Seaford Museum

The Seaford Museum has been called a jewel. One of the nicest museums in the state, it is very unusual in that volunteers have been responsible for saving and converting the town's old post office into a fine museum. Everything from the concept and design to the constructions of walls and cases to the written signs and the gift shop are all the work of locals. It's the definition of community.

The museum is at a professional level few museums ever reach with state-of-the-art air management and high-tech fiber optic lighting. Opened in 2003, the museum has hundreds of artifacts tied all together in a time line.

Begin with the Nanticoke Indians (who used poisoned arrows) and conclude with a large nylon, spinning machine (that made the world's first synthetic fibers.) See exhibits on early agriculture, shipbuilding, canning, the chicken industry and railroads. Enjoy everything from intricately carved decoys to a working police light bar.

Spend time with Governor William Ross and his lovely wife, Elizabeth. The Ross family raised fine Hackney carriage horses. Ross and other Sussex County residents were supporters of the South during the Civil War. President Lincoln issued a warrant for Ross' arrest, putting one of the state's most popular governors on the dodge raising dust to escape the law.

See odd things like an antique bottle of ketchup. In the early 1900's, a man wrote the company that he had just tried their ketchup and loved the product's taste, but couldn't seem to find it in the stores. The company wrote back telling him they had not made ketchup in eighteen years.

You will never look at history the same way again.

The Seaford Museum includes a changing exhibit gallery, a presentation room, a general information area and a museum store. Located in downtown Seaford on High Street in the restored 1930's post office building, it is a treasure you will not want to miss.

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