Welcome to the DHS Insider, where you’ll get an inside look at some of the innovative and ambitious goings-on at the Delaware Historical Society (DHS) and meet some of the behind-the-scenes folks who make it all happen. | |
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NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR!
Join us in welcoming Ivan Henderson as the new Executive Director of the Delaware Historical Society (DHS). Ivan began his new role on Monday, February 13, taking the reins from Interim Director Tim McLaughlin. Ivan joined the staff of DHS on April 4, 2022, as the Director of the Mitchell Center for African American Heritage. He also served as Vice President for Programming.
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Ivan has nearly two decades of experience in museum education in Delaware and Philadelphia. He served as the VP for Programming at the African American Museum in Philadelphia where he led the work of the Programming and Curatorial Services teams in designing a wide array of exhibitions and adult, family, and youth programming. Prior to that, he was the Curator of Education and Outreach for the University of Delaware museum galleries. A graduate of Harvard University and the Bank Street Program in Leadership in Museum Education, Ivan brings substantial connections in Delaware and across the country.
Ivan embraces the DHS mission to preserve, promote, and share Delaware’s unique history. He is eager to advance important and enlightening conversations among diverse groups. According to Ivan, “Exploring our shared and intersecting histories helps us learn to understand each other and look at each other with new eyes, with respect and compassion. This kind of discourse can encourage the growth and strength of civic pride and community connections.”
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DOUBLE YOUR IMPACT with the Kingsberry Challenge | | |
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In honor of Black History Month, DHS Board Chair Stephen Kingsberry showed his commitment to the great work of the Mitchell Center for African American Heritage with an offer to match all gifts up to $2,500 from Feb 7 – 20. The response was swift and enthusiastic, and we quickly passed that goal. Upon learning the news, Stephen said to "keep it going!"
We are deeply grateful to Stephen for his generosity and leadership and sincerely thank each donor who joined the cause.
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Stephen Kingsberry
Delaware Historical Society Board Chair
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We have raised $3,550 so far and all donations made before February 20th will be matched by Stephen Kingsberry. All gifts in the challenge go toward Mitchell Center for African American Heritage initiatives and outreach activities which open the doors for honest discourse among diverse groups, shedding light on the past and creating spaces for empathy and learning. | |
DOUBLE YOUR IMPACT and join the Kingsberry Challenge! | | |
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LIBRARY RENOVATIONS
The renovations of our research library at 505 North Market Street are well underway. Though scaffolding currently obscures the beautiful façade of the building, we look forward to the great unveiling of its long-needed facelift within a few months. Current work focuses on the exterior of the building with plans for future work on renovating the interior so it serves as a modern research library, with safeguards to protect our 3 million artifacts.
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We recently featured this small, pocket-sized box which held the promise of hours of amusement for the mid-19th century child. The hand-colored lithographed cards inside are portions of human faces that could be mixed and matched in various ways to comic effect. This type of game, known as a metamorphosis game, appeared in many forms all through the 1800s. This example from our collection came from the family of Mrs. E. Paul DuPont.
In 2022, our social media presence grew by 2,000 followers on our Facebook pages and 750 on our Instagram pages. We created 244 posts that reached 380,000 people, culminating in over ten-thousand likes, 1,300 shares, and almost 150 hours of combined video views on Facebook alone! We anticipate that 2023 will be an even bigger year for DHS social media, so if you like what we’ve been up to, give us a follow on your favorite social media platform to learn more about our events, programs, and the 3,000,000+ items in our collections.
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Transforming Landscapes at the Read House & Gardens | |
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Members of the public gathered for a third time on December 17 to consider design concepts for the Read House & Gardens landscape. Our partners at DAVID RUBIN Land Collective are now working with staff to weave together a plan from the wisdom and values people have shared from across the DHS community. As DHS insiders, you'll be first to see the final design unveiled—hopefully later this spring!
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STAFF SPOTLIGHT
Kristin Geiger-Rayca
Kristin Geiger-Rayca is the Web and Digital Projects Manager at DHS. She’s been with us for four years. Her duties include updating, monitoring, and optimizing our digital presence across DHS websites, taking all DHS projects online, and co-leading our Digital Media Team. She’s also our go-to for all things digital data, which gives us a deep insight into the ways DHS engages with people online.
Kristin received her undergraduate degree in English from California University of Pennsylvania (now PennWest California). She originally wanted to be an archivist, but soon found topics in history and museum education sparked her interest. She discovered her love for ‘Digital Humanities’ prompting her to attend graduate school at West Chester University to focus directly on the intersections of historical and digital humanities work. Kristin worked in museums for several years before coming to DHS, starting as interim Education Coordinator for Read House & Gardens before transitioning into her current position.
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At DHS, her favorite recent projects include the 2021 website overhaul she spearheaded and our 2020 ‘COVID Chronicles Delaware,’ a project she co-led from conception to launch that sought to capture pandemic history in the moment it was happening. As for our collections, her favorite item was one we highlighted last year in a Speaking of Delaware… video titled “Miss Nagano: The Japanese Friendship Doll.” With a deep interest in material culture and a love for what Miss Nagano symbolized as a token of friendship between nations, Kristin was very happy to see Miss Nagano get the attention she deserved in that video!
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STRAIGHT FROM OUR COLLECTIONS | |
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Two singers pose in front of band in the Spot Café
at 703 French St. in Wilmington, Delaware on March 20, 1940.
To view more photos from our collections, click here!
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