Museums & History Along the Nanticoke River
Seaford Museum, Seaford, DE
The Seaford Museum, an official site of the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, is located at 203 High Street in the former post office building. The museum has hundreds of artifacts that highlight the areas history, culture, and development from early Native American presence to present day. Displays feature the DuPont nylon legacy, early agriculture, canning, the chicken industry, shipbuilding, boating, fishing, and other intriguing artifacts important to Seaford’s history. Museum hours are 1:00-4:00 p.m. Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, except holidays and by special appointment.
For more information call (302) 628-9828
City of Seaford - History
The first record of any settlement in the area around Seaford was a very large tract of land identified as "Martin's Hundred". This 1,750 acre plot of land, bordered by the Nanticoke river and Herring Creek, was granted to Jeremiah Jadwin of Virginia on January 22, 1672. Despite development in the area, the river was the main highway for many years. It wasn't until 1720 that roads began appearing in court records.
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Trap Pond State Park, Laurel, DE
Trap Pond State Park, an official site of the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, features the northernmost natural stand of baldcypress trees in the United States. The pond was created in the late 1700s to power a sawmill during the harvest of large baldcypress from the area. The Federal Government later purchased the pond and surrounding farmland during the 1930s and the Civilian Conservation Corps began to develop the area for recreation. Trap Pond became one of Delaware's first state parks in 1951.
For more information call (302) 875-5153
Delaware Wildlife Areas in the Nanticoke Watershed
The Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife oversees the management of 19 Wildlife Areas. The Wildlife Areas conserve and enhance diverse wildlife populations and associated habitats while providing for public enjoyment of the State’s wildlife resources through hunting and other wildlife-dependent recreation.
These three Wildlife Areas are located in the Nanticoke Watershed:
Bethel Heritage Museum, Bethel, DE
Located on North Main Street is the Bethel Heritage Museum, exhibiting Nanticoke and Chesapeake Bay shipbuilding history and heritage. Free.
There are no regular hours. Call (302) 875-5425 or (302) 875-5871
Days Gone By Museum and Shad Barge, DE
This private museum run by Jack Knowles, former shad fisherman, houses a collection of artifacts and memorabilia from the heyday of shad fishing and from the Nanticoke River and Woodland area. The museum is located in Woodland, southwest of Seaford. Jack Knowles also owns the only shad barge still operating between Seaford and Tangier Sound. Free.
No regular hours; call (302) 629-9889
Woodland Ferry, Seaford, DE
By the 1740s a ferry service was operated at Woodland by the Cannon family and was the only location for many miles where the Nanticoke could be safely crossed. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and operated by the State of Delaware at no charge from sunup to sundown, seven days a week. Free.
For more information call (302) 629-7742
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Nanticoke Indian Association Museum, Millsboro, DE
This museum is tribally-owned and housed in a one-room community school house that closed in 1964. The Museum provides a historical glimpse of the Nanticoke people. Pottery, spears, arrow points and jewelry artifacts are on display. The museum is located on the corners of Route 24 (John J. Williams Hwy.) and Route 5 (Oak Orchard Rd.) in Millsboro, DE. Open 10-4, Friday and Saturday in April and 10-4 Tuesday through Saturday from May through October.
For more information call (302) 945-7022
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Sharptown Heritage Museum and Historical Society, Salisbury, MD
This museum helps guide tourists through Sharptown’s history as a boat building powerhouse from the 18th and 19th century to today. The building is on the site where a large shipyard operated from the mid- 1800s until World War I when the last ship was launched. An extremely busy steamboat wharf business and several saw mills operated nearby. The bridge connecting Sharptown to Dorchester County was preceded by a ferry from the late 1700s to early 1800s. For
For more information call (410) 883-2269
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Vienna Heritage Museum, 303 Race Street, Vienna, MD
The Vienna Heritage Museum, located on Race Street, holds many unique artifacts tracing the town’s rich history since colonial times. The museum features actual working machinery used in the last mother-of-pearl button factory in the United States.
For more information call (410) 228-1000.
Adkins Museum and Historical Complex, Mardela Springs, MD
The Adkins Historical Museum and Complex was created and developed over a period of 15 years by J. Howard and Louise Adkins. Complex consists of eight historic buildings and the gravestones of a revolutionary war patriot and his wife.
For more information call (410) 677-4740
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San Domingo Community and Cultural Center, San Domingo, MD
Between 1918 and 1932, Julius Rosenwald and Booker T. Washington constructed several African-American schools throughout the rural South. Out of 5,300+ Rosenwald Schools built, only 10% of these structures are still in existence. The Rosenwald School in San Domingo was built in 1919 and was among the first of the Rosenwald Schools constructed. The school remains in use as a community and cultural center for the community of San Domingo.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Cambridge, MD
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, an official site of the Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network, was established in 1933 as a waterfowl sanctuary for birds migrating along the critical migration highway called the Atlantic Flyway. Blackwater Refuge is located on Maryland's scenic Eastern Shore, which is just 12 miles south of Cambridge, and consists of over 25,000 acres of freshwater impoundments, brackish tidal wetlands, open fields, and mixed evergreen and deciduous forests.
For more information call (410) 228-2677
Maryland Wildlife Management Areas in the Nanticoke Watershed
The Maryland DNR Wildlife & Heritage Service oversees the management of 44 Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs), ranging in size from under 20 acres to over 29,000 acres. The WMA system encompasses a total of 106,000 acres, with WMAs located in 18 of Maryland's 23 counties. The mission of the WMAs is to conserve and enhance diverse wildlife populations and associated habitats while providing for public enjoyment of the State’s wildlife resources through hunting and other wildlife-dependent recreation.
These five WMAs are located in the Nanticoke Watershed:
