By Mike Finney

DOVER — The Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs was looking for a place to spotlight the state’s contributions to space exploration.

After doing some exploring of its own, the group found the perfect space for the exhibit — the Dover Public Library — to show off some of the earliest iterations of space gear precursors created by workers at International Latex Corporation in Frederica and DuPont Company in Wilmington.

The space exhibit at the library will be installed by the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs on Thursday and will run until September.

Brian Sylvester, director of the library, said the space artifact exhibit will be a welcome addition to the facility at 35 Loockerman Plaza.

“The library’s mission is to build better community in Dover, and this display is a great opportunity to combine our resources in a way that benefits everyone,” Mr. Sylvester said.

“The new display space on the first floor of the library will complement the art displays on the second floor and give our community an opportunity to better understand our shared history.”

Kira Lyle, collections manager for the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs, said the Dover Public Library turned out to be a natural fit.

“We have a relationship with the Dover Public Library because of other projects in the city,” Ms. Lyle said. “A few months ago, Brian (Sylvester) reached out to me to see if we would be interested in creating a display for the library in some of the cases they have on site.

“I was very excited about this opportunity — the state collection houses thousands of objects, and we’re continuously looking for ways to make collections items (and the stories they tell) accessible for our public.”

Some of the items include a cap that served as one of the earliest versions of one that would have fit inside a space helmet — except it’s made from 1970s plaid fabric — likely used to better understand the shapes and challenges that would come in later versions that would one day be used in space.

There’s also a set of gloves that look more like ones used around the house instead of by astronauts, and even a display that shows viewers all the different layers of material that would have been needed to create spacesuits in the 1960s and ’70s.

Much of the display will tell the story of the evolution of many space products developed by the International Latex Corporation, more commonly referred to as Dover ILC.

“When I met with Brian (Sylvester) to discuss initial ideas for the exhibit, he emphasized wanting to use the space to tell Dover stories,” Ms. Lyle said. “Local history is exciting in that you get to tell big stories in small places. The history of the moon landing and the Apollo program is massively influential nationally, but there is a really key local Dover story (involved).

“Some of the artifacts that will be displayed are special in that they aren’t ‘real’ — we don’t have the ‘real’ gloves or communications cap. Instead, we have very early prototypes. This is the story of the process of getting to the moon and the contribution of Doverians and Delaware industries.”

She added that many of these collections owned by the state wouldn’t necessarily be interesting at other museums.

However, with the International Latex Corporation right down the road to the south of Dover, it makes perfect sense to display the artifacts in the capital city due to how many people’s lives have been touched through the business through employment or knowing an individual who has worked there.

“They give you the very earliest ideas of what these materials and space suits would have looked like,” Ms. Lyle said. “For materials like this, that are rich with Delaware history but don’t fit necessarily at any of HCA’s historic sites or museums, it’s great to partner with other organizations like the Dover Public Library to share this history.

“It’s a very serendipitous opportunity.”

Staff writer Mike Finney can be reached at 302-741-8230 or mfinney@iniusa.org.
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