The Newark Post and Delaware Online both covered our celebration of Juneteenth this year.

We’re excited that June will mark the third anniversary of the Friends of Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site and are celebrating with three extraordinary events you won’t want to miss:

1. Historic home tours, Saturday, June 3, 9 am – 2 pm. You’ll have the rare chance to tour two stories of the Cooch Family Home, guided by experts from Delaware’s Division of Historic and Cultural Affairs (HCA). You’ll learn about the people who lived and worked for over two centuries in the home and the roles they played in the local community. By special arrangement with HCA, the free guided Occupying Cooch’s Bridge tours are available only to Founding Friends and require timed tickets. Go here to get your ticket.                                                                                                                                     
2. Inaugural Bridge Builders Dinner and Lecture, Saturday, June 3, 6:30 – 8:30 pm. Enjoy great food and fellowship at La Casa Pasta and hear historian Wade Catts describe in detail his fresh archaeological finds at Cooch’s Bridge and the Red Bank Battlefield in New Jersey (the latter the subject of recent news stories nationwide). It’s a fun and history-filled evening you won’t forget! Tickets are $65 and must be bought in advance. Go here to purchase yours. 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
3. Concert by The Govatos Quartet, Sunday, June 4, 3 – 6 pm. Delight in the mastery of The Govatos Quartet, comprising four members of the Philadelphia Orchestra. The afternoon’s program will feature the world premiere of Cooch’s Bridge: The Family, a composition by the prominent Delaware musician Jonathan W. Whitney inspired by the history and culture of Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site. The concert takes place at the Blue Ball Barn in Wilmington. A pre-concert talk by Mr. Whitney will begin at 2:30 pm. A $20 donation is suggested. Go here to register.

In only three short years, the Friends of Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site has grown to become an acknowledged pro-preservation voice in Delaware—all thanks to your involvement and generous support.

We hope you’ll join us to celebrate our successes on our third anniversary and look forward to seeing you.

Join historical interpreters for an introductory program on the history of the Cooch’s Bridge homestead. Learn about the individuals who lived on the property, how they shaped the land around them, and how the location’s landscape contributed to national history.

Tours will take place at 10 am and 1 pm on the following dates: March 25, April 29, May 27, June 24, July 29, August 26, September 30 and October 28. Admission is free, but reservations are required. Go to https://tinyurl.com/coochhomesteadtour or call 302-922-7116.

#DoMore24 is coming in March. It’s a great way to stretch your gift to the Friends of Cooch’s Bridge, because donations are matched from an immense statewide pool of funds.

Sign up now to receive an email reminder to donate. Visit https://www.domore24delaware.org/events/166/remind_me

Delaware Public Media’s Kyle McKinnon recently interviewed site supervisor Kaitlyn Dykes about the state’ plans for the site. Go here to listen.

“Lightning in a Bottle,” released on streaming platforms today by coauthors John Faye and Sug Daniels, was inspired by their recent visit to Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site.

Go here to listen to the new song.

The two Philly artists, although a generation apart, share Delaware roots, and found their visit to Cooch’s Bridge brought home the fact that they owe so much of their personal identities to the state’s long-ago past.

“We realized that the space has a storied and complex history, one that at first glance doesn’t relate to either of us,” Faye said. “But it made us realize that drawing perspective and inspiration from standing on hallowed ground allows us to find our own place in that history.”

“The longer my music career spans the more I find I’m a part of a larger experience,” Daniels added.

“Writing this song with John felt like we were honoring those who came before us and communing with those to follow.”

The Friends are pleased to announce Tastes of Cooch’s Bridge, Sunday, October 23, 6-9 pm at Buena Vista in New Castle. Dinner co-chairs Ashley Cloud and David Young invite you to an extraordinary evening of dining, fun, and fellowship—all for an urgent purpose.

Experience the culinary magic of Chef Lion Gardner…

Delaware’s own Chef Lion Gardner will prepare a six-course dinner featuring his unique interpretation of the foods consumed by the generations who’ve peopled Cooch’s Bridge. You’ll experience Chef Gardner’s fresh take on the cuisine of the Lanape, the African Americans, the European Colonials, the American Revolutionaries, and the families who followed.

While you fund urgently needed research.

Your ticket to Tastes of Cooch’s Bridge in part will fund an urgently needed internship program. As site supervisor Kaitlyn Dykes explains, interns are needed now to assure that good documentary and archeological evidence is amassed before Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site is opened to the public.

“We’re in a foundational phase,” she says. “Interns are needed to help build the foundation for our interpretation of the site—the superstructure that sits on top of the evidentiary foundation. Interns are essential to the strong foundation of research on which our interpretation will rely. We can’t do without them.”

Dine well. Do good. Purchase tickets now!

Tickets to Tastes of Cooch’s Bridge are $150 each. Go here, to purchase yours now. Don’t delay because seating is strictly limited.

We look forward to seeing you at this tasty and important celebration!