Business Editors
NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–June 12, 2003
Fitch today issued a research report outlining its rating analysis for Bavaria Finance Funding I LLC (Bavaria Finance), Bavaria Delaware Finance I LLC (Bavaria Delaware) and BAV Jersey Finance Limited (BAV Jersey) — three inter-related bankruptcy-remote, special purpose vehicles sponsored and administered by Bayerische Hypo-und Vereinsbank AG.
Bavaria Finance was established to issue up to $4.0 billion of ‘F1′ rated asset-backed commercial paper (CP) and loan the proceeds to Bavaria Delaware. Bavaria Delaware, in turn, uses the proceeds to fund the purchase of authorized investments in conformance with its investment guidelines. In addition, Bavaria Delaware maintains a ‘AAA’ counterparty rating from Fitch, and enters into various total rate of return swap, credit default swap and reverse repurchase agreements with eligible counterparties and with respect to eligible reference assets. Finally, BAV Jersey issues three tranches of subordinated indenture notes totaling $145 million, rated ‘AA’, ‘BBB’ and ‘BB’ (Rating Watch Negative) by Fitch, as well $37.5 million of unrated preferred equity. The subordinated indenture notes and preferred equity serve as credit enhancement to support Bavaria Finance’s CP noteholders as well as Bavaria Delaware’s counterparty obligations.
The report is available on Fitch’s web site at ‘www.fitchratings.com’ or by contacting the Ratings Desk at 1-800-893-4824.
Filed under: Paper Cuts, structured finance | Leave a Comment
Mary Barneby brings extensive defined contribution experience to
Investment and Mutual Fund firm
Delaware Management Holdings Inc. has named Mary Rudie Barneby president of its Investment and Retirement Services business, it was announced here Friday by David K. Downes, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Delaware.
Delaware is a $30 billion asset investment and mutual fund company that has operated from Philadelphia since 1929 and has an international subsidiary based in London. Barneby will lead Delaware’s enhanced initiative to capture market share in the growing defined contributions arena, particularly the 401(k) market.
Currently, Delaware has approximately 615,000 participants in its defined contributions programs and ranks 17 among the top 50 investment management and record keeping providers in this business.
Barneby joins Delaware from UAM Retirement Services Inc., where she was president. At UAM, she was responsible for the start-up, management, sales, and servicing of defined contributions programs for the wholly owned subsidiary of United Asset Management Corporation.
Prior to starting UAM Retirement Plan Services, Barneby was president of Equitable Capital’s Group Retirement Services Division. From 1988 to 1991, she directed Dreyfus Group Retirement Plans, where 401(k) assets increased fourfold. Barneby began her career in 1974 at Merrill Lynch, spending 14 years in a variety of managerial positions in marketing and operations.
A graduate of New York University, Barneby also holds an M.B.A. degree in Finance from Fordham University. She is a director of the Financial Women’s Association of New York and chairman of the board of the New York City Affiliate of the American Heart Association. She was recently elected president of the National Defined Contribution Council.
The Delaware Group provides a wide range of mutual fund and other investment programs for half a million shareholder accounts. Its parent company, Lincoln National Corp. (NYSE:LNC), owns and operates financial services businesses that provide annuities, life insurance, reinsurance, property-casualty insurance, mutual funds and investment management services.
With headquarters in Fort Wayne, Indiana, LNC has assets of nearly $67 billion and annual revenues of $6.8 billion. LNC acquired Delaware Management Holdings Inc. in 1995.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
Black breaks his silence at last
David Usborne in Wilmington, Delaware CONRAD BLACK had been on the stand in this packed Delaware courtroom for an hour-and-a-half answering in a monotone, almost brow- beaten manner, a long series of questions from his own lawyers. The responses were dry as the questions. Then, at two minutes before the lunch break, he broke loose.
“Can I say a sentence?” he asked Judge Leo Strine as the court was struggling over the admissibility or otherwise of certain documents that could support his position. The judge acquiesced, and the Conservative peer made an appeal that was addressed surely as much to the press gallery as to him.
“I have been horribly defamed,” he began, glancing in our direction. “I have been characterised and stigmatised as an embezzler. I am trying to retrieve my reputation as an honest man.”
Indeed, Lord Black was perhaps fairly describing the nub of the case that has been brought against him in this court by the board of Hollinger International, owner of The Daily Telegraph, which has accused him and other senior executives of receiving $32m (pounds 17m) since 2000 in unauthorised payments arising from the sale of assets during that period. No one had uttered “embezzle” before, but that was the gist.
It was with these claims in hand, put forward by a special committee of Hollinger empanelled last summer to probe allegations of financial misdeeds, that Lord Black was persuaded on 15 November last year to sign an agreement to radically alter the structure of the company to pay back the money he was said to have received, amounting to $7.2m (pounds 3.8) million, and to stand down as its chief executive officer.
“The impact,” Lord Black went on, “has caused irreparable damage to my reputation.” He and his lawyers were asserting yesterday that, essentially, he was ambushed by the special committee and that he signed the agreement – which also put in train a strategic review with the aim possibly to sell assets in the company, or all of it – without their having all the information to hand. Information, they said, which would have absolved him.
It was in the course of finding additional documents, the lawyers for Lord Black argued, that they came to the conclusion that the committee’s findings were not correct. That is why, they added, Lord Black later decided that he had been wrong to sign the agreement and why he later refused to repay the money, a first installment of which had been due by the end of last December.
