During a recent semester, Lisa Hutchings, a student in my African American history class at Wilmington University, embarked on a research project that delved into the remarkable story of Stephen Handy Long and his impact on the education of Black children in Worcester County, MD. However, as she dug into primary and secondary sources, pored…
Mason-Dixon Line Interview: Scott Lamar, WITF
WITF’s Scott Lamar visited the Chester County Border on May 25, 2023, to do a Mason-Dixon Line interview about the history of one of the most famous boundaries in America with historian Mike Dixon. The boundary line between Pennsylvania and Maryland was disputed as early as the 1680s. An English team – Charles Mason and…
Murder in the 19th Century: A Look at the History of Crime Investigations
As church bells rang out, calling people to worship on a peaceful Sunday morning in February 1874, horrifying news about a dreadful, mysterious murder in Lower Penn’s Neck spread across Salem County. John Lloyd had discovered the battered, lifeless body of Abigail Dilks, his housekeeper, in the yard, soon after daybreak. Stunned, he gave the…
Unearthing Genealogy Through Military Records – A Fallen Soldier
During a genealogy class I led at the South Coastal Library in Bethany Beach, we delved into advanced methods for tackling complex family history inquiries. After asking the class to provide examples of challenging problems, Tim Gavin offered this fascinating account about his ancestor, Joseph V. Wise, who served in the 7th U.S. Calvary during…