholesaler and retailer, the Diamond Silk Shirt and Waist Company, the Wilmington Board of Trade Builders Exchange, and John's Bargain Basement Department Store Company. The current facade was added in 192o and today the building is home to commercial space on the lowest floor with apartments on the upper floors.

The Crosby and Hill Building

The Old Customshouse opened in 1855. Delaware's first customs house sat in New Castle before moving to Wilmington in 1800. In 1837, the First Board of Trade emerged, intending to promote trade through Wilmington's port. The organization's first move involved appealing to Congress for a permanent custom house. Construction began in 1852 on the historic customs building, which eventually supported the Customs Department, Federal Court, and Post Office. Wilmington has since matured into an international port city that employs more than 5,000 people and generates more than $400 million in revenue.  The U.S. Congress authorized on August 31, 1852 construction of Wilmington's Customs House. Delaware Representative, George Read Riddle, sponsored the bill through the House; he also purchased Moore's Carriage Works in Wilmington in 1853. Ammi Burnham Young, who Congress appointed Supervising Architect of the Offices of Construction of the Treasury Department in 1852, designed the two-story Greek revival building consisting of a cut stone base, stucco exterior walls, and four smokestacks. Builders employed an innovative foundry technology (for the era) to install the structure's iron hip roof, a testament to Wilmington's maturing ironworks industry. The iron founding and fabricating business got its start in Delaware with the formation of Phoenix Foundry in 1826. McCullough and Company, who handled the Customhouse roofing, opened in 1847 along with several other ironworks companies by the start of the Civil War. Indeed, by 1860, the iron industry evolved into Delaware's second most significant industry and, by 1868, Wilmington produced more iron ships than the rest of the United States combined. Delaware Works Progress Administration occupied the building in 1937 (part of FDR's New Deal initiative) when the post office moved to a new home. During the Korean and Vietnam wars, drafted soldiers reported to the Old Customshouse, which served as the military's induction site for drafted soldiers. During the 1960s, the city debated the usefulness of what had become the vacant Old Customshouse. Eventually, the Custom House became Delaware's first example of a private building on the National Register renovated for public use. Wilmington College took over the Old Customshouse and subsequently remodeled it in 1981. The college remained in the building until 2004 and then sold it to investors in 2008; its current status remains unclear. The Old Customhouse stands as one of seventy Federal buildings constructed during Ammi B. Young's role as Supervising Architect of the Offices of Construction of the Treasury Department from 1852 to 1862. The building serves as a reminder of when Wilmington developed into a burgeoning port city and an ironworks hub. Today, Wilmington serves as a major international port.

Construction on the Old Customhouse finished in 1855 and served the city as its Customs House, Federal Court, and Post Office into the twentieth century. Delaware's main port transferred to Wilmington in 1800 and today Wilmington ranks as the nation's 19th largest port city, ahead of places like Boston, Gulfport, Tampa, and San Diego. The Customshouse included an iron hipped roof, a remarkable achievement for builders during the 1850s and a testament to the flourishing iron industry that emerged in Wilmington at that time. By the middle- and late-twentieth century, the building changed hands several times with its longest modern owner, Wilmington College, occupying Old Customshouse from 1981 to 2004. 

