Founded in May 1977, the Greater Harrington Historical Society is one of the oldest in Delaware. From our humble beginnings in an office, we have grown to now include 3 museum locations and we house over 50,000 artifacts, some dating back to the early 1700’s.
Our first museum is the original St Stephen’s Episcopal Church, located at 110 Fleming Street. It was built in 1876 and is one of the oldest structures still standing in the city. It was renovated in 1983, which included the re-installation of the original Rose Window, first purchased by the church in 1877, for a cost of $75.00. This museum houses artifacts from the Harrington High School, our military tribute, as well as, items from all our local churches and civic organizations.
The Pauline Satterfield Annex was built in 1987 and is located at 108 Fleming Street. Due to the society’s growing collection and need for office space, the members raised the needed funds to provide this much needed expansion. This building now houses business and houseware artifacts from the city and surround countryside. Items of interest in the Annex include; the store counter and soda fountain from Burton’s Sport Shop, a model of the town as it existed in the early 1900’s, a seed cabinet from Taylor’s Hardware, and a horse drawn funeral coach.
In 1993, the Greater Harrington Historical Society saved a local landmark from destruction and in the process preserved what has turned out to be one of the few structures of its type left on the DelMarVa Peninsula. The Railroad Tower and Caboose are located on Hanley Street, just two blocks from the main museum. The tower has been restored to its original operating condition and houses many items used during the heyday of trains in Harrington. Items include a watchman shack, a conductors uniform, and several examples of tools used to operate and maintain the railroad operations. Next to the tower is a restored Model N5 Caboose, which was built in 1926. The caboose houses items used during daily operations of the railroad and shows was a workers life would have been like while working for the Pennsylvania Railroad Corporation in the 1920’s and 1930’s.