Lord Black also testified he had been effectively forced into the signing of the agreement because of a number threats made by the members of the committee and of Hollinger’s audit committee if he refused. Those included a threat that the board would refer the entire affair to US federal authorities for investigation and take it upon itself possibly to instigate criminal action against him.
Speaking of the damage already done to his reputation, he “would not have run that risk, even under the threats that were put to me on that occasion” if he had been in possession of the other documents – all of which, according to his lawyers, suggest that, contrary to the views of both committees, the board and the relevant committees of Hollinger and its accountants, KPMG, had indeed been aware of the payments in question.
But more is at stake in this extraordinary trial, which was due to conclude last night, than the reputation of one man. Also at issue is the deal that Lord Black entered into subsequent to the 15 November agreement with the board, to act unilaterally to sell assets of Hollinger. That was the agreement he announced on 18 January under which his controlling shares in Hollinger would be purchased by David and Frederick Barclay – a transaction that would transfer to them control of what has hitherto been the crown jewel in Lord Black’s vapourising empire: The Daily Telegraph and its sister Sunday paper.
The independent directors of Hollinger are trying to persuade the court in Delaware that Lord Black not only profited from those payments as contended, but that he subsequently egregiously reneged on the agreement signed on 15 November by not beginning the promised repayments, and, above all, by entering into the sale agreement with the Barclay bothers.
The directors claim that under the terms of the agreement Lord Black was explicitly bound to support the strategic review that was then launched by the board for the sale of assets, overseen by the Lazard investment bank. They say that the agreement with the Barclays is a violation of that accord and they are asking the court to block the deal entirely.
Thus, everything in the Hollinger affair was in the balance yesterday afternoon – the reputation of a member of the House of Lords, the future ownership of the Telegraph titles, including The Spectator magazine, as well as other Hollinger-owned titles, including the Jerusalem Post and the Chicago Sun-Times. Judge Strine has until next Friday to rule in the matter. The deal between Lord Black and the Barclays is due to close on 3 March.
If he sides with the independent directors of Hollinger, who continue to assert they have found no evidence that the disputed payments were authorised, Lord Black will face bleak choices. He and the other executives in question are already being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States. Moreover, the deal with the Barclays will fall apart and the fate of the Telegraph will again be uncertain. Among those already lining up to buy it in that instance include Richard Desmond, owner of The Daily Express, and the Daily Mail and General Trust.
If Judge Strine sides with Lord Black, however, then his position that he has been viciously maligned by the committee of Hollinger will be vindicated and the Telegraph will presumably swiftly pass to the Barclays. However, the investigation into the missing moneys may well continue.
Indeed, Lord Black himself said on the stand that he does not consider the investigation to be over. The inquiry into what happened at Hollinger – how the so-called fees to him and his colleagues came to be paid – should continue, he said, “until all the endless depths have been plumbed”.
Lurking in the background is the contention that Hollinger Inc, the holding company through which Lord Black controls Hollinger International, may face insolvency – and that Lord Black has borrowed sums from it and another Canadian company, Ravelston, the effective owner of Hollinger Inc, which may amount to $13m (pounds 6.9m).
Filed under: Finance, Rouges, business | Leave a Comment
Delaware Group Global Dividend and Income Fund, Inc. (the “Fund”), a New York Stock Exchange listed closed-end fund trading under the symbol “DGF,” announced today that Michael J. Dugan, Vice President/Senior Portfolio Manager of Delaware Investments, has been named as portfolio manager for the Fund.
He replaces the previous portfolio manager, Babak Zenouzi, who has left Delaware Investments. Delaware Management Company continues to serve as the investment adviser to the Fund, and Delaware International Advisers, Ltd. continues to serve as sub-adviser. Mr. Dugan earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a Master’s degree in Finance from Loyola College in Baltimore.
He rejoined Delaware in 1997 after serving as a Vice President at Thompson, Siegel and Walmsley, where he managed value-oriented equity and balanced portfolios. He initially joined Delaware in 1985. He previously held positions at Capitoline Investment Services, First National Bank of Maryland, Mercantile Safe Deposit and Trust Company, and Bache and Company.
Filed under: corporate propaganda, wage slaves | Leave a Comment
Mary Dejevsky in Dover, Delaware A NEWLY “RETOOLED” George W Bush – the term was used by his campaign – flew to the small east coast state of Delaware yesterday, intent on finishing off his pesky challenger, Steve Forbes, and simultaneously banishing the memory of his chastening defeat in New Hampshire.
With his presidential bid appearing suddenly vulnerable and less than two weeks to go before the key primary in South Carolina, Mr Bush is having to treat today’s Delaware primary as a serious test.
Delaware may be small – it has only 750,000 inhabitants and elects only one member of the US House of Representatives – but as the first state to ratify the Constitution it enjoys a certain cachet.
It also has two highly experienced senators and wields disproportionate legislative clout, thanks to its relative wealth and its prowess in banking and pharmaceuticals. Liberal tax laws have attracted many corporations to site their headquarters here, among them some of Mr Bush’s most generous donors.
Which is one reason he is campaigning here in person: among supporters in the state capital, Dover; among servicemen at the nearby air force base (one of the main shipping points for aid sent to Kosovo last year); and among big corporate sponsors in the state’s business powerhouse, the city of Wilmington.
