at one of our City’smost beloved buildings

THE MARGARET H. ROLLINSCOMMUNITY CENTER

LEWES HISTORY MUSEUM

IntroductionA long-awaited vision for Lewes is about to become reality with the creation of the new Lewes History Museum at the southern entrance to the City. This “missing pillar of community institutions” will now enable the telling of the remarkable story of Lewes, for visitors and residents alike.

The Museum is a cooperative effort by the City of Lewes, the Lewes Historical Society and the Ma-Ran Foundation, which has made a generous lead gift to the project. Now just $1.8 million more is needed to allow the facility to open by the summer of 2017.

This initiative will bring a multi-faceted asset to our region.Its many components will include:

HISTORY MUSEUMFor 54 years, the Lewes Historical Society has served as the collector and steward of valuable artwork, documents, maps, photos and artifacts from our 385-year history.

Soon, with your help, this incredible collection will be on public display through a series of rotating exhibits, programs and presentations, from Lewes’ native Americans through early settlements, shipbuilding, the maritime industry, to today’s heritage and tourism-based economy.

The Society is the steward of:

100,000historic photographic images

10,000historic objects

250,000pages of documents

4,000volumes of Lewes & Delaware history

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“The Margaret H. Rollins Community Center”

In recognition of their early support,we are proud to name this new facility

Telescope used by Pilot Harry Cornelius Maull, c. 1890

Watercolor of Bohm House at Market Street and the

canal by P.R. Schellinger, 1891

Flag from the hospital facilities atFort Miles, c.1943

Arthur Morris’ drug store, Second Street, c.1932

VISITORS CENTERLocal residents and more than 1 million annual visitors to Lewes will be able to learn about our City’s history and the amazing people who helped guide and develop Lewes overthe centuries.

From the Lewes History Museum, visitors can be directed on an exciting walking tour ofmany other historic Lewes properties, including 13 owned and maintained by the Society.

RESEARCH HUBThe Museum’s treasure trove of documents, maps, correspondence, and photographswill now be accessible to researchers working in the building’s Delaware Room.

CULTURAL & EDUCATIONAL INTERACTIONThe Museum will provide attractive indoor and outdoor areas for meetings, panels, symposia and events, such as the History Book Festival at Lewes planned for 2017. Older students will have internship opportunities in exhibit preparation, conservation, research, and studio/photo recording.

CHILDREN’S ACTIVITIESChildren of greater Lewes will be a key audience, with anentire wing dedicated to their projects, interactive play, exploratory programs and educational presentations.

SECURE COLLECTIONThe facility’s second level will allow secure, climate-controlled storage and retrieval of precious art, documents and artifacts.Having ready access to the Society’s collection will let us shareexhibits with other museums around our state and country.

Staffed by Skilled ProfessionalsSupporting all this activity will be the Lewes Historical Society staff, providing professional expertise in exhibit preparation, conservation, documentation, education and the aquisition andpreservation of archival material, studio recordings, curatorialwork, and research.

The Margaret H. Rollins Community Center and Lewes HistoryMuseum will be open to the public year-round.

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Telegraph Key from the Cape Henlopen WirelessStation, c. 1890

Believed to have been painted by William Pierce Stubbs, this oil on canvas depicts the Three-masted schooner “Fannie Kimmey,” built in Milton, Delaware by Thomas and Joseph Black (Black & Black) in 1879.

The Thomas Howard Carpenter House, c.1903

A Building to Celebrate Community

The Margaret H. Rollins Community Center will bring the residents and visitors of Lewes together, as never before.

With 70% of the Center dedicated to the new Lewes History Museum, the remainder will be available for a variety of community purposes, and to showcase the achievements of our local non-profit community.

An entire wing of the Community Center, as well as its attractive outdoor patio, can serve asa venue for meetings and events, throughout the day, evenings and weekends.

Situated within Stango Park, The Margaret H. Rollins Community Center will become an attractive venue for weddings, anniversaries, fundraising benefits and celebrations. The first floor of the History Museum will also be available to rent for special occasions.

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Acrylic on canvas view of the Lewes skyline with license as viewed from the northern banks of the canal, c. 1950.

