On June 11, we joined county leaders, tourism partners, and cultural organizations at Newlin Grist Mill to mark a major milestone for our historical community: $650,000 in new funding that will carry our region's history programming well past this summer's celebrations. This investment is a true partnership, drawing on $198,147 from Pennsylvania's Local Share Grant, $205,309 from Delaware County itself, and $250,000 from Visit Delco. Combined, these dollars are going toward battlefield storytelling, restoring a piece of colonial-era infrastructure, and a full slate of programming across the county. Ten historic sites tied to the Brandywine Battlefield, among them Brandywine Baptist Church, the Brinton 1704 House, Chadds Ford Historical Society, Concord Friends Meeting, Newlin Grist Mill, Brinton's Run Preserve, Brandywine Battlefield Park, the Sanderson Museum, and Thornbury Township's Yellow House will get new signage and interactive kiosks. We're working to weave these individual locations into a single, cohesive visitor journey, setting the stage for the battlefield's 250th anniversary in September 2027. Our county's share of the funding is closing out renovations at Chester's 1724 Courthouse, the oldest public building still in continuous use in the nation! New storm windows, kitchen updates, and restored plaster and paintwork will bring the space back to life for community use, with a public reopening planned around a Declaration reading and ribbon-cutting on July 8. With Visit Delco's support, we're backing a wide mix of projects heading into fall. From Haverford's Illumination 250 Festival & Drone Show to programming from the Delco Historical Society, a campus tour initiative at Cheyney University, a new exhibit at Tyler Arboretum, the Bike the Pike trail celebration, heritage tourism internships, digital marketing, and our own Delco Time-Traveler's Outpost.
This isn't just about being ready for America's 250th, we're already there. What we're building now is meant to last well beyond it!