(DOVER, Del.—July 3, 2018)—On Thursday, July 12, 2018 at 5:30 p.m., The Old State House, located at 25 The Green in Dover, Del., will present an audience-participation program by historic-site interpreter Tom Welch on the life and legacy of Alexander Hamilton, one of the principal founding fathers of the United States. Admission is free and open to the public. For additional information, call 302-744-5054.

Taking place on the 214th anniversary of Hamilton’s death, the program will consist of biographical information on the American patriot; an audience participation section featuring 12 important players in Hamilton’s life including his wife Eliza, the Marquis de Lafayette, and founding fathers George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and Benjamin Franklin; and will conclude with a re-enactment of the July 11, 1804 duel between Hamilton and political rival Aaron Burr which resulted in Hamilton’s passing on July 12, 1804.

About Alexander Hamilton (1757–1804) …
Alexander Hamilton, born on the island of Nevis, British West Indies, January 11, 1757; immigrated to the United States in 1772, where he received educational training in the schools of Elizabethtown, N.J., and King’s College (now Columbia University), New York City; entered the Continental Army in New York in 1776 as captain of Artillery; appointed aide-de-camp to General Washington March 1, 1777, and served in that capacity until February 16, 1781; Member of the Continental Congress in 1782, 1783, and 1788; member of the Annapolis Convention of 1786; served in the New York State assembly in 1787; member of the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention in 1787 which adopted the Constitution of the United States and signed it; member of the State ratification convention in 1788; studied law; was admitted to the bar and practiced in New York City; Secretary of the Treasury in the Cabinet of President Washington 1789-1795; returned to New York and resumed the practice of law; mortally wounded in a duel with Aaron Burr at Weehawken on the Hudson, and died in New York City the following day, July 12, 1804; interment in Trinity Churchyard.
Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

Completed in 1791, The Old State House is one of the earliest state-house buildings in the United States, serving as the home of Delaware’s legislature until 1933 when the General Assembly moved to larger quarters in Legislative Hall. The venerable structure now appears as it would have in the late 1700s during the United States’ critical early years as a nation. It features a courtroom, governor’s and county offices and chambers for the state’s Senate and House of Representatives. The building is situated on Dover’s historic Green, a public area designated by William Penn in 1683.

The Old State House is administered by the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs, an agency of the State of Delaware. The division enhances Delaware’s quality of life by preserving the state’s unique historical heritage, fostering community stability and economic vitality and providing educational programs and assistance to the general public on Delaware history and heritage. The division’s diverse array of services includes operation of five museums which are accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, administration of the State Historic Preservation Office, conservation of the state’s archaeological and historic-objects collections, operation of a conference center and management of historic properties across the state. Primary funding for division programs and services is provided by annual appropriations from the Delaware General Assembly and grants from the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, a federal agency. However, the contents and opinions expressed in the division’s programs and services do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Department of the Interior.

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Contact:
Jim Yurasek
Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs
Phone: 302-739-7787
E-mail: Jim.Yurasek@delaware.gov
Web: http://history.delaware.gov

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