Old Customshouse of Wilmington, Delaware

Dating back to the early Republic, this governmental building offers of a mixture of late-Georgian and early-Federal styles of architecture. Today, Old Town Hall is Wilmington's only surviving 18th Century public building. The structure served the city as the headquarters of its government from 1798 to 1916. The building's appearance resembles Congress Hall and Carpenters Hall in nearby Philadelphia, just thirty miles north of Wilmington. Old Town Hall served as a prison, firehouse, courthouse, community center, and as the focal point of numerous public events in Delaware's history.  In the years that followed the creation of a new city hall, the building hosted numerous town meetings and a variety of civic and fraternal organizations used Old Town Hall as their headquarters, including the Freemasons, the Philosophical, and the Library Company. Two early fire companies also called Old Town Hall home. In addition to these roles, Old Town Hall served as the city's prison until the mid-19th century.The building is historically significant as nearly every significant public meeting in the community in the late 18th and early 19th century occurred in these walls. Presidents Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, and William Henry Harrison visited the building. The structure also hosted a grand banquet for Lafayette, the French hero of the American Revolution, during his triumphant return tour of the United States in 1824. Local citizens also met here to pay tributes to George Washington after his death in 1799. In 1852, Henry Clay's body was laid in state in the building.As the 19th century progressed, the city's needs changed, and Old Town Hall's purpose reflected that. Much of the building transitioned into office spaces, and few celebrated events occurred in the building. By World War I, the city deemed the building too small and old and planned to demolish it. However, the Delaware Historical Society, along with public support, purchased the building in 1916 and continues to own and manage the historic facility today.

Wilmington's Old Town Hall served as the seat of government from 1798 to 1916 and hosted multiple public events, as well as the community's meeting hall, prison, and court house. The building played host to numerous U.S. Presidents and other dignitaries. The late-Georgian, early-Federal Old Town Hall is Wilmington's only surviving eighteenth-century public building, resembling Philadelphia's Congress Hall and Carpenters Hall. Since 1916, the hall has been owned and managed by the Delaware Historical Society. 

Old Town Hall, Delaware Historical Society

Thomas Garrett (1789 - 1871) spent his childhood with his prosperous Quaker family on their Pennsylvania homestead, "Riverview Farm," where men kidnapped one of their free Black servants to sell her for slavery, which gave birth to his eventual views on abolition. He is believed to have assisted more than 2,700 Black southerners find safety via his Underground Railroad. Garrett befriended Harriet Tubman, who passed through his station many times. The historical marker states, "After his death on January 25, 1871, Black Wilmington residents carried him to the Quaker Cemetery at 4th and West Streets in appreciation of his unwavering commitment to the emancipation of slaves."The genesis of his abolitionist views came when, while still a boy, slave hunters kidnapped one of his family's free Black female servants and sought to sell her for slavery in the South. The Garrett family rescued her, but the incident bolstered his family's anti-slavery views; all the sons become abolitionists as adults, with Thomas the most active.  Thomas Garrett moved to Wilmington in 1822 after a religious split between Orthodox and Hicksite Quakers, which forced Garrett to split with his Orthodox family. At the time, Delaware still allowed for slave ownership. So, while he established a flourishing iron and hardware business, he also spent much of his time dedicated to abolishing slavery (and helping current slaves obtain freedom). In 1827, five years after Garrett's arrival, the Society of the State of Delaware changed to the Delaware Abolition Society, with Garrett serving as an officer; he was one of two to represent the group at the National Convention of Abolitionists.During the 1830s, Garret enjoyed success in gas lighting and heating, but he also openly worked as a stationmaster on Delaware's Underground Railroad. He never hid his feelings about slavery and slave hunters, so he did not need secret rooms until the late 1840s; authorities knew of his activities but chose to look the other way rather than arrest him. However, in 1848, he and fellow Quaker John Hunn were sued in federal court for helping a family of eight slaves owned by two owners escape. The court found Garrett and Hunn guilty of violating the Fugitive Slave Act and received a $4,500 fine, which nearly ruined him financially. Still, Garrett made it clear in court that he would not cease to help slaves. Garrett's friends help him keep his house and re-establish his iron and hardware business. In 1851, he wrote a letter that explains his feelings well, "The charge of putting up bills and 23 days of sustenance strikes me as being high, but it might not be more than the usual charges in such cases. Thirty-seven dollars and eighty-four cents of the above sum was raised by members of the colored churches in this city by collections taken up in those churches. It is to be regretted that any white man, more especially a native citizen of this place, could be found mean enough to turn informer against a fellow belonging to this persecuted and despised race, for the paltry sum of $25, when by doing so the probability was, for fine and costs, have been sold into slavery for life, or has been in this case, most of the money to redeem him, raised from a class of people, many of which with difficulty can procure the necessaries of life. Shame on a being in human form, that could stoop so low. Yours, for oppressed humanity." Harriet Tubman passed through Garrett's Underground Railroad station several times. Garrett gave her meals, material, money, and clothes. Tubman also received from Garret the means to help her parents (free Black residents) flee the South after Tubman's father faced arrest for hiding runaway slaves. Most estimates place the total number of southern runaway slaves passing through Garrett's station to have exceeded 2,700. In 1870, after the passage of the 15th Amendment that granted Black Americans the right to vote, supporters carried Garrett on their shoulders through the streets of Wilmington and hailed him "our Moses."