Another reason is the billionaire publisher Mr Forbes, whose own base lies to the north, in New Jersey. On paper, Mr Forbes may not look the greatest threat to Mr Bush’s presidential prospects. That honour goes to Senator John McCain, who trounced him by 18 points in New Hampshire and has drawn level in opinion polls in South Carolina.
However, Mr McCain, lacking the big money of either a Bush or a Forbes, has picked his contests carefully, choosing to disregard Delaware, as he did the Iowa caucuses two weeks ago. He is applying all his effort to South Carolina, and the primary shortly thereafter in the northerly state of Michigan.
In his newly aggressive campaign mode Mr Bush scorned his rival’s tactics. Mr McCain’s absence, though, leaves him in a straight fight with Mr Forbes, who won the Delaware primary four years ago, beating the party favourite, Robert Dole, into second place.
In fact, Mr Dole had chosen, like Mr McCain this year, not to campaign in Delaware, but the notion persists that Delaware is Mr Forbes’ sort of state, and he has campaigned here as though that were so.
By election day he will have spent four full days in Delaware, breaking only on Friday to speak at a state party gathering in California.
Mr Forbes, often an awkward campaigner, has none the less gone from town hall to town hall spreading his message of tax reform and presenting himself in the guise of “independent outsider”, a tactic that has proved so successful for Mr McCain.
Just north of Dover, in the small town of Smyrna, whose commercial heart has been killed by an adjacent shopping centre, Mr Forbes found a typical standing-room-only crowd of about 200 waiting for him in the fire-station hall.
They were small-business people and pensioners mostly, none of them wealthy, and not all of them loyal. The name John McCain was on many lips, even though he had not deigned to campaign in their state.
Mr Bush appeared to be widely disliked, except by the dozen or so young pickets who stood on the pavement outside with big placards.
Mr Forbes has some good lines. He compares the length of the Gettysburg Address, the Declaration of Independence and even the Bible with the seven million-plus words of the US tax code. He suggests that redundant taxmen could usefully be redeployed shovelling away some of the snow piled up beside Delaware’s roads. And to all those in Washington who say we cannot scrap the tax code? “Well, hello guys! Whose country is this?”
In the televised Republican debates it was clear that there is little love lost between the stolid Mr Forbes and the smooth George W. And rumours abound that the Republican Party has urged Mr Forbes to end his bid so that Mr Bush can take on Mr McCain without lesser distractions.
The last thing Mr Bush needs is another poor primary showing. But Mr Forbes has the money (his own) to fight on, and might not be averse to diluting Mr Bush’s effort. At least as of yesterday, the Forbes camp was adamant: “We are in this to the end.”
Filed under: bushwacking | Leave a Comment
Delaware Distributors, L.P., the distribution arm of Delaware Investments, has hired John A. Register as vice president and regional consultant.
In this role, Mr. Register is responsible for marketing Delaware Investments’ products and services, including Delaware’s mutual funds, variable annuities and retirement plans, to key accounts and financial advisers within those key accounts in the southeast United States.
Mr. Register comes to Delaware from Banc of America Investments in Florence, SC, where he was an investment consultant responsible for marketing products through bank referral networks. Prior to that, Mr. Register was an investment consultant with Wachovia Investments of Hartsville, SC. He has more than 10 years of experience selling financial-based products and services.
“John’s experience and sales expertise will add to an already strong sales team,” said Terrence P. Cunningham, senior vice president, national sales director, Financial Institutions Division. “We’re delighted to have him step in for Delaware, creating an even stronger presence in the southeast.”
A resident of Hartsville, SC, Mr. Register holds a B.S. in political science from Charleston Southern University in Charleston, SC, and a M.S. in administration from Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI.
Delaware Investments, headquartered in Philadelphia, is a diversified asset management organization with approximately $47 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 1999.
Delaware Investments serves individual investors through a broad line of mutual funds, retirement plan services and other investment products; and institutional investors, primarily private and public pension funds, foundations, endowments, banks and insurance companies.
Filed under: business, investments | Leave a Comment
AS THE polls opened yesterday morning in the latest Republican presidential primary, a newly aggressive George W Bush was already out on the stump, rushing from small- town meeting to small-town meeting to get his voters out.
The Delaware primary brings its victor 12 delegate votes at the national convention in August – more, the Bush team pointed out, than the New Hampshire primary brought Mr Bush’s chief rival, John McCain. And as the contest for the party nomination tightens, Mr Bush was out to corral every vote he could possibly get.
A peculiarity of the Delaware system allows candidates to campaign on the same premises as the polling station, so long as the entrances are the requisite distance apart. Thus, breakfast time found Mr Bush at a pensioners’ day centre in the suburbs of Wilmington, and coffee time at a fire station, both venues where voting was already in progress. Whether it was the early hour, or the growing realisation of the challenge ahead, however, Mr Bush was not at his most fleet- footed and charming best.
Lacking the answer to one pensioner’s question, he treated her instead to a disquisition on his defence policy. And at the Hockessin memorial hall, disaster struck when, 15 minutes into his question- and-answer session, one of the young women firefighters on the platform fainted in the heat of the spotlights. The emergency team rushed into action, a stretcher was brought, and Mr Bush, somewhat at a loss to know how to proceed, ventured uncertainly into the audience, shaking hands and saying “Let’s turn this into a visit”, as the hundred or so people started to disperse.
