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DOVER – Four families which have owned their farms for at least 100 years were honored as owners of Century Farms on Tuesday in a ceremony honoring Delaware agriculture’s long heritage and historic roots.

“Delaware’s agricultural success rests on the shoulders of our farm families, more than 2,400 strong, many of which have worked the land for generations,” said Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Ed Kee. “These families we honor today are the personification of the virtues of hard work, dedication and innovation that have made our industry so strong. I hope that their children and grandchildren continue in that long tradition of excellence.”

The inductions into the Century Farms Program bring the total number of farms recognized to 129, said Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Austin Short, who heads DDA’s Planning and Preservation Section. The Century Farm Awards have been presented annually since 1987.

“These farms are all active and working, producing fruit, vegetables, grain, livestock and poultry and contributing to Delaware’s $1.3 billion agricultural economy,” Short said. “We look forward to adding even more farms to this distinguished list in the years to come, and for all of our Century Farms to thrive and become 200-year farms.”

The families recognized Tuesday at the Delaware Agricultural Museum & Village included:

>> The Malfitano family (Joseph M. Malfitano), which owns a 56.5-acre farm near Greenwood, in the family since 1913 and now producing vegetables, fruit, soybeans and corn.

>> The Cook family (Mr. and Mrs. H. Wallace Cook Jr.), which owns a 109-acre farm near Newark, in the family since 1855 and now producing dairy, corn, soybean, wheat, alfalfa, beef and pork.

>> The Peterson family (Charles, Andrew and Brian Peterson), which owns a 31.5-acre farm near Bridgeville, in the family since 1909 and now producing corn and soybeans.

>> The Hudson family (Margaret T. Hudson, Jeffrey M. Hudson and Gregrey N. H udson), which owns a 300-acre farm near Millsboro, with the original 132-acre parcel in the family since 1908. The farm now produces corn, soybeans, wheat and poultry.

Legislative tributes were also presented from state Sens. Gary Simpson, Brian Pettyjohn, Gerald Hocker, Bruce Ennis and Bethany Hall-Long, and from state Reps. Dave Wilson, John Atkins, Earl Jacques and Harvey Kenton. Also in attendance were Reps. Bobby Outten and William Carson.

Century Farms must have been farmed by the same family for at least 100 years and must include at least 10 acres of the original parcel or gross more than $10,000 annually in agricultural sales.

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Media contact:

Dan Shortridge
Chief of Community Relations
Delaware Department of Agriculture
302-698-4520
daniel.shortridge@delaware.gov

(DOVER, Del.—Oct. 22, 2014)—The state of Delaware’s three downtown Dover museums—The Old State House, the Johnson Victrola Museum and the First State Heritage Park Welcome Center and Galleries—will be presenting nine special programs during the month of November 2014. Events will be held at each of the museums on Nov. 1 in conjunction with First Saturday in the First State; on Nov. 4 in celebration of Election Day; and on Nov. 11 in commemoration of Veteran’s Day. All programs are free and open to the public. For additional information, call 302-744-5055.

November programs at the state of Delaware’s downtown Dover museums

Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014
“Man’s Best Friend.” Guided tours explore one of the most celebrated canines in the world—Nipper, the dog who adorns the Victor trademark, “His Masters Voice.” Programs will also include original Victor recordings played on authentic Victor Talking Machines. First Saturday in the First State program. Johnson Victrola Museum, 375 S. New St., Dover. 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014
“18th Century Market Fair.”Programs explore an era when The Green served as the focal point of life in Dover as historical interpreters explore the goods, wares and political attitudes of the 1700s. The Old State House will celebrate the fair with special tours and appearances by historical re-enactors. Sponsored by the First State Heritage Park. The Green, Dover. 10 a.m.–4 p.m.

Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014
“An Illegal Activity.” Utilizing the exhibit “An Illegal Activity: The Underground Railroad in Delaware” as a backdrop, guided tours will explore Delaware’s crucial role in the Underground Railroad and on two Delaware leaders who aided in this “freedom enterprise.” First Saturday in the First State program. First State Heritage Park Welcome Center and Galleries, Delaware Public Archives building, 121 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Dover. Tours at 10 a.m., Noon and 2 p.m. Museum open 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Tuesdays, Nov. 4 and 11, 2014
“The People’s House.” In honor of Election Day, guided tours will explore the significance of The Old State House and the many state and county governmental functions that were conducted there between 1791 and 1933. The Old State House, 25 The Green, Dover. 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014
“Swing.” In celebration of Election Day, guests will be treated to the sounds of Swing music as recorded by Victor Records on 78-rpm disks and played on authentic Victor Talking Machines. Johnson Victrola Museum, 375 S. New St., Dover. 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Tuesdays, Nov. 4 and 11, 2014
“An Illegal Activity.” Utilizing the exhibit “An Illegal Activity: The Underground Railroad in Delaware” as a backdrop, guided tours will explore Delaware’s crucial role in the Underground Railroad and on two Delaware leaders who aided in this “freedom enterprise.” First State Heritage Park Welcome Center and Galleries, Delaware Public Archives building, 121 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Dover. Tours at 10 a.m., Noon and 2 p.m. Museum open 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2014
“The Victors of World War I: The Power of Music.” In celebration of Veterans Day, this lively program will examine music’s influence during World War I when patriotic songs were being composed throughout America. Hear 78-rpm recordings of this inspirational music played on authentic Victor Talking Machines, and explore how the Victor Talking Machine Company’s Camden, N.J. factory led the fight to make the world safe for democracy. Johnson Victrola Museum, 375 S. New St., Dover. 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m.