Regimental pin of the 261st Coast Artillery, “Shot on Way”,

c. 1942

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Port of Lewes Customs Seal, c.1890

Delaware Breakwater Front Light (West End Light)

Watercolor painting of the first pilot boatPhiladelphia

Original Life Saving Station Building, c.1916

Maull’s Shipchandlery, Front & Market Streets, c.1930

Life ring from Smith menhaden vessel

“East Hampton”, c. 1955

Future Exhibits at the Lewes History MuseumHere are a few of the exciting exhibits planned for the new Museum, featuring historic artifacts, maps, documents, and paintings.

Lewes’ Maritime HistoryA port of trade . . . one of early America’s most active shipbuilding areas . . . home to river pilots . . . a major fishing industry . . . recreational boating. Over the centuries, Lewes has been all these things, as our new Museum will demonstrate.

Lewes History through Decorative ArtsEarly furnishings, tableware, decorative items and art from colonial times through the early 1900s.

Our Earliest ResidentsLong before vacationers, Lewes was home to a fascinatingmix of pre-historic and Siconese Indian ancestors.

Walking Dunes & Ancient CrabsThe history of Lewes through environmental and geological change, and the amazing horseshoe crab, one of the world’soldest living creatures which makes its home in Lewes.

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A Cultural/Recreational Campus at a Historic SiteThe Margaret H. Rollins Community Center will be the centerpiece of an emerging, 10-acre cultural and recreational campus, including the new Lewes Public Library and a nexus for Southern Delaware’s fast-growing trail system for hikers and bikers.

The Center is at the site of the former Lewes railroad depot, a location pivotal in the transformation of Lewes from a sleepy, primitive fishing village to a thriving industrialand agricultural center.

The new Museum is located within one of the most cherished buildings in Lewes, serving for decades as a welcoming icon for visitors and residents alike. The adjoining Stango Park hosts weddings and a popular summer concert series, and features a children’s garden and soon,outdoor art and statuary.

STANGO PARK

CONCERT STAGE

CHILDREN’SGARDEN

NEW PARK LAND

TRAILHEADAMENITIES

Cultural Center CampusTHE MARGARET H. ROLLINSCOMMUNITY CENTER

LEWES HISTORY MUSEUM

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The rooms and space inside our 12,500 sf building will inspire, educate, and renew all who come here through access to the incredible heritage of Lewes, Delaware.

1 ENTRANCE LOBBY

2 MAIN EXHIBIT GALLERY

3 COMMUNITY RESOURCE AREA

4 ROTATING EXHIBITS GALLERY

5 RESEARCH ROOM

6 COMMUNITY MEETING WING - SQUARE

7 INTERACTIVE CHILDREN’S WING

8 RECEPTION

9 ELECTRIC ROOM

10 ELEVATOR

11 MECHANICAL ROOM

12 RESTROOMS

13 COURTYARD

14 COLLECTION AREA - ENTRANCE

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1449

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1ST FLOOR PLAN

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Campaign Objectives This Campaign will allow us to update and renovate the new Lewes History Museum in time for its official opening in the summer of 2017. It will also create a reserve fund to carry the Museum through set-up and its first years of operation.

Museum Exhibit ExpensesThe new Museum will include both semi-permanent and rotating exhibits, all of which will require ongoing investments in professional design, carpentry, signage and display materials and fabrication. Three-year exhibit costs: $450,000

Collection, Preservation and StorageTo facilitate researchers’ access to the Museum’s collection, a database of more than 140,000 items and documents must be collated with our new state-of-the-art archival retrieval system.

In addition, the collection areas at the Lewes History Museum must be climate-controlled,with special work tables, reference technologies and equipment installed for our professional curators and conservators.Collection, preservation and storage costs: $285,000

Site Transition ExpensesSeveral functions and staff positions now maintained at the Society’s campus on Shipcarpenter Street will be transitioned to the Museum. This will reduce operating costs at the new facility, while requiring re-adaptation expenses at the campus. Costs willalso be incurred in the preparation and move of museum collections from storage to the new location.Site transition costs: $115,000

Furniture, Fixtures & EquipmentBoth the administrative and visitor areas of the new facility need to be fully outfitted with a new communications system, comfortable furnishings, lighting, and updated access to technology. FF&E Costs: $85,000