For those who believe in omens, the incident offered an untimely hint of political mortality. A new crop of opinion polls out yesterday showed that Mr Bush was losing ground nationally to Mr McCain, whose support had more than doubled in the past three months. Although Mr Bush still enjoys an almost 2-1 lead nationally, the momentum is with Mr McCain, who is also now seen as having the best chance to beat Vice-President Al Gore in November, assuming that Mr Gore is the Democratic nominee. That assessment demolishes Mr Bush’s chief selling point hitherto: that he is the only Republican who can win.
Mr Bush’s blitz of town-hall meetings – to be continued in the next crucial primary state, South Carolina – is just one of the ways in which he has fundamentally remade his campaign in response to his swingeing defeat in New Hampshire.
Not only is he now adopting the informal question-and-answer format that has worked so well for Mr McCain, dubbing them cannily “One-on-one with the Governor” to suggest a combination of intimacy and authority, but he has also co-opted key words from Mr McCain’s vocabulary.
Plugging away at his new campaign slogans, “A Reformer with Results”, “A reformer with a record”, he slotted the word “reform” into almost every sentence. He also lashed into Mr McCain for not campaigning in Delaware.
You only qualified to be President, he insisted, if you took account of every state.
In fact, the only other Republican contender campaigning in Delaware was the millionaire publisher Steve Forbes, whose message of tax reform plays well in such an anti-tax state.
Mr Forbes was hoping to replicate his first place in Delaware four years ago, when the front-runner, Robert Dole, had not campaigned there. He did not appear confident yesterday, however, complaining that the state’s pro-Bush Republican Party, which had organised and funded the primary, had stacked the deck against him.
By arranging for only 28 polling stations across the whole state, he said, it would be difficult for many voters to exercise their democratic right.
And by yesterday evening, the question was not so much how many votes Mr Forbes might take from Mr Bush, but how many votes Mr McCain would garner, despite his conspicuous absence.
Filed under: Politics, Thieves | Leave a Comment
Delaware Investments has appointed Joshua H. Brooks to the position of senior vice president and deputy to Charles E. Haldeman, Jr., Delaware Investments’ chief executive officer.
In his new assignment, Mr. Brooks will assist Mr. Haldeman with the strategic analysis of Delaware’s investment capabilities as well as strategic planning to support Delaware’s overall business.
Mr. Brooks has been with Delaware Investments for nine years. He began his career at Delaware in 1991, with responsibility for equity market analysis and international/global marketing and client service for Delaware International Advisers, Ltd.
He transferred to Delaware’s London office in 1995 where he was given responsibility for research and portfolio management in the areas of global small-cap stocks, global emerging markets and Canadian equities. Mr. Brooks most recently served as the senior portfolio manager of Delaware’s emerging markets and small-cap funds.
“Josh has a long history analyzing and managing Delaware Investments’ funds. I am excited to have him on board to assist me with the strategic planning and the future development of the company,” said Mr. Haldeman.
Mr. Brooks holds a bachelor’s degree in East Asian languages from Yale University, an MBA from the London Business School, and a diploma from the Seikei Gakuen, Japan. A native of New England, Mr. Brooks is in the process of relocating to the Philadelphia area.
Delaware Investments, headquartered in Philadelphia, is a diversified asset management organization with approximately $50 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2000.
Delaware Investments serves individual investors through a broad line of mutual funds, retirement plan services and other investment products; and institutional investors, primarily private and public pension funds, foundations, endowments, banks and insurance companies.
Filed under: Banking | Leave a Comment
-Delaware Investments today announced the sale of its Unit Investment Trust (UIT) business to Nike Securities L.P.. Delaware supervised UITs with assets valued at approximately $200 million as of October 31, 1998.
Under the terms of the sale, Nike Securities will assume responsibility for the distribution, servicing and supervision of Delaware’s UIT assets. Delaware Investments and Nike Securities will also maintain a strategic relationship in the area of product development.
Delaware entered the UIT business in 1997 with its acquisition of Voyager Asset Management of Minneapolis. According to Michael J. Woods, Vice President and National Sales Manager of Delaware Investments who joined Delaware in that acquisition, “Delaware’s decision to exit the UIT business was not made lightly, but we believe it is in the best interests of our unitholders.” Delaware has decided to focus its retail market initiatives on its core retail products, i.e. mutual funds, variable annuities and participant directed retirement plans, he explained. “Nike Securities is one of the largest and most respected independent manufacturers and distributors of UIT portfolios in the industry,” he said, “and we are confident that their depth of product and broad range of services will provide greater opportunities for our UIT investors over the long-term.”
“We are happy to welcome Delaware’s clients to our UIT family,” said James Bowen, President of Nike Securities. “Delaware and Nike Securities have been respected competitors in the UIT business for the past two years, and we believe this transaction will benefit the clients of both organizations. We are firmly committed to maintaining and enhancing Delaware’s high standards of product development and service.” Nike Securities supervises approximately $20 billion of UIT assets.
