A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....10-24,25-07....Delaware ~ The First State

October 24, 2007 | Billie

[Billie]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.    Over 200,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

Over the past four years we have taken A Few of FR's Finest on a cyber tour of many of the states in this great land of ours; today we are featuring the tiny state of Delaware, also dubbed "The First State", "Diamond State", "Blue Hen State", and "Small Wonder".

"The First State": Delaware is known by this nickname due to the fact that on December 7, 1787, it became the first of the 13 original states to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

"The Diamond State": This nickname was given to Delaware, according to legend, by Thomas Jefferson because he described Delaware as a "jewel" among states due to its strategic location on the Eastern Seaboard.

"Blue Hen State": This nickname was given to Delaware after the fighting Blue Hen Cocks that were carried with the Delaware Revolutionary War Soldiers for entertainment during Cock fights.

"Small Wonder": This nickname is basically a new nickname. It was given to Delaware due to its size and the contributions it has made to our country as a whole and the beauty of Delaware.

Source: http://www.state.de.us/facts/history/delfact.htm

Below are some of the states we've visited since Mama_Bear first took us to "Sweet Home Alabama" on May 23, 2003.

Click on each STATE to view the thread, and it will open in a separate window. (States with a white * have not been profiled yet.)

Delaware's history is a long and proud one. Early explorations of its coastline were made by the Spaniards and Portuguese in the sixteenth century; by Henry Hudson in 1609 under the auspices of the Dutch; by Samuel Argall in 1610, Cornelius May in 1613, and by Cornelius Hendricksen in 1614.

During a storm, Argall was blown off course and sailed into a strange bay which he named in honor of his governor. It is doubtful that Lord De La Warr ever saw, or explored, the bay, river, and state which today bears his name. In 1631, 11 years after the landing of the English pilgrims at Plymouth, Massachusetts, the first white settlement was made on Delaware soil.

A group of Dutchmen formed a trading company headed by Captain David Pietersen de Vries for the purpose of enriching themselves from the New World. The expedition of about 30 individuals sailed from the town of Hoorn under the leadership of Captain Peter Heyes in the ship De Walvis (The Whale). Their settlement, called Zwaanendael, meaning valley of swans, was located near the present town of Lewes on the west bank of the Lewes Creek, today the Lewes and Rehoboth Canal.

Continue reading HERE

Adopted on July 24, 1913, the Delaware state flag has a background of colonial blue surrounding a diamond of buff color in which the coat of arms of the state is placed. Below the diamond are the words "December 7, 1787," indicating the day on which Delaware was the first state to ratify the United States constitution. Because of this action, Delaware became the first state in the Union, and is, therefore, accorded the first position in such national events as presidential inaugurations.

According to members of the original commission established to design the flag, the shades of buff and colonial blue represent those of the uniform of General George Washington. Inside the diamond, the flag recognizes the importance of commerce {the ship} and agriculture {wheat, corn, the ox and the farmer} to the state. Tribute is also paid to the revolutionary war soldiers. The words in the ribbon banner read Liberty and Independence.

Take a virtual tour of Delaware's rich history and culture.

• Delaware was admitted to Statehood on December 7, 1787 - the first state in the union, thus the nickname of "The First State". It is also dubbed "The Diamond State", "Blue Hen State", and "Small Wonder". The state's motto is "Liberty and Independence", and those words are printed on the state flag.
  
  
• Delaware ranks 49th in the nation with a total area of 1,982 square miles. There are only three counties in the state. New Castle County is 438 square miles. Kent County is 594 square miles. Sussex County is 950 square miles. Delaware is 96 miles long and varies from 9 to 35 miles in width.
  
  
• Song: "Our Delaware" (words by: George B. Hynson music by: M. S. Brown) became the official state song in 1925. The verses recognize each of Delaware's three counties.
  
  
• Largest Cities: Wilmington, Dover, Newark, Milford, Seaford, Middletown, Elsmere, Smyrna, New Castle, and Georgetown. Dover, located on the Saint Jones River in the central part of the state, is the seat of Kent County. Dover has been the state's capital since 1777. The capitol building, below, is commonly known as Legislative Hall.
  
