Hale Brynes House sycamore tree and Politics

Think politics today is crazy? Take a look at the 1790s

Betsy PriceHeadlines, Government

Lying politicians, disinformation, foreign threats, riots in the street, deadly epidemics, sex scandals in high places, open debates about the president’s competence, war threats, government censorship, fights on the floor of Congress, and a society split in half by partisan politics. Sound famliar? That was politics in the United States in the 1790s, says John Sweeney, editor of “Delaware’s John …

Kalmar Nyckel Foundation Revolutionary War Museum

Revolutionary history group to meet in Del. for first timeĀ 

Sam HautGovernment, Headlines

The National Washington-Rochambeau Revolutionary Route Association will gather in Delaware Saturday for the first time, holding its annual meeting at the Kalmar Nyckel Foundationā€™s Copeland Maritime Center. The event will include a tour of the Kalmar Nyckel, Delawareā€™s tall ship. Vincent de Kytspotter, a brigadier general and head of the French Permanent Defense Mission for the UN will attend the …

Iron Hill Museum African American History Trail

New history trail documents Iron Hill’s free Black families

Betsy PriceCulture, Headlines

A new history trail at Iron Hill Museum documents the existence and lives of free Black families who began settling there in the 1930s. No one knows if any of those who lived there had been slaves, although it’s certainly possible, historians said after the trail’s ribbon cutting on a gloriously sunny afternoon. The families included the Congos, Websters, Earls, …

Prelude to Brandywine Hale Byrnes House Battle of the Brandywine Virginia artist Bryant White

Hale Byrnes House to unveil painting of witness tree

Betsy PriceCulture, Headlines

  The Hale Brynes House this weekend will unveil a painting featuring an American sycamore tree under which George Washington once held a council of war with the Marquis de Lafayette. The Newark nonprofit commissioned the painting because the 300-plus-year-old witness tree — called that because it was alive during a historical moment — may soon die or be removed. …

Colonial School

Founderā€™s Folio: On education, virtue and civic engagement

Chris L. KennyEducation, Headlines

As the Great American experiment continues to explore what works in education for communities, parents and their children across the 50 states, one fact is certain: Education is a critical component of our society. Knowledge through education creates an enlightened people, and an enlightened people are most equipped with the necessary tools to govern collectively.Ā  The Founding Fathers agreed on …

Before the Battle of Brandywine, Washington was in Wilmington

Charlie MegginsonCulture, Headlines

Washington watches the Continental Army pass the Crooked Billet Tavern at Centre Road and Kennett Pike on Sept. 9, 1777. A Wilmington history buff has uncovered many of the roads and paths General George Washington marched Continental Army troops along en route to Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania for the 1777 Battle of Brandywine. Retired Army officer and University of Delaware graduate …

Founderā€™s Folio: Bias and influence in American news media

Chris L. KennyBusiness, Headlines

Courtesy of the New York Public LIbrary   We are faced with the difficult challenge of finding truth and the public narrative in a news landscape dominated by special interests, weaponized reactionary culture and media manipulation. In the digital media era where fast-moving news, opinion and narrative are constantly being influenced by outside interests, we must look for ways to …