April 9, 2010
Vol. 40, No. 96

For more information contact Elaine Brenchley, First State Heritage Park, 302-739-9194 elaine.brenchley@state.de.us, or Necia Beck, Delaware State Parks, 302-739-9175, Necia.Beck@state.de.us

Four popular Lantern Tours return at the First State Heritage Park

With only candlelight to light the way, First State Heritage Park’s historical interpreters lead the way when the park’s popular lantern tours return on Friday evenings this April and May.  The spring season begins on April 16 with a lantern tour of The Green.  The tour will be offered again on May 14.

However; there is only one chance this spring for visitors to experience each of the three historic Dover churchyard tours – the Presbyterian Cemetery on April 23, Christ Episcopal Churchyard on May 7, and the Old Methodist Cemetery on May 21. The churchyard tours are made possible through the support and cooperation of the Presbyterian Church of Dover, Christ Episcopal Church and Wesley United Methodist Church.

There’s no more unique way to experience history than by the light of a lantern. Admission to all lantern tours is $5 and all tours begin at 8 p.m. Tour space is limited; the public is urged to call 302-739-9194 for reservations.

Lantern Tour of the Dover Green
Friday, April 16 and Friday, May 14, 8 p.m.
Begins at the Biggs Museum – 406 Federal Street
Historical interpreters from the First State Heritage Park, dressed in colonial attire relate the stories of Dover’s public square, the site of markets and fairs, suffragists and abolitionists, soldiers and slaves, lawmakers and law breakers. Visitors will hear tales of the most infamous resident of Dover’s jail, of devastating fires that threatened the town, of poisonings and tragic love.

Presbyterian Churchyard Cemetery
Friday, April 23, 8 p.m.
Begins at the Johnson Victrola Museum Parking Lot – 375 S. New Street
Visitors will tour the Presbyterian Church of Dover’s historic cemetery by lantern light.  Among the many prominent Delawareans and their families buried there are Delaware’s great statesman John M. Clayton and Revolutionary War martyr Colonel John Haslet, who died a hero’s death at the Battle of Princeton in 1777.  Obelisks and funerary symbols carved nearly 200 years ago reveal how families sought to tell the stories of loss with words and symbols.

Christ Church Cemetery
Friday, May 7, 8 p.m.
Begins at Christ Episcopal Church – at the corner of S. State & Water Streets
Participants will encounter characters from the past and hear tales of tombstones and tales of joy and sorrow from those who are laid to rest within the walls of the churchyard. From Caesar Rodney’s unrequited love to Civil War opponents buried within yards of one another, a surprise or two may be part of this unique tour. 

Old Methodist Cemetery
Friday, May 21, 8 p.m.
Begins at the Johnson Victrola Museum Parking Lot – 375 S. New StreetVaried, and often unusual, funerary customs of the Victorian Period will be revealed as the tour proceeds among the ornately decorated tombstones of the Old Methodist Church’s historic cemetery. Visitors will learn of the sacrifices made by average residents of Dover during the Civil War and the elaborate rituals associated with death and mourning in the nineteenth century. Tour guides will uncover the meanings of the carefully chosen and crafted funeral art that decorates the tombs of the high and low alike and explain what those symbols might reveal about the people buried beneath them.

The First State Heritage Park at Dover is 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. The park 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.