Lewes Historical Society presents plan for museum

The Lewes Historical Society is moving swiftly to convert the old Lewes library into a new museum. 

The doors to the Lewes History Museum could open as early as July, said Libby Owen, vice president of the LHS board.

“We are very excited about this project, as is the community,” she said. “We’re getting tremendous amount of support from the community.” 

Mark Chura, project manager, presented the latest floor plan for the recently renamed Margaret H. Rollins Community Center at city council’s Jan. 9 meeting. The city owns the building and leases it to the historical society; council unanimously approved the plan. 

Chura said a considerable amount of time has been spent by the steering committee and society staff to develop a plan for the space. 

“The changes are minor in nature but very important to accomplish the plan the society has to make this function as a museum,” he said. 

The first floor will be used almost entirely for public exhibits. The 6,400-square-foot space will have three exhibit areas – a large permanent exhibit, a children’s wing and a room for rotating/temporary exhibits. The first floor will also feature a reading research room, formerly the library’s Delaware Room. 

The wall between the lobby and two offices will be removed to expand the lobby to include a retail shop area. As part of the lease agreement, the city will retain the eastern first-floor wing. 

The second floor, which comprised two conference rooms and a small kitchen in the old library, will be used mostly for storage, and the public will have limited access. It will become collection storage space, collection work areas, staff cubicles, a meeting room and general storage. 

“This building gives the society the opportunity to bring together in one location 50 years’ worth of collection that has been housed all around town,” Chura said. 

Other minor changes are also planned, as the historical society retrofits and updates the 30-plus-year-old building. 

The historical society launched a campaign to raise $2.3 million for the museum. Owen said they’ve already reached the $1 million mark in fundraising.

And in December, it was announced that an anonymous donor has pledged a dollar-for-dollar match for every donation received through Dec. 1, 2017, up to $1 million. For more information about the museum or donations, call the campaign office at 302-644-0107.