Programs such as Law & Order and CSI have introduced most people to modern crime-solving techniques. But for most of our past, sleuths did as much as they could to investigate crimes, but they lacked the most basic tools. There wasn’t much the sheriff, part-time constable, justice of the peace, and coroner could do, except…
Hangings by the Salem County Sheriff
It was a gruesome, emotionally draining responsibility, one most officials preferred to elude on their watch, but occasionally the Salem County Executioner had to carry out a hanging. Once the wheels of justice turned and the bench handed down the death warrant the ghastly duty, dispatching a condemned man, fell to the sheriff in New…
The Mason-Dixon Line Endures Through Time and History
I recently had the opportunity to serve as the guest curator for an exhibit on the Mason-Dixon Line, which opened at Frederick Heritage on May 3, 2018. “A Boundary Through Time” focused on exploring the many meanings of the Pennsylvania-Maryland State Line. Working with the in-house curatorial team, I helped create the exhibit by contributing…
Lecture Explores Getting Hitched in a Hurry in Days Gone By
This talk explores stories about getting hitched in a hurry in days gone by. Eloping couples once came to Wilmington for a licenses and a quick ceremony, but just before World War I, Delaware passed more restrictive laws. A city newspaper, proclaiming that Wilmington was no longer a “mecca” for marriages, remarked that “Wilmington’s Days…