Delaware Legislative Hall
I left Trenton, NJ and entered something like “Delaware Capital” in google maps and selected the first entry that came up. I blindly, followed the instructions to downtown Wilmington, DE. It took me a few minutes in Wilmington to realize that I wasn’t in Dover. With a little research, I learned that the State House in Delaware is called the Legislative Hall. It would be another hour before I reached the capital.
I arrived after the sun dropped and drove around the capitol grounds. There was a halloween event going on at the commons behind the Legislative Hall. I got out to walked around and immediately noticed the drop in temperature from Wilmington, DE. I drove the car around to the front of the hall to get a few nighttime photos.
I realized it was getting late and I hadn’t eaten yet. I looked for something close and Fraizer’s Restaurant came up. It didn’t have bad reviews and they did have beer. I was there in five minutes. I entered an country music was playing. There was a dance floor and a woman was teaching some type of line dancing. I took a seat in the corner at a high-top table and read emails. I ordered a salad with salmon and a dark Kölsch. The Kölsch had a very strange taste. It wasn’t off, but it didn’t task like other Kölsches I’ve had.
It was a very friendly place and very inclusive. I was fascinated by the fact that so many people of different colors were working together, visiting in interracial groups, and having fun together. There were people of all ages, kids to seniors, dancing, watching sports, eating and some were playing card games. I moved to the bar and had a second beer as I watched the dance lessons. One of the woman behind the bar told me there are a few basic steps but that there are hundreds of special steps that people learn. Apparently, some are associated with specific songs.
I didn’t have a campsite to go to. There was a Walmart Superstore about 10 miles away. Walmart allows people to park in their parking lot to sleep. When I got to the store, there were three large 18-wheelers, two large RV campers, a few trailers and two cars closely parked together in one corner of the lot. I found a tree to pull under to block the light (I’ll post about my boondoggling).
On my way back to the car, I met Joel and Seth. Joel was a legislative librarian for the state. He was a wealth of information on Delaware history and the legislator. He was having lunch on a bench beside a monument I was looking at. He commented on my camera and we started chatting. He offered to show me the legislative halls, and the collection of books containing the original laws. He also told me about a book titled, State Capitols: Temples of Sovereignty, written and photographed by Francis Pio Ruggiero that I wished I had read before my trip.
Revolutionary War Monument
In front of the Legislative Hall is the “Delaware Continentals” Statue. The plaque beside the monument reads as follows:
The Delaware Regiment fought in nearly every campaign of the American Revolution.
For a small state, Delaware soldiers played a large role in the revolution. Answering Congress’ call, Delaware raised a regiment of 500 - 600 men by the summer of 1776. They first saw action at the battle of Long Island, fighting with distinction and then received the post of honor covering the continental army‘s withdraw across New Jersey. In January 1777, the Regiment re-organized with many veterans rejoining. For the next two years, the Delawares were part of the Main Army, fighting in the battles of the Philadelphia Campaign and at Monmouth. The regiment also joined in the assault of Staten Island, and selected men participated in the night attack at Stony Point.
In 1780, the Delaware Regiment, along with the entire Maryland line, was ordered south to help defend Charleston, South Carolina. Though the city fell to the British before they arrived the Delawares and the Marylanders went on to fight in the southern campaign for the next three years. Surviving the disasters battle of Camden, and in hard-fought battles throughout North and South Carolina, these Continentals prevailed against some of the best soldiers of the British Army. Virginia’s Colonel Henry Lee wrote admirably, “The state of Delaware furnished one regiment only; and certainly no regiment in the army surpassed it in soldiership.“ After eight years of service, the regiment returned to Delaware in January 1783 it was mustard out later that year.
Dover The Town
The town has a neo-colonial style that seemed to be consistent in all the government locations and adopted by many office and residential buildings. I’ve never thought of Dover as a vacation destination, but there is a lot of history here and the town has a feel of Willamsburg, VA. They’ve done a great job retaining the colonial feel.
Cobblestone Cafe
I met a guy in a bookstore that told me about two places to eat, The Cobblestone Cafe and a bakery La Baguette Bakery & Catering. Both sounded good for different reasons. I decided to go to The Cobblestone Cafe because of the Middle-Eastern food. It was a mixed menu and they told me they had fresh falafel, which I ordered with a turkish coffee. The two women running the cafe were interesting to talk to. They told me they made the best Turkish coffee and I agree. The first time I had Turkish coffee was in Prague. When you get a good turkish coffee, with a very fine ground, the grounds remain on the bottom of the cup. The coffee had a sweet after taste.
I asked if they would mind if I took their photo. One woman declined and the other said that I could take a photo after she prepared the coffee. They told me I could pay after I ate.
I met an artist, Winifred Way. We talked about her art, two pieces were hanging in the cafe. She studied art in Pittsburgh and told me about an interest mosaic project (I lost the link). She showed me some web pages and told me about how people from around the world have contributed works to the project.
Liberty Bell Replica
When I was in Concord, New Hampshire (the capital) there was a replica of the Liberty Bell. It was one of 53 made in France, but one article about the Liberty Bells, states that there are 54. One of the bells sits off the commons in Dover.
The Capital Theater
I found the history of The Capital Theater to be interesting. I didn’t know that they acted out baseball games in real-time. They had a diamond on stage and as a big game transpired, an announcer would describe what was happening in the game and the actors would act it out.
Good Bye Dover
I left Dover feeling like there was so much more to explore. The layout of the town, the architecture, the shops, the friendly people, the food and the history made this a very pleasant stay. This was one of my favorite capitals to visit. When you live in a town like this it may not seem special, but this is certainly an interesting vacation destination. It would be fun to read more about the history of the town and the state and visit again.
Off to Annapolis Maryland.
I took mostly back roads to Annapolis. As I was driving, I came across a Hunting lodge in the middle of nowhere. It seemed to be located by an active quarry as trucks kicked up dust behind the “Lodge”. It was partially surrounded by water, which appeared to be from the quarry. The location, architecture and surrounds caught my eye. I turned around to take a photo. As I was taking photos, I could hear gunshots in the woods to my left.
I would still have time to walk around Annapolis and take some photos before the sun set.