Hagley Concert Features Civil War Era Music

Wilmington, Delaware – September 2011 – Hagley Museum and Library welcomes the Libby Prison Minstrels to the Soda House on Wednesday, September 29, 2011, at 7 p.m. to perform music from the Civil War era. Admission is free. Use Hagley’s Buck Road East entrance off Route 100 in Wilmington, Delaware.

The Libby Prison Minstrels is a five-piece band with guitars, banjo, mandolins, bass, harmonica, whistles and percussion that feature three-part harmony.  It is modeled after a group of Union prisoners who performed in the infamous Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia, during the Civil War. The band’s repertoire includes soldier songs (North and South), Irish-American ballads, sea shanties, spirituals, period fiddle tunes, and Early American dance music.

The Hagley Civil War education series will continue in October with historian Justin Carisio, and his lecture, " Quaker Soldier: The Civil War Experience of Henry Gawthrop of the 4^th Delaware;" and December with Jane Peters Estes, and her presentation of “Christmas Past,” which will explore the origins of many of our holiday traditions and highlights Christmas customs observed during the Civil War.

The current Hagley exhibit in the Visitor Center, “An Oath of Allegiance to the Republic: the du Ponts and the Civil War,” explores the roles played by several du Pont family members, E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., and the local community in response to the Civil War. It also delves into their involvement at the state, national, and international levels in resolving the most devastating conflict Americans have ever seen.

Hagley Museum and Library collects, preserves, and interprets the unfolding history of American enterprise. For more information, call (302) 658-2400 weekdays or visit www.hagley.org.

###

Explore the Brandywine with Hagley’s Creek Kids

            Wilmington, Delaware – August 2011 – Join Hagley’s Creek Kids for two afternoons along the Brandywine, Tuesday, August 16, and Sunday, August 21, from 1 to 4 p.m. Today we can access power with a flip of a switch, run to the grocery store to pick up food for dinner, and stop by the shopping mall if we need new socks or a shirt. Life in the nineteenth century was not the same. Come watch, learn, and experience how the people who lived and worked along the Brandywine depended on natural elements for their daily tasks. From growing fruits and vegetables in gardens to using water from the Brandywine to power the mills, the environment of the Brandywine was a vital part of this community. Activities are included in admission and free for members.

            The afternoons’ activities will explore the natural world of the Brandywine. Parents and children can try their hands at fishing with a bamboo pole or take a walking tour of the water power process. Local artisans will be discussing textile arts and demonstrating the use of old-fashioned spinning and weaving wheels. Other activities will include making lavender sachets, peeling willow branches, and learning about the Workers’ Garden.

Hagley's Creek Kids is a youth leadership and development program. High school students undergo extensive training from November through August to learn how to develop and implement a public program. Training includes lessons on leadership, instruction in history and science content, brainstorming and planning session, and hands-on exercises. Students apply this training during public programs at Hagley.

            The Creek Kids program is supported, in part, by Capital Growth Management, LP., and Mercer Health & Benefits Company.

The museum is located on Route 141 in Wilmington, Delaware. Admission to the entire 235-acre museum is $11 for adults, $9 for students and senior citizens, $4 for children six to fourteen, and free for members and children five and under.

Hagley Museum and Library collects, preserves, and interprets the unfolding history of American enterprise. Call (302) 658-2400 weekdays for more information or visit www.hagley.org.

# # #