"This Day in Delaware History" (selected items) source: Delaware Public Archives (copied and published here with permission) note: does not include all significant events because they have not appeared in the DPA newsletter of this title since I have been subscribing. I will continue to update this list. 1721 General John Dagworthy, heir to 20,000 acres in Sussex County (and Maryland), was born in Trenton, N. J. 1776 Sussex County Loyalist Thomas Robinson escaped and went over to the British.[moderator note: from Lewes] 1776 Dec 26 The Delaware Regiment, with less than 100 men led by Colonel John Haslet, helped General Washington capture Hessians in Trenton. [moderator note: Patriot John McCabe who lived at the place to become SELBYVILLE was in this regiment.] 1778 Sept Freeborn Garrettson, Methodist missionary, preached in Dover and was almost lynched by a mob before the crowd settled down.[moderator note: It is documented in his Journal that he preached at and helped build old Sound Methodist Church abt this time. It is likely he also preached at Sandy Branch. Arthur McCabe named a son Garrison/Garrettson in 1788.] [1778 moderator note:1778 is the date the Town of SELBYVILLE uses as its establishment date based on the research of Dorothy Pepper per email from the Town Secretary in 2010. To date, the exact document which provided this date has not been located but a newpaper article by D.J.Murray in 1930 referred to the 5 pioneers of Selbyville 152 yrs. ago=1778. However, names are inaccurate based on researched dates of birth] 1791 Seventy-six acres of 'James Pettijohn's Old Field" were purchased in mid-Sussex County as the town of Georgetown was laid out, and the county seat was moved from Lewes. 1797 The General Assembly seriously considered abolishing slavery for the first time, but failed to do so. 7 Apr 1813 British sailors attempted to land men at Lewes and were beaten back as they withdrew the next day. 1832 A cholera epidemic in Delaware caused 47 cases with 17 dead. 1832 Oct Election Day and racial tension abounded in the state, particularly in Kent and Sussex, where false rumors were spread that 1,500 armed African American insurrectionists were coming up the Nanticoke River from Maryland. [SELBYVILLE became an official town NAME with the establishment of the P.O.] 1862 Sept President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation effective January 1, 1863. All slaves in rebellious states were to be freed, but slaves in Delaware were unaffected in that it was a border state . 1865 Feb The Delaware General Assembly rejected the 13th Amendment (abolishment of slavery) to the US Constitution. 1869 Mar The Delaware General Assembly rejected the 15th Amendment, allowing African Americans to vote for the first time, despite its enactment nationally. 1870 Apr African-American men (but not women) in Delaware rejoiced as they gained the right to vote through the passage of the 15th Amendment to the US Constitution. 1875 Mar The General Assembly enacted a law to give women the right to make a will without the consent of their husbands. 1875 Mar Jim Crow laws were passed by the General Assembly that restricted African-Americans' entry into theaters, restaurants, hotels, etc. The law would stand 86 years (=1961.) 1963 Dec The Public Accommodations Bill which officially ended Jim Crow laws in the state was signed by Governor Carvel in Dover. 1896 Apr The first Sussex County convention of Women Suffragists was held in Lewes. 1897 June Delaware's fourth state constitution which abolished property qualifications in order to vote was adopted. 1901 Feb On Lincoln's birthday the Delaware Legislature ratified the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments (slavery, citizenship, voting) to the US Constitution over 30 years after they had become law. [1901/2 SELBYVILLE was incorporated as an official TOWN in DE] 1905 July A new ordinance in Rehoboth made it illegal for a person to bathe in the surf without "...a bathing suit which shall cover the body from their shoulders to the knees." Also, the suit was not to appear "vulgar" looking when wet either. 1907 Sept The first compulsory education law went into effect statewide. Children living in rural areas had to attend school at least 3 months a year. 1908 July Burnt Swamp (the Great Cypress) near Gumboro, 15 miles long and 7 across, caught fire again and raged with flames. In the absence of rain, the tangled undergrowth and trees continued to burn. 1911 Mar 8 The General Assembly passed legislation leading to the construction of Route 113, the Du Pont Parkway, one of the world's first superhighways. 1911 Oct Construction began. 1912 A new parsonage accompanied the construction of Salem United Methodist Church in SELBYVILLE. 1913 Jan An epidemic of diphtheria causing several deaths broke out in eastern Sussex County threatening the closing of schools. 1913 Mar The General Assembly passed the bill that created a women's college in Newark starting Sept 1, 1914. 1917 May A ceremony celebrating the opening of the first 20 miles of highway from SELBYVILLE was held in Georgetown and was presided over by Governor John G. Townsend, Jr. 1918 Mar The state senate ratified prohibition, 13-3 as Delaware became the 9th state to do so. 1918 Oct Wilmington newspapers reported at least 8,000 cases of Spanish Flu in Delaware with 3,500 in Wilmington alone; Spanish Flu epidemic claimed 1,223 lives in Delaware with 3,500 cases reported. Spanish Flu was all over the country with deaths increasing in Delaware. 1920 Nov Thousands of Delaware women, along with those across the nation, went to the polls to vote for the first time due to the passage of the 19th Amendment. 1923 The General Assembly passed the 19th Amendment (woman suffrage) in Dover over 2� years after it had become law nationally. BUT 1972 Mar Delaware became the first state in the continental 48 to adopt the Equal Rights Amendment for women. 1928 Nov Republican candidate John Townsend of SELBYVILLE attempted to reopen the Indian River Inlet with 2,200 lbs. of dynamite. The Inlet had been clogged up for years. It didn't work, but it helped get him elected to the US Senate 3 days later. 1931 Jun It was strawberry season in SELBYVILLE and trucks, cars, horses and wagons stood ready to take the fruit to nearby railroad cars with straw and huge chunks of ice destined for Wilmington, Philadelphia, and New York City. 1933 Jun In a local option vote in all three counties for the licensure of beer and alcohol sales, only one district of 86 in the entire state voted against it. That was the one in Gumboro. 1933 Dec 7 Governor C. Douglass Buck proclaimed this day henceforth as "Delaware Day", in commemoration of the state's adoption of the US Federal Constitution in 1787. 1946 President Truman named former US Senator John Townsend, Jr. of SELBYVILLE as an alternate delegate to the London meeting of the United Nations. 1947, May 22 Stores in downtown SELBYVILLE announced they would close Wed. afternoons during the summer to give their employees a break from the heat. 1950 Jan Delaware State Trooper Cpl. Leroy L. Lekites, 36, was killed by a hit-and-run driver on US 113 in SELBYVILLE. 1950 Jun Mumford Sheet Metal Works of SELBYVILLE built a frying pan 10' in diameter with an 8' handle to cook chicken at the Delmarva Festival in Dover. 1997 Aug The Mumford Sheet Metalworks of SELBYVILLE, makers of the world's largest frying pan for the Delmarva Chicken Festivals, burned to the ground. 1952 July The Chesapeake Bay Bridge, officially dubbed the William Preston Lane, Jr. Memorial Bridge, opened and replaced a ferry operation between Annapolis and the Eastern Shore of Maryland. The new structure would come to exert great influence on Delaware's beach areas. (1973 June A second span of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge opened between Annapolis and the Eastern Shore of Maryland. The new edition (sic) would have a profound effect on Delaware's beach areas. 1957 June Vice President Richard Nixon helped former Delaware US Senator John G. Townsend celebrate his 86th birthday in SELBYVILLE. 2000 Mar Townsends, Inc. of Millsboro, poultry producers, announced selling out to Arkansas based Mountaire.