Nike Securities has its headquarters in Lisle, Illinois and supervises approximately $20 billion of UIT assets. Through their First Trust(R) product line, Nike Securities offers a wide range of trust portfolios, specializing in sector and strategy UITs. Delaware Investments, with headquarters in Philadelphia, and investment offices in Minneapolis, Denver and London, is a diversified asset management firm with approximately $44 billion in assets under management. Delaware serves institutional clients, primarily private and public pension funds, foundations and endowments; and individual investors through a broad line of mutual funds, retirement plan services, and other investment products.
Filed under: Finance | Leave a Comment
DELAWARE:
A GUIDE TO THE FIRST STATE
New Edition
Coming early 2006
Delaware: A Guide to the First State was initially published in 1938, with second and third printings of the 1938 edition appearing in 1948 and in 1973. A revised edition was published in 1955. It was initially produced under the aegis of the Federal Writers’ Project (FWP), a part of the New Deal’s Works Projects Administration (WPA), which provided work for 10,000 unemployed or underemployed American writers from 1935 to 1943. In addition to Delaware: A Guide to the First State, the FWP produced 47 other state guide books, and about 350 additional volumes dealing with such subject units as natural regions, counties, municipalities, as well as oral histories on such topics as slavery and folk culture. The FWP was proud of its publications because they allowed “Americans [to] discover America.” All of the state guide books were published between 1937 and 1941, and were widely praised with the Washington Post characterizing the entire series as “first-class literature.”
Each state guide book was assigned one or more editors and they, in turn, chose a string of local writers to deal with specific topics. In Delaware the number of local writers employed was near one hundred and the number of essays was in excess of four hundred. The editors checked their writer’s accounts for accuracy, reshaped the accounts into good standard prose and then wove them, as seamlessly as possible, into the larger story. Delaware: A Guide to the First Stat, was edited by three native Delawareans, Jeannette Eckman, Anthony Higgins, and William H. Connor.
The book contains numerous photos from all over the state. Many photos are of buildings that still stand today. This edition will also include the original pen and ink drawings by artist John Moll.
-William H. Williams
Volume 16, Number 2 Newsletter of the Delaware Heritage Commission Winter, 2005-06
The Delaware Federal Writers’ Project also produced many publications on Delaware subjects−from maritime information to descriptions of public cultural sites. Many of these brochures and guides set the pattern by which the State of Delaware conducts its current public relations practices.
The majority of work by the local FWP never appeared in print. The papers are available for use in Special Collections, Morris Library, University of Delaware.
The FWP papers are bound in forty-eight volumes, each approximately 400 mostly typewritten pages. The forty-ninth volume is an index, prepared after the papers were transferred to the University of Delaware Library. The volumes contain original writings by Delaware FWP authors, extracts, i.e., verbatim copies of documents from outside sources, and abstracts, or summaries of documents too large to include in complete form. There are bibliographies, charts and. graphs, correspondence soliciting research materials, memoranda, newspaper clippings, maps and drawings, and two now-faded sample swatches of cloth depicting the official state colors.
Many of the authors drew on their own experiences and memories for their contributions, and articles often record “personal knowledge” as the source. Recipes for lost “delicacies,” folk customs and legends are noted. There are articles on local pirates, criminals and the penalties they could expect at various periods in Delaware’s history, as well as articles on supernatural occurrences and “colorful” characters.
The work of 117 writers who contributed to the Delaware FWP is preserved in these volumes; in addition there are anonymous manuscripts. Nearly all manuscripts are dated between the middle of 1935 and early 1941. Not all the writers stayed with the Project through these six years, and others joined as time passed.
-Steven Leech
Photos from the book: at left, Snuff mill, Yorklyn; at right, Saturday afternoon, Harrington
HISTORY OF NEWARK
2
The Commission was contacted by city of Newark Mayor Vance A. Funk III in the spring about supporting the town’s effort to produce a comprehensive and contemporary history. After some investigation it was determined that Newark may be the only town in Delaware to not have a modern-day history. Many other hamlets and villages in the First State captured the patriotic fervor and penned histories in the 1970s so they could be part of the bicentennial in 1976. Newark’s most detailed history was written in the late 19th century.
The Commission is hosting bi-monthly meetings and has invited residents from all over the town to attend and contribute their expertise. It was decided to use Delaware: A Guide to the First State as a model for Newark’s book. We hope to engage a number of researchers and writers so that as many people as possible can be a part of the important work. The final product will be a collaborative effort compiled by a cross-section of friends and neighbors.
The book will be completed in time for Newark’s 250th anniversary in 2008. In 1758 King George II recognized the legal being of Newark by granting permission for the townspeople to hold an annual harvest festival on the common green, now the present-day Academy Building lawn at the corner of Main and Academy Streets (across from the Opera House, above)
One interesting tidbit so far is that of the Main Street McDonald’s. Opened for business on March 15, 1960 at 374 E. Main Street, it was the first McDonald’s in Delaware, and one of the first on the East Coast. Initially the restaurant had a walk-up window where folks placed orders then ate in their cars. Hamburgers sold for 15 cents; sodas, 10 cents; fries, 10 cents; and milkshakes sold for 20 cents. That was the extent of the menu. Combining a hamburger, fries and shake created the All-American meal and sold for 45 cents. In 1977 the store added a new, but now commonplace convenience, the drive-thru window, the 3rd such drive thru on the East Coast. The restaurant was opened by Len Dukart and family, friends of founder Ray Kroc in Chicago. The Dukarts still operate a number of McDonald’s in the region.
