Delaware Preservation Fund announces 24 grants

WILMINGTON — The Delaware Preservation Fund recently announced 24 grant awards, totaling $124,122 for various sites statewide.

Funded projects include 16 houses, nine churches, a bank, a fire control tower, a cemetery, a mill and several types of outbuildings.

Several of the properties are museums owned by nonprofits and open to visitors. These include the Read House & Gardens in New Castle; the Taylor’s Bridge School in Blackbird; the Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library’s gatehouse; the bank building owned by the Historic Odessa Foundation; the Gov. Ross Mansion in Seaford; and the Parson Thorne Mansion in Milford.

Private homeowners also received monies again this year, including projects in Wilmington, Newark and Laurel.

Jeremy Rothwell, the president of the fund’s board of directors, said the organization was able to make a larger impact in 2024 due to a contribution of $50,000 from the Delaware Division of Historical & Cultural Affairs, as well as a $25,000 grant to support projects in New Castle County given by County Executive Matt Meyer.

The fund received 34 qualified applications for the program, the majority of which were selected.

While the Delaware Preservation Fund usually supports physical, bricks-and-mortar projects, it has also recently begun considering applications for preservation planning initiatives.

One such award made by the fund during the 2023 grant cycle was subsequently added to the National Register of Historic Places last fall.

Applications will soon be accepted for the next awards, with a likely submission deadline of February 2025. Information is available at preservationde.org/preservation-fund.