  
  
• Highest elevation -- 447.85 ft. above sea level near Ebright Road in New Castle County. Lowest -- sea level along the coast.
  
  
• 2000 Population Estimate - 783,600; 45th among the states; Density: 401 persons per square mile. For additional information, go to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Delaware Economic Development Office, or the Office of Occupational and Labor Market Information.
  
  
• Delaware's climate is moderate year round. Average monthly temperatures range from 75.8 to 32.0 degrees. Average temperature in the summer months is 74.3 degrees. About 57% of the days are sunny. Annual precipitation is approximately 45 inches. Temperatures along the Atlantic Coast are about 10 degrees warmer in winter and 10 degrees cooler in summer. The average growing season varies from 170 to 200 days.
  
  
• On the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, Delaware is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay, as well as by the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland. Delaware's location affords easy access to the major metropolitan areas of the Northeast. Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, and Baltimore are all within a 2-hour drive.
  
  
• Chief Products: Agriculture -- broilers, soybeans, corn, milk. Fishing Industry -- crabs, clams. Mining -- sand and gravel, magnesium compounds. Manufacturing -- chemicals, food products, paper products, rubber and plastics products, primary metals, printed materials.

Why Delaware? I can't begin to list all the reasons to visit Delaware, but for starters.....

Do you like water? Quiet, peaceful landscapes? Nature at its best? Do you like history? Like to shop? In Delaware you can shop tax-free because there's no sales tax!

Delaware may be the nation’s second-smallest state, but it packs plenty of first-rate opportunities for both vacation and relocation - after all, it didn't get its newest nickname (Small Wonder) by accident!

Let's just let a few pictures do the talking.

For history buffs, these are but a few examples of the rich history that is Delaware....

The historic Fort Delaware State Park on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River offers Civil War reenactments and displays of soldiers’ daily lives. Fort Christiana State Park includes a full-size replica of the Swedish settlers’ sailing ship, the Kalmar Nyckel.

The Zwaanendael Museum in Lewes, Delaware, is modeled after the town hall in Hoorn, the Netherlands, to commemorate Delaware’s first European settlement by the Dutch in 1631.

As I was searching Delaware's history, state symbols, and other facts, a page out of The Official Website for the First State caught my eye, especially since it's almost Halloween. (I chose a few of the pictures and their accompanying 'stories' below for you to enjoy.)

It starts like this:

Rumors and legends of hauntings have grown up around these locations for many years, but please remember as you view the images that seeing is not necessarily believing.

The Delaware Public Archives does not endorse or deny any of these legends, however, the continued existence of these stories is enough to make you wonder...

• Addy-Sea Inn, Bethany, Delaware...
  Room 1 contains a bathtub that has been seen shaking violently. Room 6 has organ music heard within its walls. Room 11 is thought to be haunted by the ghost of Paul Dulaney, who worked for the Addys. Footsteps, thought to be of Kurtz Addy, can be heard on the roof and in the second floor hallway. Kurtz, the son of builder, John Addy fell to his death from the roof.
  
  
• Rockwood Mansion, Wilmington, Delaware...
  Many orbs have been witnessed floating throughout the 45 rooms of this Victorian Mansion. Strange sounds have been reported by staff members. Although investigations have been done, none have been able to identify specific spirits.
  
  
• Ellendale State Forest, Ellendale, Delaware...
  A headless figure has been seen walking along the highway that runs through the park. No one knows who he is, but there is a high rate of accidents reported along this road by the local police.
  
  
• Scotts Run Bridge, St. George's, Delaware...
  The spirit of an old black man named Jacob is said to still play his fiddle by the bridge. Before the Civil War, he played his fiddle while he sat on the railing of the old wooden bridge. He died after falling into the Scott Run stream. It is said that you can still hear his fiddle playing while standing on the new bridge.
  