Interior Improvements/RenovationsA number of upgrades are needed to conform with both ADA and museum-quality standards, enhance visitor experience, and incorporate new technologies. These improvements will include:

Interior capital costs: $356,000

• Upgrade HVAC, electrical, security, and fire suppression systems • Upgrade lobby restrooms • Provide glare-proof window treatments

• Construct visitor welcoming counter & area • Interior signage • Construct temporary exhibit room • Repaint all surfaces & install new carpeting throughout

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Other costs for architectural and engineering services, project and campaign management,will total $238,000. A 15% contingency is included in the total estimated project costs, below.

Estimated Project Costs Interior improvements, renovations $ 356,000Museum collection move, restorations $ 115,000Museum exhibits $ 450,000Collection storage & retrieval system $ 285,000Museum operating costs (thru 12/19) $ 315,000New Museum staff costs (thru 12/19) $ 125,000Furniture, fixtures & equipment $ 85,000Architect, engineering, project management $ 120,000Campaign expenses $ 118,000Contingency (15%) $ 295,350

$ 2,264,350

Projected Sources of Project Funding Foundations $ 1,330,000 Private donations $ 775,000 Business gifts $ 75,000 Fundraising event(s) $ 50,000 Appeals $ 25,000 $ 2,275,000

Museum Operating CostsOperating costs including the following are estimated at $209,000 per year once the Museum is in full use. New staffing costs will include a Collections staff person, and 50% of the cost of a new Development Director.

Utilities, IT $ 50,000Rent $ 24,000Insurance, security $ 15,000Repairs, maintenance $ 30,000New exhibits $ 25,000New staff $ 65,000 $ 209,000

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Staff and SupportersThe Margaret H. Rollins Community Center & Lewes History Museum will benefit from professional staffing provided by the Lewes Historical Society and dozens of trained volunteers.

Support for the renovations, programming, staffing, and ongoing maintenance of the Lewes History Museum is being facilitated by:

LEWES HISTORY MUSEUM CAMPAIGN LEADERS Elizabeth Owen, ChairWade & Danielle Thompson, Co-ChairsHazel Brittingham, Honorary ChairStuart BrahsRichard ClaypooleJanet DavisMeghan LeeJack LesherDon MatzkinWilliam SharkeyWilliam A. Thomas, Jr., M.D.Lucius Webb

LEWES HISTORICAL SOCIETY BOARD OF TRUSTEES Donald Matzkin, PresidentElizabeth Owen, Vice PresidentJack Lesher, TreasurerDrew McKay, Corporate SecretaryThomas E. Brown, Ph.D.Bernard J. Clark, MD.Richard ClaypooleStan DivorskiLinda DyllaWesley PerkinsHarold W. T. Purnell, II, Esq.Bonnie Taylor

Michael DiPaolo, Executive Director, Lewes Historical Society

CITY OF LEWES MAYOR AND CITY COUNCILMayor Ted BeckerFred BeaufaitRob MorganBonnie OslerDennis Reardon

THE MARGARET H. ROLLINSCOMMUNITY CENTER

LEWES HISTORY MUSEUM101 Adams Ave. | Lewes, DE 19958

Lewes is the birthplace of Delaware. Because of an early Dutch settlement here in 1631, a British court ruling decades later established Delaware as a separate sovereign entity, despite claims by Pennsylvania and Maryland.

Lewes’s strong sense of place, historic awareness and far-sighted policies to protect the built and natural environments are befitting of the “First City in the First State.” Much of this has been achieved through the

combined effort of City officials and the Lewes Historical Society. Since its founding in 1962, the Society has acquired and maintains 13 local historic properties, and amassed an archival collection unsurpassed in southern Delaware for its breadth and quality.

Now, these historic treasures and the history and people they represent will be fully displayed at the new Lewes History Museumat The Margaret H. Rollins Community Center.

Please direct donations to:Lewes History Museum c/o Lewes Historical Society110 Shipcarpenter St.Lewes, DE 19958

For more information, please callplease call our campaign office at302-644-0107.

9/1/16

Menhaden fishing delivery pier, end of season, c.1904