Thomas Garrett, born of a wealthy Quaker family and prominent merchant, became one of the most active and influential stationmasters on the Underground Railroad for more than four decades. It is estimated he had a hand in helping at least 2,700 Black Southerners escape slavery despite almost going bankrupt for a time. Thomas Garrett served as the inspiration for the character Simeon Halliday in Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin." 

Thomas Garrett: Underground Railroad Stationmaster (historical marker)

The Quaker Hill Historic District in Wilmington consists of 151 buildings. The neighborhood has been a part of Wilmington since the early 1700s, when it was founded by William Shipley and his family. When Shipley arrived in the city from Pennsylvania, Wilmington was a new town, making Quakers some of the earliest residents there. William and Elizabeth Shipley arrived in Wilmington in the 1730s, brought--at least in part--because of a dream Elizabeth Shipley had that she and her family would live in area that looked like Wilmington. The family, along with other Quakers who were encouraged by the Shipleys to come to Wilmington, founded the area's first meetinghouse in 1739. As more and more Quaker families moved into the area, the meetinghouse soon became too small to accommodate them all, and in 1748, a new meetinghouse was constructed. The original came to be used as a school. In 1816, Wilmington Quakers built a third meetinghouse at the corner of 5th and West Streets. This building still stands and is still used as a meetinghouse.&nbsp; Over the years, Quaker Hill prospered along with the growing city, and a number of well-to-do early citizens built homes at the top of the hill and by the early 1800s, Quakers were among the most prominent residents of Wilmington. Over the course of the nineteenth century, however, people of other faiths and backgrounds began to move to Quaker Hill and the neighborhood became much more diverse.&nbsp; During the mid-1800s, the area's Quakers became active participants in the Underground Railroad because of their opposition to slavery. Thomas Garrett, who worshiped at the Meetinghouse and is buried in the adjacent cemetery, helped almost 3,000 slaves escape to freedom. Many of the original structures on Quaker Hill were replaced during growth and prosperity of the nineteenth century. Most of the newer buildings remain, however, and are largely unchanged from the time of their construction. In 1978, Quaker Hill was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Wilmington's Quaker Hill Historic District dates to the 1730s, when it was founded by William Shipley. The first meetinghouse in the area was built in 1739, but within a few years, the Quaker community in Wilmington outgrew the building and it began to be used as a school. A second meetinghouse was built in 1748. In 1816, a new meetinghouse--the one that still stands--was constructed. The Quaker Hill neighborhood was an exclusively Quaker district until the 1800s, when people of other faiths began to move into the area. The neighborhood is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Friends Meetinghouse & Quaker Hill Historic District 

