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Upcoming Events

Please join us at the following events!

Speaker’s Series

The annual Milton Historical Society Speaker’s Series offers a variety of interesting presentations of local interest.  The 2012 series will take place on Friday, Febrary 10; Friday, March 9; and Friday, April 20.   These events are FREE  and are held at the Lydia B. Cannon Museum, 210 Union St., Milton, DE beginning at  7 pm.

Friday, February 10, 7 pm - Fort Miles Restoration with Dr. Gary Wray

Dr. Wray is President of the Fort Miles Historical Association and will be discussing the significance and preservation efforts of the World War II era military installation at Cape Henlopen State Park in Lewes. Fort Mileswas completed days before the attack onPearl Harborand encompassed more than 500 acres and four batteries.  One of the original batteries is being renovated to become a World War II Museum.  A short video will be shown of the restoration.

In addition, Dr. Wray will describe efforts to bring a 16” barrel from the USS Missouri to Fort Miles this spring.  The same type of 16″ guns were manufactured and installed at Ft. Miles to safeguard the Delaware River passage to vital industrial and fuel depots during WWII.   Fort Miles has been recently nominated as one of the most important sites in Sussex County by the Delaware Department of Tourism.

 This presentation is sponsored by the Delaware Humanities Forum.

Friday, March 9, 7 pm - What’s in a Song? with Lee Mussoff

From Gilbert and Sullivan to ‘The Producers’ and beyond, words and music work together to show us our humanity.  Politics, war, love, marriage, family, youth, age: we find them all in the lyrics of songs.  Using CD’s, videos, and lecture, the speaker will play and discuss a variety of musical numbers.  Q& A will follow.

In Delaware, Ms. Mussoff has taught at Wesley College and served as Sussex County Coordinator for Read-Aloud Delaware.  She has also served on the Board for Delmarva Discussions.  Currently, she is an adjunct professor for Wilmington University and an instructor for Delaware Tech.  Lee teaches Elderhostel courses for Delaware Tech. and is an Instructor for the Academy of Lifelong Learning.  For the Delaware Humanities Forum, she serves in the Speakers Bureau and the Visiting Scholars Program.

This presentation is sponsored by the Delaware Humanities Forum.

Friday, April 20, 7 pm - Civil War Talk with Keven Kelly

2011 through 2015 marks the sesquicentenniel of the the Civil War in the United States.  The people, events, stories and consequences of this war resonate deeply within our society.  Each quarter, Mr. Kelly takes us back 150 years with a perceptive weaving of the people, events and circumstances that impacted and were impacted by the war.  We think you will agree that Mr. Kelly is a most knowledgeable historian and a master story teller.

Annual Salon Milton Fundrazor to benefit the Milton Historical Society

Salon Milton hosts a Community Valentine’s Day Bake Sale and Salon Services on Sunday, February 12, 2012 from 12 noon until 5 pm.  Schedule an appointment for a haircut and blow dry provided by John Potocki, Roi Bernard, Kathi Burke, or Robert McGowan for a suggested donation of just $25!  Manicures with Mia Miles are also available for a $25 donation.  The proceeds of these salon services will all be donated to the Milton Historical Society.

Also, visit the salon for the Community Bake Sale and purchase homemade baked goods from some of Milton’s best bakers.   Those in the know will be their early! 

There will also be a 50/50 Raffle and Drawing, and a Silent Auction. 

Refreshments will be offered all afternoon.   This is a great opportunity to get ready for Valentine’s, find bargains, win prizes, and greet friends and neighbors.

Call Salon Milton at 302-684-1880 to reserve an appointment and for further information.  The salon is located at 517 Chestnut St. in Milton. 

If you cannot attend but would like to make a contribution, please mail a check to MHS, PO Box 112, Milton, DE 19968 with “Salon Fundraiser” in the memo line.

Delmarva Roots Film Series

January 20, February 17, and March 16, 7pm

Milton Historical Society and Rehoboth Beach Film Society co-present this film series about the rich history of the Delmarva region. Each event will be held at the Milton Fire Hall, located at 116 Front Street, Milton Delaware. Advance tickets can be purchased online at www.rehobothfilm.com, by calling 302-645-9095, ext 1, or visiting the RBFS office, Mon – Fri, 9:00 am – 4:30 pm. Tickets will be sold at the door based on availability.

An Evolving Legacy: Delaware’s Coastal Act
Friday, January 20th, 7:00 pm, $5; $3 under 18

If you missed it at the Rehoboth Beach Film Festival, here is another chance to see the documentary An Evolving Legacy: Delaware’s Coastal Act, directed by local filmmaker Michael Oates (The Storm of ’62).

Forty years ago, Governor Russell W. Peterson championed Delaware’s landmark Coastal Zone Act to preserve the Delaware shoreline. Before Peterson’s death last February at the age of 94, Oates interviewed the former governor, who recounted the dramatic struggle to craft and pass this visionary legislation. In addition to reporting Peterson’s story, the film explores the 40-year history of the Coastal Zone Act, and presents the ongoing challenges all Delawareans face in the struggle to balance the desire for industrial development with a love for unspoiled natural habitats. [2011, USA, Runtime: 56 minutes, Not rated]

After the screening, director Michael Oates will lead a Q&A session about the production of the film.

Crash: A Tale of Two Species
Friday, February 17th, 7:00 pm, $5; $3 under 18

This documentary illustrates the story of nature’s amazing ability to create fragile connections among the most unexpected creatures, and how easily humans destroy these connections. It may surprise many Delmarva residents that the iconic horseshoe crab, celebrated in a festival in Milton each year, is a part of just such a fragile connection. For many decades, humans harvested the horseshoe crab for fishing bait, leading to a significant decline in the population by the 1990’s. Unfortunately, eggs produced by the crabs are the primary food source for a small shorebird called the red knot, endangering the numbers of that species. How can the humans of Delmarva repair the damage done to the creatures in the local ecosystem? [2008, USA, Runtime: 60 min, Not rated]

Dr. Douglas Miller, Professor of Oceanography at the University of Delaware College of Marine and Earth Studies, will lead a discussion after the screening.

Watermen
Friday, March 16th, 7:00 pm, $5; $3 under 18

Making a living on the water is an essential part of the cultural history of Delmarva. Watermen provide restaurants near and far with the staples for the dishes we enjoy. Economic and environmental issues have made a huge impact on the profession in the past 40 years. This documentary provides a glimpse of this life in a community dependent on the water in the 1960’s. By examining three years in the life skipjack captain Art Daniels, his family, and his colleagues as they spend time oystering, crabbing, and living on the Chesapeake Bay, the simple but powerful story of watermen’s lives is revealed to those who enjoy the fruits of their labor. [1969, USA, Runtime: 63 min, Not rated]

After the screening, Dr. Michael Lewis, a Salisbury University professor specializing in Delmarva environmental history will conduct a brief Q&A comparing the profession’s past and present.

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