  
• Slaughter Neck, Slaughter Beach, Delaware...
  The ghost of a man who committed suicide haunts this area. He apparently shot himself while sitting in a ditch. Another ghost that wanders the Boardwalk trail between Slaughter Neck and Broadkill Beach is thought to be that of Jonathan Morris. He owned a farmhouse that once stood near the trails. His spirit is most often felt by his grave, which is located in the old Morris Family Graveyard.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Website Links:

50states.com
Visit Delaware
Destination: Delaware
Historical Society of Delaware
State of Delaware -
The Official Website of the First State

03-27-07 ~ Hall of Fame #19 ~ Final

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 10-22,23-07 Military Tribute

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' Every Thursday at the Finest The guy's good, folks!

[Gabz]

LOL!!!! I WAS a lobbyist, for 20 years, and mostly in Delaware, although I did do some in MD, PA, and VA.

[Billie]

Hi, GeeBee, and thank you so much. Have to say I never thought a lot about Delaware until I started researching it, and it’s so far and away ‘different’ from my Texas upbringing, I really think I’d love visiting there. (might not want to stay in one of those haunted inns though.) :)

[Billie]

To lead others out of the darkness of sin, let them see the light of Christ in your life.

"This little light of mine...I'm gonna let it shine..."

[Billie]

Thank you, Meg! I think we should just hop on that train and GO! :)

[Billie]

Hey, it’s my favorite Owl! Thank you, Temple - good to see you again, and I sure do understand why you’d buy ‘big ticket items’ in Delaware - that sales tax can get pretty hefty on a high dollar purchase!

[Billie]

Thanks, Rus - appreciate that. :)

[Billie]

Beautifully ‘framed’ - butterflies are such beautiful creatures anyway. Thanks, Meg. :)

[Billie]

Thank you, Amy. I have gotten hooked on these state cyber tours, too - am glad that we're profiling them again - whittling them down so there are only a little over a dozen left to visit! Just to keep everyone 'honest' (LOL), here are 10 of the remaining 14 states to be presented - and the 'presenters'!

• Kentucky ~ Mama_Bear & JustAmy
• Washington ~ DiverDave & Billie
• Ohio ~ Dutchess & DollyCali
• Oklahoma ~ Aquamarine
• New York ~ GodBlessUSA
• Montana ~ Mama_Bear
• Illinois ~ Mama_Bear
• Arkansas ~ DollyCali
• Rhode Island ~ DollyCali
• North Dakota ~ DollyCali

[Billie]

Hi, jaycee. Thank you - am glad you like today’s thread and look forward to seeing you back this evening with your contribution “goodies” (’cause you’re hooked on graphics now, too!) :)

[Billie]

Greetings back atcha!

[Billie]

Hi, Aqua - thank you so much - glad you like the backgrounds. Got your mail and will answer in a bit - will help you however I can - hope you know that. Sometimes it just takes one ‘lightbulb’ moment and everything comes together. :)

[Billie]

Awww, thank you, Kitty, and your peach blossoms are so pretty! The only season that’s close to Autumn in beauty is Spring when trees start to bloom. :)

[Billie]

Well, how nice to see you again, Gabz! Hope you’re doing well - I didn’t know you were a former Delawarian. (but it sounds like it wasn’t your favorite place to live)

[Billie]

Thanks, Lori. I’d also enjoy visiting Deleware I believe. (if I didn’t have to ‘get’ there, but could just ‘be’ there! I hate flying and it’s a looooong way to drive!)

[Gabz]

Hi Billie!!!!

I lived in Delaware for 21 yeras before moving to Virginia, although I’m still only about an hour away from the MD/DE state line and we have family and friends there so still visit. My husband grew up in Dover and that is where our daughter was born.

Delaware is a beautiful state, it’s the politics that are the absolute pits.

I cook at the local Moose Lodge on Wednesdays and so I have to scoot, but I will be back later this evening!!!!

You did a great job here.

[Billie]

Delaware is a beautiful state, it’s the politics that are the absolute pits. I cook at the local Moose Lodge on Wednesdays and so I have to scoot, but I will be back later this evening!!!! You did a great job here.