The Woodward Houses at 701 and 703 N. West Street survive as Wilmington's sole remaining eighteenth-century stone houses of a side-hall plan. Constructed in 1754 (701) and 1760 (703), the homes are exemplary Georgian-style, the prevailing architectural design in Wilmington during the mid-eighteenth century. The Woodward family produced ropes used by sailing vessels; they played a significant role in Wilmington's shipbuilding production during the eighteenth century. James Bayard, an eventual U.S. Senator and son of a peace negotiator for the War of 1812, moved in around 1820. Bayard openly opposed abolition, supported the South's right to secede, and resigned from the Senate because he refused to pledge an oath of loyalty to the Union.Joseph Woodward, a Quaker ropemaker from West Chester, Pennsylvania, purchased the property around 1745. Originally located on sixty five acres of property known as South Shallcross Marsh, the Woodward Houses fronted West Street, a road completed in 1740. A legend attached to the Woodward Houses, notably 703, involves a hearthstone that supposedly existed as part of a platform where Thomas Jefferson stood and read the Declaration of Independence to Philadelphians. That legend, however, has never been confirmed. Joseph likely built the houses after establishing his ropemaking business on the same grounds. In fact, a 1781 map, produced by a French military cartographer, and featured in The American Campaign of Rochambeau's Army, 1780-83, illustrates what appears to be these houses with ropemaking operation located behind them. Moreover, in 1769, when Joseph sold the property to his son, Mordecai, the deed mentions a ropewalk used in the production of sailing ship rigging; the family served as an integral component of Wilmington's broader shipbuilding industry. John Dauphin, a French immigrant, purchased the property in 1795 after Mordecai died. The lot consisted of eight-and-a-half acres of land, the stone dwelling, a covered ropewalk, and a frame used to preserve hemp. At some point around 1820, James Ashton Bayard, a renowned Delaware attorney who served Delaware as a U.S. Senator for a span of twenty years, took ownership. His father, Joseph H. Bayard, helped negotiate the Treaty of Ghent that ended the War of 1812. However, James made a name for himself as one opposed abolition movements. He also supported the South's right to seceded peacefully from the Union; he opposed the Civil War. In fact, in 1846, Bayard represented slave owners in a civil suit against another notable Wilmington resident, Thomas Garrett, who served as Underground Railroad "stationmaster." Bayard won the case, which nearly bankrupt Garrett, still Garrett continued his efforts successfully. (See "<a href="https://www.theclio.com/entry/125956" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color:transparent">Thomas Garrett: Underground Railroad Stationmaster (historical marker)</a> at TheClio.com.)Bayard opposed the Civil War, having believed the South had the freedom to secede peacefully, and some historians have argued that Bayard discussed with some that Delaware should also secede. Bayard felt strongly that the Republicans and their anti-slavery crusade deserved the blame for tearing the Union into two. Even before the war, during the 1850s, he advocated for a constitutional provision that prohibited the state legislature from enacting any emancipation policy and barred free Blacks from settling in Delaware. During the Civil War, Bayard refused to swear an oath of loyalty to the Union, arguing that the pledge would be unconstitutional. When the Senate took the oath, he made a speech arguing against its legality and promptly resigned from the Senate (however, his appointed successor, George R. Riddle, died two years later, so Bayard returned and finished the remaining two years of the term).The influential Tatnall family and part of Wilmington's increasingly prosperous business community took possession of the home from James Bayard and his wife in 1885. During the twentieth century, the story surrounding the house mostly entails its ability to survive urban renewal projects, leaving it as one of the few remaining homes from the colonial period. The two places have served as private homes, rental properties, and an Airbnb for travelers in recent years.

Construction on the historic Woodward homes finished in 1754 and 1760, and served two notable families during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.The Woodward family, who built the homes, worked as successful rope makers and played a prominent role in Wilmington's burgeoning shipbuilding industry; the ropes were used for sails and other ship features. James Ashton Bayard followed the Woodwards. He, as well as his father, son and brothers, played a prominent role in the region as a business person and politician. James served as a lawyer and U.S. Senator who fervently opposed abolition and anti-slavery policies, believed the South had the legal right to secede, and resigned from the Senate after refusing to formally pledge an allegiance to the Union in the Senate chamber. The home survived several urban renewal projects and thus survives today as two of Wilmington's only eighteenth-century stone houses. 

Wilmington Delaware Walking Tour

Delaware Historical Society

Introduction

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Backstory and Context

Sources

Additional Information