A couple Delaware "ghost towns"

[xzmattzx]

I dug into the back of the xzmattzx archives and found some photos that I meant to put up but never got around to. Alone, these two places didn't really warrant a thread of their own, so I never made threads. But I finally had the idea to combine the two places into one thread about ghost towns, or things that are kind of like ghost towns.

BRANDYWINE SPRINGS

Brandywine Springs was an amusement park that started out as simply a picnic area at the bottom of a wooded hill for patrons of the Brandywine Springs Hotel. The hotel thrived in the mid-1800's, and the picnic area was used to help lure even more visitors to the cool woodlands outside of Wilmington.

The picnic park evolved into an amusement park in 1886, when a boardwalk and a couple other small features like a pavilion and tennis courts were added. In 1890 a toboggan ride (a predecessor to roller coasters) was built, along with a small restaurant. In 1898, a trolley line for the Wilmington & Brandywine Springs Railway stopped at Brandywine Springs, bringing a large influx of visitors to the park. The trolley line started at 4th & Market Streets in Ship's Tavern, near downtown, and went up 4th Street, continued straight up Lancaster Avenue, then turned and followed what is now Kirkwood Highway to the Prices Corner area. The line then turned to the northwest and followed Red Clay Creek to Brandywine Springs.

The park peaked in popularity in the 1900's and 1910's due to the trolley line. Brandywine Springs started declining in 1920, due mainly to competition, such as Riverview Beach in Pennsville, NJ. By 1922, there were only a few rides. The park closed in 1923.

The remnants of the artificial lake, which is now just a swamp. A dance pavilion was on an island in the lake, and the island was accessible by paddleboats and rowboats. The wooden poles indicate the corners of the pavilion.



Some of the wall of a dam that held the water for the artificial lake.



Hyde Run, the creek that ran through the park.



Chalybeate Springs, a spring that was said to have healing powers. Indians would come from as far as Ohio to drink these waters, which were rich in iron and other minerals. Most people weren't healed by the springs; they simply got a bitter taste in their mouths.



Near the top left corner, yuo can see the foundation for the Roof Garden Theatre, which was also a boat house for the rowboats for the nearby lake.



The Pool Hall; the posts indicate the corners of the building.



Right next to the Pool Hall was Katzenjammer Castle, which was kind of like an obstacle course ride at modern carnivals and fairs. The foundation is still there.



The remnants of another spring, which was also used by patrons.



The foundations of the old carousel.







The remnants of an old bridge that crossed Hyde Run to give easy access to the roller skating rink.



The back of the park (now Brandywine Springs State Park) used to be the front of the park. At the front of the park was an archway that greeted visitors as they stepped off of the trolley. The slogan over the walkway read, "Let all who enter here, leave care behind." The wooden posts show where the archway once stood.



The foundations of the old dance pavilion.



The lake (the same one pictured at the top of the thread) is now just a swamp. The dance hall on the island is now where the trees i the background are.



A map of Brandywine Springs


GLENVILLE

Here's a real "modern-day ghost town": the neighborhood of Glenville, near Newport, Delaware.

Glenville was a typical first-ring suburb just west of Newport on State Route 4. Glenville is situated along Red Clay Creek, which runs behind some of the houses on the edge of the neighborhood.

To make a long story short, we got hit by Hurricane Floyd in 1999, and Tropical Storm Henri and Hurricane Isabel in 2003. These storms, as well as other storms, dropped as much as 10 inches of rain in 24 hours, and caused Red Clay Creek to have a depth of up to 26 feet at one time, way up from the normal 3 feet. After Henri and Isabel, New Castle County decided to buy out the back of the neighborhood and raze the houses and create a small park and floodplain so prevent more extensive damage.

I took these pictures as demolition was under way, in October 2005. Some abandoned houses were still standing at the time, and the foundations of all of the houses were there when I took the pictures.

[sargeantcm]

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

After Henri and Isabel, New Castle County decided to buy out the back of the neighborhood and raze the houses and create a small park and floodplain so prevent more extensive damage.

As sad as the story is for that particular town, I didn't think we did things like that in this country. Things that make sense in lessening the impact of future man-made (or exacerbated) disasters, that is.

The ghost towns are fascinating, much like the stuff that was posted about the ex-Alamaba capital of Cahaba in the USUI forum.

[Rick S]

Originally Posted by sargeantcm

As sad as the story is for that particular town, I didn't think we did things like that in this country. Things that make sense in lessening the impact of future man-made (or exacerbated) disasters, that is.

The ghost towns are fascinating, much like the stuff that was posted about the ex-Alamaba capital of Cahaba in the USUI forum.

Glenville is less than a mile away from my home. It is being made into a wildlife refuge now. I drove through it a few times before the government bought out the homeowners, but after they left. It was a TRUE ghost town.