The Wilmington Police Department grappled with the unprecedented challenge of maintaining service after the Spanish influenza slipped into Delaware in the autumn of 1918. In normal times, the 127-person force patrolled streets, preserved peace, operated the lockup, investigated crimes, collected dog taxes, and maintained the fire and police telegraph. However, early that autumn, as the…
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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…
Delaware Sanborn Maps Online
The Library of Congress has been digitizing its collection of Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps for a few years, and recently the institution added a number of Delaware products to its website. To produce the atlases, the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps surveyors visited towns all across the nation to frequently update drawings and produce sketches at…