Thanks, Gabz - I know nothing about the politics there of course, and we don't even try to get into that when we 'profile' a state - just the good stuff. :)

[The Mayor]

: )

Amen!

[Mama_Bear]

I found another haunted house in Delaware! They seem to be real proud of their ghosts in The First State. LOL!

The Woodburn Governor's Mansion
in Dover, Delaware

Built in 1790, the Woodburn Mansion has served as the Governor's mansion since the mid nineteen-hundreds. As with many of these old houses, it has seen its share of good and bad and has become the eternal play ground of many spirits.

The first apparition spotted in the house was in the year of 1824. Apparently the Bates family, who resided here, had an overnight guest named Lorenzo Dow. Mr. Dow was coming down the stair case, on his way to dinner, when he past an older gentlemen on the steps. He made is way into the dining room and sat down with the others. When everyone at the table began eating their meal, Mr. Dow asked why they were not waiting for the older gentlemen to join them. Everyone at the table became silent; knowing there shouldn't have been anyone else in the house. Mr. Dow described the man's clothing as knee breeches, a ruffled blouse and he wore a white wig. He said the apparition appeared to be a solid person. It turned out that this apparition was the long dead father of Mr. Bates!

Another owner claimed that the ghosts in the house loved to drink up his wine during the midnight hours. He reported seeing a man in a white wig (I'm assuming the departed Mr. Bates), drinking his wine in the dining room. Apparently Mr. Bates also liked to help himself to the expensive wines that were kept in the cellar, as well.

A third well known apparition in this home is that of a little girl. This departed little lady has been seen outside, as well as inside, and she has as much spunk in death as she probably had in life. The little girl has been known to tug at peoples skirts or sleeves during parties in the house and she has been seen in several rooms or by the garden pool playing.

The fourth ghost is said to have been a Southern Slave Raider who hid in a tree on the property and accidentally slipped and caught his head in a hole in the tree trunk. Apparently this freak accident is what killed the man and his apparition has been seen hanging from that same tree in the late evening hours. This ghost likes to rattle chains inside and outside of the house and many have heard him moaning.

[Gabz]

........and we don't even try to get into that when we 'profile' a state - just the good stuff. :)

Billie, my dear I know that!!!!

Mama Bear, I'm wracking my brain at the moment to remember the name of the house next to the Governor's Mansion, we think it is either Hull or Hall.....but that has as many stories as Woodburn.

While I was telling him about this thread my husband reminded me of another notoriously haunted place in Delaware. Fleming's Landing Bridge. It's on a stretch of Rte 9, east of and between Odessa and Smyrna. Even in the best of weather and in broad daylight I always hated crossing that "bridge" because it was practically a 90 degree curve on a 2 lane road with no shoulders.

The bridge and road have both been straightened out and replaced in the past 10 years, but so many vehicles have gone into the water there that it is notorious for being haunted.

In Billie's original profile, Legislative Hall is spoken of, but the truly historic building is the Old State House. The Old State House is the oldest Capitol building still in continual use in the United States. For years I had an office just 3 doors away from it, in the building that was the very first post office in Dover, DE. Prior to it being the post office it was a tavern and my office was in the original part of the building which was built in 1782 (if I remember correctly). Diagonally across the circle, and on the same side of the street as the Old State House was the Golden Fleece Tavern, which is where the work was done to make Delaware the First State.

[Majie Purple]

These links go hand in hand/together...Please read what’s on my Profile page link before deciding whether or not to proceed to the second link.

Explainations for both links are found within the 1st link.

I can’t explain it any better in public than what I’ve written on my profile page...

http://www.freerepublic.com/~purplemountainsmaj/

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1580332/posts

Take Care! I don’t have more words than these to convey...They will have to do...
Please don’t glut This Thread with replies back to me about what You read within my post...I gave any interested an option/link an old Thread of mine to do so...read my links & it will be All Clear...LoL!
I am putting this on my co Fave FR Threads...Tee Dose & The Finest /The Finest and the Dose but I can’t post 2 places at once is All...Love always Majie;Purple;Maj;Maji...