ROGER E. NATHAN
Commission loses a friend
A number of years ago the Commission was fortunate to encounter Roger Nathan. Roger was an avid historian and, though not a Delaware citizen (he lived in Woodstown, N.J.), Roger always “crossed the bridge” to the state of his birth in search of fun and unique history.
A trip to Roger’s home and his basement was a feast for the senses for any historian. Roger collected National Geographic Magazine and various artifacts.
In this photo Roger stands next to a marker near Newark with help from the resident cat.
Roger became interested in the Mason-Dixon Line and the story of the Delaware boundaries in the mid 1970s. It was at that time that he began to search for the Mason-Dixon markers and to look for answers to the state’s unique boundary questions like “the wedge” and the “12 mile arc” — our northern circular boundary.
After a few years of study and research Roger completed a self-guided tour of the Delaware boundaries and had personally located each Mason-Dixon marker. He quickly became an expert of oolitic limestone (from which the markers were quarried), the Penn and Calvert families, and Mason and Dixon themselves.
In 2000 Roger captured his years of study in fine detail in the Commission book, East of the Mason-Dixon Line: A History of the Delaware Boundaries. He then made himself available for Commission-sponsored marker tours and Mason-Dixon lectures.
Roger died in October after a brief illness. The Commission was set to have Roger lead another tour of the line in Kent County in December. The event has been rescheduled for March 4, 2006.
It was our pleasure at the Commission to have known and worked with Roger Nathan. Donations may be made in Roger’s memory to the Woodstown-Pilesgrove Library, 14 School Lane, Woodstown, NJ 08098, or the Rotary Club of Woodstown, P.O. Box 431, Woodstown, NJ 08098.
WHAT’S DOWN THERE?
The Roosevelt Inlet Shipwreck
The Middle Atlantic region has a long tradition of colonial settlements. Delaware is unique in its settlement history having had the footprints of Swedes, Dutch, and the English beginning in 1664. These groups all worked with the indigenous Native Americans and later the African American community living in what would later become Delaware. Not far off our coast lay roughly 600 wrecks of colonial vessels.
The Harbor of Refuge, a body of water north of the breakers at Lewes Beach and at the mouth of the Broadkill River is the final resting place of Delaware’s newly discovered shipwreck. The wreck is 2,700 feet off the beach in 14 feet of water. That sounds simple enough and divers should be able to pick the site clean, right? Wrong. Wild underwater currents and the constant flow of water in and out of the Broadkill combined with zero visibility have made the archeology a challenge.
Fascinating artifacts have been uncovered and the history is beginning to unravel the mysteries of the ship. A keel has been found and the approximate length of the ship is 71 feet. With each dive archeologists are finding ceramic pieces of all shapes and sizes. The vessels reveal a great range and diversity: blue-gray stoneware from Germany; white-glaze stoneware and tea ware from Britain; glass; polished stone; metal artifacts; and even porcelain from China. Two finds are of most interest to researchers: Frankfurterware, made by the Germans for the Dutch, and creamware. Creamware is most revealing. It was the inadvertent invention of Josiah Wedgewood. Wedgewood was looking to produce white porcelain in order to compete with the Chinese but when fired his invention yellowed. To his delight the Queen was charmed by his yellow porcelain and hence creamware was born. This find is important, Wedgewood serendipitously invented creamware in 1762 so this discovery helps the researchers date the sinking of the ship — sometime after 1762. Most of these vessels contained beer, wine, oil, and ink. One wine bottle brought to the surface contained a seal from a South African vineyard.
Another interesting find was the discovery of up to eight millstones. The stones are of various sizes and have not been furrowed revealing that they were on their way to our shores for use in the growing colonial mill industry. The stones are also in one piece suggesting they are German or English. French millstones were usually in four pieces and banded together with a metal strap.
An additional unique discovery is that of German mineral water in tall angular vessels akin to a bowling pin. Not just a late 20th century phenomenon, the trade of mineral water began in the 1600s. One mineral water container had the seal of the company embossed on the face. After some investigation and a volunteer’s trip to Germany it was discovered that the same company is still in business.
The most interesting artifact may be the discovery of antimony (Sp on your periodic table of the elements). Today antimony is a key component in the semiconductor industry. In its metalloid form antimony resembles metal in appearance but does not react chemically as a metal. In the colonial period it was used in casting applications for such things as tools, cookware and household devices. We have all come in contact with this element as antimony sulfide is one of the ingredients in the modern match.
3
Researchers, using the information they have been able to uncover, date the sinking between 1762 to 1775. This ship, they believe, was an in-bound vessel from Europe and possibly a two-masted civilian brig (center). To date, no munitions or cannons have been found on board.
In recent years the term globalization has been used to define 20th century trade and relations among countries but this shipwreck suggests that globalization was very much a part of the 18th century. This ship was likened to a department store and supermarket combined carrying goods of all types ranging from Britain, to the European continent, to the Far East and Africa. The wreck also suggests a wide Atlantic Coast trade network with Delaware being a key component in the transfer of goods on a regional and global scale.
One last mystery remains — the ship’s country of origin. Stay tuned…
4
The family farm is a valuable aspect of Delaware’s history and culture. I want to document what I can before it is gone forever. My goal is to show the farmers of Delaware, what they do and the importance of their work. I am hopeful this project will bring a greater understanding to the value of farmers and the family farm and how this precious commodity is quickly disappearing from the First State’s landscape.