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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

Are your digital genealogy files all over the place? Have you discovered a record for your ancestor, twice? Librarian Leah Youse will be presenting a program at the Delaware Public Archives on Saturday, November 1, 10:30 a.m. on developing methods of genealogical arrangement and organization. Whether you are just getting started or you have been conducting online research for years, this talk will provide ideas to take your organizational system to the next level. Youse will focus on managing files and folders, email, and research, including a brief discussion on easing the burden with software.

Leah Youse earned her Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from The University of Alabama and currently provides reference services to patrons at the Elkton Central Library in Cecil County, Maryland. She has done archival work with the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Cecil County. Youse’s primary interests include research methodology and genealogy blogging.

The program is free to the public and will last approximately one hour. No reservations are required. For more information, contact Tom Summers (302) 744-5047 or e-mail thomas.summers@delaware.gov.

For more information about the Delaware Public Archives, please visit the website at http://archives.delaware.gov. You can also become a follower of the Archives Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/DelawarePublicArchives) and read the Archives blog (http://archives.blogs.delaware.gov/) to learn more about events and other items of interest at the Archives.

The Delaware Public Archives is located at 121 Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard North in Dover. The Mabel Lloyd Ridgely Research Room is open to the public Monday – Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. On the second Saturday of every month the research room is open from 9 a.m. to 4:15 p.m.

(DOVER, Del.—Oct. 15, 2014)—The American Association for State and Local History has presented a prestigious History in Progress Award to the Delaware Historical Society and the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs for their collaborative exhibit “Forging Faith, Building Freedom: African American Faith Experiences in Delaware, 1800-1980.” The award, a component of the association’s Leadership in History Awards program, is presented for projects that are highly inspirational; exhibit exceptional scholarship; and/or are exceedingly entrepreneurial in terms of funding, partnerships or collaborations, creative problem-solving or unusual project design, and inclusiveness. Only four projects in the entire nation were honored with the award in 2014.

“Forging Faith, Building Freedom: African American Faith Experiences in Delaware, 1800-1980” explored the faith experiences of Delaware’s black community and its contributions to the development of religion in the United States including a commemoration of the bicentennial of the African Union Methodist tradition and the August Quarterly, the nation’s oldest African-American religious festival.

On-display from Sept. 27, 2013 to June 14, 2014 at the Delaware History Museum, a unit of the Delaware Historical Society located at 504 N. Market St. in Wilmington, Del., the exhibit was created through a partnership between the society’s curatorial staff, which researched and wrote the exhibit narrative and organized loans of exhibited objects; and the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs’ Collections, Affiliates, Research and Exhibits (CARE) Team which designed, fabricated and installed the exhibit. Go to the following to view the exhibit online.

The American Association for State and Local History initiated the Leadership in History Awards program in 1945 to establish and encourage standards of excellence in the collection, preservation and interpretation of state and local history throughout America. In 2014, the association conferred 77 national awards honoring people, projects, exhibits, books and organizations.

In addition to the History in Progress award, the “Forging Faith” exhibit was honored with an Award of Merit which recognizes excellence in history programs, projects and people when compared with similar activities nationwide. The Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs was also the recipient of an Award of Merit for the “The DeBraak and Its Atlantic World,” a multi-dimensional interpretive program on the British warship that sank off the coast of Delaware in the late 18th century.

In addition to its three Leadership in History awards, the division was also recognized as a graduate of the association’s StEPs program (Standards and Excellence Program for History Organizations) which helps small- and mid-sized history museums assess policies and practices, manage daily operations and plan for the future. All of the honors noted above were conferred during the American Association for State and Local History’s awards banquet which took place in St. Paul, Minn. on Sept. 19, 2014. Constance J. Cooper, chief curator of the Delaware Historical Society, and Marian Carpenter, the division’s curator of collections management, accepted honors on behalf of their respective organizations.

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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

(DOVER, Del.—Oct. 13, 2014)—On Saturday, Oct. 25, 2014, history will be vividly brought to life in New Castle, Del., during “William Penn Day,” a day-long series of activities commemorating the 332nd anniversary of Penn’s Oct. 27, 1682 disembarkment at New Castle, his first landing in the New World. Unless otherwise indicated, all programs are free and will take place at the New Castle Court House Museum, located at 211 Delaware St. in New Castle, Del. For additional information, call 302-323-4453.

“William Penn Day” will feature the following activities:

• Livery of Seizen ceremony. Historical interpreters Bob Vander Decker, David Price and New Castle resident Jim Whisman re-enact the ceremony in which the town of New Castle, and a 12-mile circle of land surrounding it, were conveyed to William Penn by appointed representatives of the Duke of York. Penn will then present his plans for his new three “Lower Counties.” 10:15 a.m.
• “The Trial of William Penn.” Historical play about the 1670 trial of William Penn who was accused of unlawful assembly and inciting a mob by preaching to a group of Quakers on a London street. Issues of religious freedom and the rights of a jury are explored in this 30-minute performance. Audience members may participate in the trial as witnesses and as members of the jury. 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
• Performance by De Blokfluiters. Recorder/flute ensemble performing 18th-century music. 1 p.m.
• “High Tea With Mrs. Penn.” Life with William Penn will be discussed by his wife as guests enjoy a traditional English high tea in the very house where Penn was reputed to have spent his first night in America in 1682. Penn’s Place, 206 Delaware St., New Castle. 3:30 p.m. Admission $10. Advance reservations required by calling 302-322-6334.
• Concert of Baroque harpsichord music. Performed by Gary Harney of the Immanuel Bach Consort. 6:30 p.m.

One of the oldest and most historic courthouses in the United States, the New Castle Court House (main section built in 1732) served as Delaware’s first court and state capitol. Here in 1776, New Castle, Kent and Sussex Counties declared their independence from Pennsylvania and England creating the Delaware State. The museum features tours and exhibits that illustrate Delaware’s unique boundaries, law and government and the Underground Railroad.

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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