The Best of Delaware Right from Home

As many of us are inside during these difficult times, here at Delaware Humanities we are finding solace in many of the great things our state has to offer from the comfort of our own homes. If you’re looking for new ways to pass the time, learn something new, and appreciate Delaware’s history and culture, check out these recommendations:

Borrow Books & Movies from the Delaware Libraries

While the New Castle County libraries are closed for the time being, that doesn’t mean your library card needs to go completely unused. With your Delaware library card, you have access to Libby, an app that grants free access to eBooks and audiobooks that you can borrow for 7-21 days. Books can be downloaded directly to your phone or tablet.

If you prefer a more traditional website format, we recommend Hoopla – a similar platform that offers not only eBooks and audiobooks, but movies and TV as well. Like Libby, simply sign up with your library card number and you can immediately start borrowing whatever you’re in the mood for . This is also a create resource for kids’ media, with plenty of children’s books, including picture books, to keep young ones entertained.

Take A Virtual Tour

Visit Delaware’s 360 virtual adventure will remind you of what it feels like to walk along Delaware’s famous beaches, bike ride through the forests, and enjoy the sunshine. Hopefully the beautiful imagery will help hold everyone over until we can all hit the beaches again. And if that’s not enough of a nature fix, take some time to check out the Upper Delaware Virtual Tours provided by the National Park Service. Although not technically in Delaware, the virtual hikes offer a woodsier outdoor feel.

Select museums around Delaware also offer virtual tours that you can access through their websites. Rockwood Park and Museum offers an auditory presentation on the history of the grounds with accompanying visuals like historic photographs and contemporary shots of the park.

Delaware Humanities’ exhibit “Nothing Less: Delaware, Women’s Suffrage, and Equal Rights” can now be viewed online.  Students may complete and submit a scavenger hunt for some DH prizes!

Watch a Delaware Documentary

Did you know Delaware Humanities has a YouTube channel? Now is an excellent time to check out some of our videos. We have full-length documentaries such as “A Legacy of Opportunity,” our film about DSU, Delaware’s only historically Black university. We’ve also added “First State, First Step: Delaware to the Moon,” one of the culminating projects from last year’s DEstination: Space programming! If you enjoyed learning about Delaware’s role in the moon landing, you’re sure to love this film.

You can also watch several Delaware-themed PBS specials for free online, including “Wilmington Siege: Moving Forward 50 Years Later” and “Preserving Our Water: How We Use the Delaware Watershed.” Or checkout the Delaware Art Museum’s channel for their 12-minute video “Wilmington 1986” for more history from the First State.