History will come to life as the three downtown Dover museums of the state of Delaware celebrate America’s Independence Day with programs on July 4 and 5, 2014.
Visitors to the Johnson Victrola Museum, located at 375 S. New St., will have an opportunity to enjoy “Stars and Stripes,” a series of guided tours featuring original Victor Records recordings of patriotic music played on authentic Victor Talking Machines. The museum will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on July 4, and 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on July 5.
The Old State House, located at 25 The Green, will ring in the nation’s birthday on July 4 at 2 and 4:30 p.m. with the pealing of The Old State House bell, followed by historical interpreters, in Colonial-period dress, who will recite the Declaration of Independence aloud from the spot where the document was first read to the citizens of Dover on July 29, 1776. Additional programs will include screenings of “Thunder and Rain,” a film about Caesar Rodney’s 1776 ride to Philadelphia to cast Delaware’s deciding vote in favor of American independence from Great Britain. Screenings will take place at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. on July 4; and 11 a.m., 1 and 3 p.m. on July 5. The museum will also be open for visitation from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on July 4, and 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on July 5.
Finally, the First State Heritage Park Welcome Center and Galleries, located in the Delaware Public Archives building at 121 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., will offer special guided tours presented in conjunction with the exhibit “An Illegal Activity: The Underground Railroad in Delaware” which explores the First State’s role in the pre-Civil War network of secret routes and safe houses used by black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada. The exhibit focuses on two Delaware leaders who aided in this “freedom enterprise”—Samuel D. Burris and Thomas Garrett. Tours will take place at 10 a.m., Noon and 4 p.m. on July 4; and 10 a.m., Noon and 2 p.m. on July 5. The welcome center will be open for visitation from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on July 4; and 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on July 5.
The state of Delaware’s Independence Day programs in downtown Dover are presented in conjunction with “First Saturday in the First State,” a monthly series of events sponsored by the First State Heritage Park. Admission for all programs is free and open to the public. For additional information, call the First State Heritage Park Welcome Center and Galleries at 302-744-5055.
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Contact:
Jim Yurasek
Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs
Phone: 302-736-7413
E-mail: Jim.Yurasek@delaware.gov
Web: http://history.delaware.gov