Historical Locations in Sussex County, DE
Source: The State of Delaware Archives

PILOT TOWN
Pilot Town is the section of the Hamlet of Concord where many free black families have lived in harmony with the white families since around 1765. It was so named for the many African-American pilots who lived in the area and piloted vessels down the Nanticoke River to Chesapeake Bay.
Two of the best known were Cann Laws and George Laws.
LOCATION: Concord. At junction of Road 20 East and Road 20A.


EPWORTH CEMETERY
On June 6, 1890, Benjamin Harrison Elliott and his wife, Sarah Ann Hastings Elliott, donated this land and building materials for the construction of Epworth Methodist Episcopal Church. They had previously donated land for the site of Sycamore Public School, which was located directly in front of this cemetery. Prior to the construction of the church, the congregation conducted services in the nearby school. Sycamore Public School was destroyed by fire on December 1, 1952, and thereafter, students were transferred to Laurel Public School.

The first trustees of the church and cemetery were Benjamin H. Elliott, Hiram B. Brittingham, Noah H. James, Handy Betts, Samuel B. West, John W. Brown, William H. Hastings, Gardner F. Elliott, and James W. Lowe. All trustees pledged for the land to be used for the ministry and membership of Epworth Methodist Episcopal Church. Following the church’s closing, the building was moved in 1983 to the Marvel Museum in Georgetown, where it was renovated and re-opened for public use.
LOCATION: South side of Sycamore Road, .5 miles East of intersection Sycamore Road and Beaver Dam Road


BETHANY UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
In the early part of the twentieth century, members of the Old Jones’ Methodist Church began to search for a more central location for the congregation to worship. Although the land for the new church was donated by Sarah C. Collins in 1914, construction of the building had already begun the previous year. Incorporated on March 5, 1914, the church was named Bethany Methodist Episcopal Church. The name was reportedly taken from the church attended by department store pioneer John Wanamaker, who had made a donation toward the completion of this church. Dedicated in June of 1914, the church added the community hall during the 1920’s.
LOCATION: Lowe’s Crossroads. Approximately .5 miles south of the intersection of Rt. 24 and 421.


GOSHEN CEMETERY
In 1801 funds were raised to support the building of a place of worship for local Methodists. On January 16, 1802, church trustees purchased land here “on a rising ground beautifully situated for that purpose.” A frame chapel was erected soon thereafter and given the name Goshen. The building remained in use until 1879, when a new church on Federal Street was completed. The old meeting house was sold the following year and moved to another location. Land where the building once stood became part of the cemetery.
On November 12, 1817, the trustees of the Milton Academy purchased land on the west side of the church lot on which to build a school. For many years the Academy enjoyed a distinguished reputation for scholastic excellence. It was closed circa 1880. In 1894 the Academy lot was conveyed to the Public School Commissioners of Milton. A two-story frame building was then constructed on the site. Milton’s first “high school” remained in use until 1933, when it was replaced by a new facility at another location.
Following the construction of the church a cemetery was established on the grounds. For many years it served as the chief burial place for the residents of the community. Growing concern about the maintenance of the property resulted in the formation of the Milton Cemetery Improvement Company in 1928. Responsibility for the cemetery was transferred to the corporation by the church. In 1966 the lot where the school buildings had stood was purchased for cemetery expansion. Notable burials include those of David Hazzard, Governor of Delaware 1830-1833, and James Ponder, Governor of Delaware 1871-1875.
Location: Milton. North side of Chestnut Street at intersection with Coulter Street.


JONES CEMETERY
By the 1840’s, a group of local Methodists were meeting nearby in Jones School. Desiring a permanent place of worship, the congregation built a church in 1857 at a site one-half mile west of here. In 1861, Jacob Jones and his wife, Love Melson Jones, set aside half an acre of land at this location to serve as a burial place for the members of Jones Methodist Episcopal Church. Their home was directly across the road. Declining attendance eventually led to the closing of the church, which was formally abandoned in 1956. The cemetery is maintained by the descendants of Jacob Jones.

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