-K. Buckalew
The Face of Farming: Delaware’s Farm Families
A photographic project with oral histories by McKinstry Scholar Kathleen Buckalew.
Debbie Mitchell, Hockessin, Del.
Loblolly Acres
Jay Baxter, Georgetown, Del.
Bennett Farms
5
Kathleen Buckalew is the staff photographer for Hagley Museum and an independent photographer/researcher. For more information on this farm project please contact Kathy at buckalew@comcast.net.
“I planted every one of these chestnut trees by hand, 16 acres of land. This was supposed to be a little retirement project and it just exploded. I feel that this life change was fated, that this is where we are meant to be. It’s been a lot of fun, and we’ve met some good people. Being out in the field is great. We see a lot of fox, we think a cougar is in the back corner of the woods, we saw his prints in the snow, we have owl that live here, and osprey, deer come and rub the trees, eat the nuts. We’ve created an entire little forest out here.”
-Nancy Petitt
“I love being a farmer. I love being able to get up in the morning and see all the animals and be independent and do my own thing. I think farming brings you closer to nature, closer to God. To me, it’s a wonderful thing to be outside in the spring, to know the fields are plowed, to smell the fresh dirt, it just gives you something. I feel sorry for all those people who have never been able to experience this.
-Jo-Anne Lessard
“I like to see a good harvest and know I had something to do with it. I love to plow the ground and smell the fresh earth and see the ground turned over. I’ve seen good times and bad and we’ve had some rough times, but that goes along with the business. But farming was good to us, I enjoyed it, I still enjoy doing some of it. I can’t say I ever regretted getting into farming.”
-Corbitt Collins
I’ve worked on the family farm since I was a kid, driving tractors when I was ten years old. I remember working with mules, 55 years ago. I like doing this because every day is different. I can’t stand doing the same thing over and over again. I like being out in the open, but when you see all these houses squeezing in, it just breaks my heart.”
-Jack Papen
All photos © 2005 K. Buckalew
BEN FRANKLIN
Celebrates the big 3-0-0
6
Ben Franklin will blow out 300 candles on January 17, 2006. Franklin, a much revered figure from our colonial past and one of our most recognizable founding fathers had a keen interest in Delaware. As a printer, Franklin’s company produced a series entitled, Laws of Counties of New Castle, Kent, and Sussex upon Delaware. This and two other collections – “Ben Franklin: Printer” and “Ben Franklin: Scientist” can be found at the University of Delaware’s Morris Library Special Collections department.
For a schedule of events please visit www.benfranklin300.org.
Some highlights:
National Constitution Center
• “Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World”
• “Franklin Firsts and Facts” (Begins in June)
Independence Seaport Museum
• “Boatloads of Ben: Franklin’s ‘Strong Inclination for the Sea’”
Atwater Kent Museum
• “Franklin’s Legacy of Public Service”
Lights of Liberty
• “Ben Franklin’s Ghost”
Franklin Institute
• “Franklin…He’s Electric”
Independence Hall Park
• “Franklin’s Hands On History”
Born in Boston in 1706 Franklin spent his formative years as an avid reader and was sent to work in his brother James’ print shop at age 12. Franklin was fascinated with print work, reading, and writing. At the age of 15 he and James founded The New England Courant, a newspaper of sorts in Boston. Some of Franklin’s articles in the Courant poked fun at the New England Puritan clergy and this led to his “escape” to Philadelphia where he would once again search out work as an apprentice printer. It was in Philadelphia that Franklin began to thrive in a series of business ventures. It was also during this time that he married Deborah Reed in 1730.
In 1729 Franklin purchased the newspaper the Pennsylvania Gazette. He wrote many of the articles himself and also penned the nation’s first political cartoon. Later he would produce Poor Richard’s Almanac, experiment with fire prevention and electricity, and begin his life in politics.
BLUE HENS IN BRONZE
New statue coming soon
Funding has been approved for the creation of a statue honoring the Delaware Continental soldier from the American Revolution. An accurate depiction of a Continental is being produced by Charles Fithian of the Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs. Mr. Fithian has a unique interest in military dress and will outfit the soldier down to the accurate stitch count of the tunic. The depiction of the soldier at right was produced for the book The Delaware Continentals in 1941. Much research has been done in recent years and most historians agree that this probably wasn’t the look of the real Delaware soldiers.
Sculptor Ron Tunison of New York has accepted the job of creating the statue. Once complete, the work will stand in the small amphitheater on the Court Street approach to Legislative Hall
Mr. Tunison has previously worked to capture Delaware history in his work. He was the sculptor of the bas relief on the Delaware Monument (below) placed on the Gettysburg battlefield in April of 2000.
Look for updates on the sculpture in future issues of this newsletter and on the Commission website. We will also publicize unveiling festivities when available.
MILTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Each year in Delaware a town or organization gets serious about its history and they decide it is time to up the ante.
Many historical societies in Delaware find themselves to be the repository of all things old and cherished in their towns and this means they are growing in terms of archival material, storage space and more. In many cases this requires a larger budget which in turn leads to more volunteers and fundraising. Added to all of this is the acquisition of historic properties and you can see the local historical society is now something resembling a small company.
