Opportunities From: Delaware State Parks

Help recreate a bustling 18th century market!

To celebrate First State Heritage Park’s 20th anniversary, 18th Century Market Fair is now the Delaware Heritage Festival!

Join staff at the First State Heritage Park for the inaugural Delaware Heritage Festival! From 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on the historic Dover Green volunteers will be working alongside, performs, vendors, and volunteer groups passionate about history to help create a fantastic, fun, and family-friendly event!

Experience is welcome but not required! We welcome volunteers who can assist throughout the weekend with setup, event implementation, and breakdown!

Event volunteers can expect to:

Chair attendance tables at entryways into the event in shiftsCount visitorsHand out information and act as a point of contact for visitorsOffer Colonial-era costumed interpretation

Accessibility: Opportunities at attendance tables do not require heavy lifting, walking, or standing and are accessible to volunteers with ADA limitations.

Parking: Available at the Johnson Victrola Museum or along the street near Rose Cottage. Upon arrival, please check in at the table along State Street.

Volunteers can respond to this opportunity individually and we will be in touch with more information closer to the date. We are grateful for all of our volunteers who help us create a welcoming atmosphere at our park!

To discover more about the event, please visit the Homepage: https://www.destateparks.com/delaware-heritage-festival

Help preserve history!

Interested in history? Have a passion for historical research? Looking for an opportunity to see Delaware records that are over 200 years old?

Help First State Heritage Park staff transcribe historical records pertaining to historic Dover, DE, for better readability and searchability! Research is an integral part of historical sites, and the transcription of records from the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries helps tell the stories of historic Dover. Play an important part in the preservation of Dover's history and help interpret it for the park!

Duties include:

Reading deeds, probates, diaries, letters, manuscripts, and bills of lading, among other historical recordsIn Microsoft Word, typing word-for-word what is written in those documents.

Volunteers work at their own pace.

This opportunity may be done remotely.

Skills include:

Required: very strong organization, communication Required: proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel Preferred: experience in genealogy research

First State Heritage Park welcomes work, school, and other small groups interested in scheduling a service project for their teams, classes, etc.

A small-group service project is a great way to provide your organization with an opportunity:

To give back to the community or to learn about the value of service. To promote team building or collaboration. To embrace a new challenge together or to step outside a comfort zone in a safe, fun social setting. To learn about Delaware State Parks operations and to see the impact of the group’s service. To take a break from the office, warehouse, classroom, etc., and enjoy the great outdoors. To accumulate service hours collectively.

The types of service projects available to small groups are often event-related and may be based on seasonal needs at First State Heritage Park. Service projects for school groups may prioritize educational value and are intended to be age-appropriate.

Types of service projects available to small groups include:

Setup and/or breakdown of citywide and park events, such as Old Dover Days and Colonial Market Fair Maintenance of the colonial, enslaved, and/or indigenous gardens at the John Bell House

Coordinators for group service projects may RESPOND AS TEAM to this opportunity and ask about scheduling a date and time that is compatible with the group’s schedule. (Coordinators are also welcome to RESPOND AS TEAM to a scheduled service project if there are enough available shifts.)

Featured is the First State Club, an award-winning Milford High School club for students interested in the storied history of Delaware. The First State Club has been instrumental in in supporting park staff for events, trades, planning, and more.

Note: The project site’s address may differ from the park’s address or the John Bell House's and will be provided during scheduling.

Become a part of history at the John Bell House!

First State Heritage Park welcomes volunteers to bring the history of the John Bell House to life as interpreters! You can help visitors really feel like they are walking into a house from the 18th Century.

Experience and knowledge are welcome, but not required. All you need is an eagerness to learn and a passion for local and regional history! We’d love to see you there!

As a volunteer interpreter, you can:

Dress in colonial era reproduction clothingLearn about and perform the daily chores and trades necessary for the upkeep of a modest colonial household, such as laundry and yarn-makingCare for and maintain the park’s three vegetable and herb gardens, including the Colonial Garden, Enslaved Person’s Garden, and Indigenous GardenGreet and welcome visitors to the John Bell HouseGive visitors tours of the park after providing park staff with an initial test tour

The John Bell House at First State Heritage Park was built in the mid-1700s and offers a glimpse into the everyday life of Dover’s earliest days. Learn about marching Revolutionaries, Freedom Seekers, Suffragists, and more, and bring their stories to life! 

This is a great opportunity for anyone interested in local history, storytelling, and programming. We are grateful for all of our volunteers who help us create a welcoming atmosphere at our park!

First State Heritage Park welcomes Girl Scouts who are pursuing a Gold Award and Boy Scouts who are pursuing the Eagle Rank!

Delaware State Parks appreciates the long history of Scouts’ service and is familiar with the processes to achieve such Scout honors. The park may identify potential service projects that would satisfy the requirements of a Girl Scout Gold Award or an Eagle Scout Service Project. Scouts are also welcome to submit proposals for service projects to the park.

Requirements:

Contact First State Heritage Park about your interest in completing a project in service of the park. A simple way to do that: Contact Delaware State Parks. In the form: Select "First State Heritage Park at Dover." Select "Volunteering or campground hosting." Provide your email address (required) and phone number (optional). Describe your interest in doing a project for the park and provide details about your project, including the deadline and/or anticipated completion date. Meet and/or discuss project proposals, plans, etc., with park personnel. Receive approval of your project, plans, amendments, revisions, etc., from the Superintendent. Complete the project by the required deadline.

Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts who enjoy visiting First State Heritage Park, are passionate about history and preservation, and/or are passionate about supporting Delaware State Parks’ mission are excellent candidates to complete a service project at the park for a Girl Scout Gold Award or the Boy Scout Eagle Rank!