July 30, 2008
Vol. 38, No. 347

Media Contact: Elaine Brenchley or Nate Davidson, The First State Heritage Park at Dover, 302-739-9194, or Necia Beck, Delaware State Parks, 302-739-9175, Necia.Beck@state.de.us

First State Heritage Park Offers Lantern Tours of the Cemetery at Presbyterian Church of Dover and Dover Green

DOVER, Del. - On Friday, Aug. 8 at 8:30 p.m., the First State Heritage Park offers the opportunity to visit the Presbyterian Church of Dover’s historic cemetery by lantern light. Visitors will investigate the meanings of funerary art and pay tribute to some of Delaware’s greatest leaders. 

Many prominent Delawareans and their families are buried in the cemetery. Among them is the great Delaware statesman John M. Clayton and revolutionary figure Col. John Haslet, who died a hero’s death at the Battle of Princeton in 1777. Obelisks and carved funerary symbols in the churchyard reveal how families told the stories of their loss with words and symbols that were carved nearly 200 years ago. The tour begins at Museum Square, located at the corner of West North Street and Governors Avenue, Dover.

On Friday, Aug. 15 at 8:30 p.m., historical interpreters from the First State Heritage Park dressed in colonial attire will relate the stories of the history of the Dover Green. The historic town center was the site of markets and fairs, suffragists and abolitionists, soldiers and slaves, lawmakers and law breakers. Among the tales they will tell are the stories of the most infamous resident of Dover’s jail and the only Loyalist executed in Delaware during the Revolution, the legendary Caesar Rodney, devastating fires that threatened the town, tragic love, and the auctioning of slaves on the steps of the Old State House. Tours leave from the Delaware Visitor Center, 406 Federal Street, Dover.

Admission to each tour is $5 per person. Space for both tours is limited and advance reservations are strongly suggested. Reservations and payment information, as well as more information about other First State Heritage Park programs is available by calling (302) 739-9194. For more information, please call 302-739-9194. The First State Heritage Park can be found online at www.destateparks.com/heritagepark.

Established by Governor Ruth Ann Minner in 2004, The First State Heritage Park at Dover is a partnership of state agencies, under the leadership of Delaware State Parks, working in collaboration with city and county government, nonprofit organizations and the private sector to create Delaware’s first urban “park without boundaries” linking historic and cultural sites in the city that has been the seat of state government since 1777.