7
Many of our Delaware historical societies are addressing the new responsibilities facing them in recent years. It starts with the creation of professional staff. A few years ago the Lewes Historical Society hired a full time director. In 2003 the Seaford Historical Society took the same action. This year The Milton Historical Society took the step of hiring a full-time director. Anne Yarbrough came on board a few months ago and hit the ground running. She is currently over-seeing the construction and remodeling of the Lydia Black Cannon Museum (the former Grace Methodist Protestant Church). When complete, in just a matter of weeks, the Museum will house the society’s archival records, a research room, meeting space and exhibit areas.
Recently the Milton Historical Society began an oral history program and will soon create a walking tour of the historic district. A very successful capital campaign raised $400,000 to complete the Black Museum and also purchase archival materials, office equipment and more. A professional approach to town history is how Delaware historical societies are responding to the services they provide. The first issue of their newsletter “Common Ground” is available now.
If you are in Milton in the near future, stop by the restored and reopened Lydia Black Cannon Museum, 210 Union Street in the heart of the historic district. Anne will be happy to see you.
For membership information, upcoming events, and information please visit www.historicmilton.org or contact the MHS at:
P.O. Box 112
Milton, DE 19968
BOOK KIOSK
Del. Heritage Press books available in Archives lobby
In November the Delaware Public Archives set aside some space in the building’s lobby for a kiosk displaying books published by the Commission available for purchase.
The Commission began publishing books in 1991 with the release of Captain Thomas Macdonough: Delaware-Born Hero of the Battle of Lake Champlain. We will soon release Delaware: A Guide to the First State. The Guide will be the 24th book in the collection with other titles on the way in 2006.
Please stop by the Delaware Public Archives (above), 121 Duke of York Street in Dover, for a peek at our book collection. At this point we are set up for cash and check sales but we will soon have the capability for credit card and debit card purchases.
The staff of the Archives was instrumental in the creation of the kiosk and the Archives’ director Russ McCabe has been a gracious host to the Commission as we have called the Archives home for over a year.
The Delaware Public Archives is open Monday through Saturday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. and has extended hours on Wednesdays and Thursdays closing at 8 p.m.
Above image taken from the Commission book, World War I Remembered. Painting by Gayle Porter Hoskins.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
8
Delaware Heritage Commission
121 Duke of York Street
Dover, DE 19901
302-744-5077 – Kent and Sussex
302- 577-5044 – New Castle
www.state.de.us/heritage
Lewes 375 update. Many projects are already underway: The planting of 16,000 tulip bulbs from Holland; forty tall ships to participate in “Sail Lewes,” fireworks, and much more next summer!
April 21 – Kick off of events marking the summer-long celebration.
• Rededication of the deVries monument
• Ceremonial meeting of the Delaware State Legislature
August 4
• Fireworks
September 14-17
• Sail Lewes, the Tall Ships Festival
October 17
• New Netherlands Institute and Holland Society of America to hold annual meeting in Lewes.
BASKET WINNERS FROM
DELAWARE BOOK FAIR AND
AUTHORS DAY
Kids basket – Frank Ianni
Delaware Goes to War basket – Joan Sabboto
Colonial Delaware basket – Bruce Burgoyne
This year marked the conclusion of the
Delaware Book Fair and Authors Day.
After ten fun and successful years it is time to
kick it up a notch!
Next year will mark the first annual
Delaware Book Festival
November 4, 2006, Dover, Del.
Details this spring!
NON PROFIT ORG.
U.S.POSTAGE
PAID
PERMIT NO. 1170
WILMINGTON, DE
Board of Directors
Richard B. Carter, Chairman
Reba R. Hollingsworth, Ph.D., Vice Chair
Robert L. Byrd
James F. Cawley
Gen. (Ret.) Francis A. Ianni
Walter (Ed) Kee Jr.
Cheyenne Luzader
Harvey B. Rubenstein, Esq.
Jonathan S. Russ, Ph.D.
Samuel L. Shipley
Jean Ramsey Smith
Robert M. Stark, Ph.D.
William H. Williams, Ph.D.
Christian D. Wright, Esq.
Ex-Officio Joan R. Hoge
Timothy A. Slavin
Filed under: Government Stuff, Guide to the First State | Leave a Comment
Search
Recent Entries
- Fitch Issues Report on Bavaria Finance Funding I LLC ABCP Program
- Delaware Management Holdings names president, Investment and Retirement services
- Black breaks his silence at last
- Delaware Group Global Dividend and Income Fund Inc. Names New Portfolio Manager
- Corporate state sets a challenge for Bush
- Delaware Names John A. Register to Vice President, Regional Consultant Post
- Rattled Bush loses his edge as Delaware casts vote
- Delaware Investments Appoints Joshua H. Brooks, SVP, Deputy to the Chief Executive Officer
- Delaware Investments Announces Sale of Unit Investment Trust Business to Nike Securities
- DELAWARE: A GUIDE TO THE FIRST STATE
- CULTURAL DELIGHTS – IN DELAWARE?
Categories
- Banking (2)
- bushwacking (1)
- business (3)
- corporate propaganda (2)
- Culture (1)
- Finance (3)
- Government Stuff (2)
- Guide to the First State (1)
- investments (1)
- Paper Cuts (1)
- Politics (1)
- Rouges (1)
- structured finance (1)
- Tax Haven (1)
- Thieves (1)
- Uncategorized (2)
- wage slaves (1)
