Lewes of the past

This undated aerial photograph in the Delaware Public Archives collection gives us a window into the Lewes of yesteryear. It shows a west-facing view of the downtown area before Fisherman’s Wharf and Irish Eyes were built along the eastern bank of the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal.

The opposite side of the canal is without the Inn at Canal Square and Canalfront Park. Beebe Healthcare is present, but with a much smaller footprint. And Shipcarpenter Square, which was built in early 1980s, in the large open field in the upper right, was nothing more than an idea in Jack Vessels’ head.

Cape Henlopen High School, originally built in 1976 on the open land in the upper left between Savannah Road and Kings Highway, is also absent from this photograph.