Exhibitions
Learn about our permanent exhibits, current shows and what's coming up.
Learn about our permanent exhibits, current shows and what's coming up.
TWO CENTURIES OF MILTON
The museum's main exhibition space was once Grace Methodist Church, originally built in 1857 and expanded in 1906. The walls and ceiling of stamped metal, original light fixtures and the striking stained glass windows all date from the early twentieth century and were lovingly restored in 2006. Text panels and displays of historical artifacts discuss and illustrate the history of Milton and the Broadkill Hundred. Shipbuilding, button factories, canneries and, in recent times, beer brewing at Dogfish Head are woven into the fabric of Milton history and its current life, and are very much a presence in the Main Exhibit Hall.
This two-seat buggy was a gift presented to John Wilson on his 21st birthday from his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Wilson, in 1899. The Wilson family ran the largest funeral and undertaking business in Mllton for many years.
Printing press formerly operated by Rev. William A. McDaniel and the Milton Publishing Company,
Button making machine of the type used from 1920 - 1960 in local factories and backyard shed
Down to the Sea in Ships: How Schooners, Sailors and Shipwrights Transformed Milton
Open to the public on Friday, April 12, from 11am-4pm, running APRIL-DECEMBER, 2024
Lady Under Glass
19th Century Gems From the Museum Collection
Am exhibition of rarely seen early photographs, including a daguerreotype, ambrotypes, tintypes, cartes-de-visite, and cabinet cards
Milton's Hottest Summer
The Great Fire of 1909
Experience the devastation of the Great Fire of August 13, 1909, which destroyed the downtown business district, through photographs, artwork, and contemporary news reports
WOMEN OF MILTON Exhibit
WOMEN OF MILTON OPENS March 2023 and runs through December 2023.
The Women of Milton exhibit in the Milton Historical Society Annex showcases post-mortem women of Milton that were courageous, bold, pioneering and offered valuable services to the community at large. Explore their lives and legacy through interactive, informative displays, artifacts, photographs and video that engage and inspire people of all ages and genders! In conjunction with Women’s History Month, this show honors and showcases our female legacy in the town of Milton and Sussex County, Delaware.
Milton Medicine
Milton Medicine: Artifacts and Stories from the MHS Collection
Milton Medicine is a retrospective presentation of the 150 year history of doctors, druggists, nurses, dentists and more, that made Milton their home and place of practice in the early medical industry of this area. View never-before-seen medical items and instruments from the MHS collection, read stories about the medical professionals' lives and homes in the area, and learn about medical treatments and medicine from the past.
Milton Medicine is a rotating "mini-exhibit" on the main stage at the museum of MHS. The exhibit can be viewed until June of 2023, during normal hours of operation, Thursday-Saturday, 11am-4pm.
Dry Spell: Milton in the Prohibition Years
For thirteen years, the US went "dry" due to the passing of the 18th Amendment in 1920. Learn how Prohibition impacted Milton - from the 1920's to the present. Highlights of the exhibit include Prohibition-era "moonshine" bottles, a still used both legally and illegally, and an original Dogfish Head Brewery brew kettle. Plus see if your ancestors signed the petition in support of Prohibition! Copies of the original petitions are on display.
The Seeds of Victory: Home Gardening Posters from the World Wars
To help the United States win World War I and World War II, civilians made do with less so there would be enough supplies for the armed forces. Planting a garden was encouraged by the federal government to supplement civilian shortages and allow raw materials to be diverted to the military. Through propaganda such as posters, governments and private entities encouraged growing one’s own food. Gardening and canning became patriotic acts. This is a traveling exhibit from the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Summer 2017.
Paradise Frost: Milton’s Frozen History
The exhibit explores a number of topics related to the theme of frozen--including the ice harvesting industry of the early twentieth century, led by notable Miltonian James “Handy” Prettyman and ice cream manufacturing. Artifacts span the 18th through 20th centuries. On display through May 27.
Walking into Greatness: Bryan A. Stevenson
You ultimately judge the civility of a society not by how it treats the rich, the powerful, the protected and the highly esteemed, but by how it treats the poor, the disfavored, and the disadvantaged.
– Bryan Stevenson