Built in 1851, Rockwood Museum in Wilmington, Del., was planned as a retirement home for wealthy merchant banker Joseph Shipley. In 1892 the estate passed to the family of Edward Bringhurst Jr., a branch of the Shipley family, and today Rockwood reflects the lifestyles of the Bringhursts. The rural Gothic mansion and its surrounding 70 acres constitute one of Delaware's most interesting estates, offering visitors a picture of America's Victorian age.
Rockwood Museum will celebrate its Irish connections in March. Ireland became the adopted country of the eldest Bringhurst daughter, who married an Irishman, and went to live in his castle. Many of the servants she hired were sent over to work for her parents at Rockwood, and a St. Patrick's Day party at the estate in 1899 made society page headlines in the Wilmington papers. All month, the mansion will be decorated for a St. Patrick's Day party, much like the one in 1899.
In addition, Rockwood is sponsoring an Irish Film Festival March 3, March 10, March 24 and March 31. Rare Irish films will be shown along with some well-known ones. After each screening there will be a discussion by authorities on Irish culture and films. They will compare the way in which Irish people and culture are depicted by Irish film directors and non-Irish directors. Screenings will be held at 6 p.m. at Arsht Hall, in the Goodstay Center of the University of Delaware's Wilmington campus. Films include "The Informer," "The Woman Who Married Clark Gable," and "Into the West."
Rockwood will also hold Irish teas March 18-19, featuring Irish music and poetry. Seatings each day will be at noon and 2:30 p.m. The $12 fee includes tea sandwiches, scones and sweets. Reservations are required.
The mansion is open Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and, beginning March 5, Sundays as well. Admission is $5 for adults; $4 for seniors; $2 for children ages 5 to 16; free for under 5. Rockwood is at 610 Shipley Road in Wilmington. For information, call (302) 761-4340.
Winter celebration
Three days of outdoor fun are planned next weekend at Wisp Ski Resort in McHenry. Winterfest, the annual celebration of winter in Garrett County, offers events for the whole family, including non-skiers.
Festivities begin Friday with the Pro Am Dual Slalom at 1:30 p.m., followed by the popular Bartenders Race. Live entertainment is scheduled Friday and Saturday evenings beginning at 9 p.m. in the Gathering.
Saturday starts with the Junior NASTAR race for skiers under 18. Other events include the fifth annual March Madness Winter Golf Tournament, which raises funds for charity and is played in any kind of weather; turtle races for all ages, in which participants race down the slope wearing trash bags; a chili cook-off, and a snowboard competition. Visitors can also enjoy live entertainment, outdoor refreshments and winter volleyball from noon to 4 p.m Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's festivities conclude at 10 p.m. with a procession of skiers carrying torches down the mountainside as fireworks burst overhead.
Sunday activities include a team race for ski-shop employees, peewee races for children under age 10, a mogul contest for expert skiers, a tug of war and the annual Winter WaterCross. The final event is the traditional costume parade and contest at 3:30 p.m. Sunday. Most events are open to the public. Many are free, but some have a registration fee for participants. Call (301) 387-4911.
Women's History Month
In recognition of National Women's History Month in March, many sites in Virginia will feature programs about women.
Martha Washington will be the focus of programs in Colonial Williamsburg. As wife of the first president, Martha was much-admired throughout the country. When she died in 1802, one of her silk damask gowns was cut into small pieces and distributed to members of her family as a remembrance. A
swatch of that same dress is part of an exhibit at the DeWitt Wallace Gallery in Williamsburg, along with other objects that relate to George and Martha Washington.
Dramatic portrayals of Martha Washington as a bride and as a widow are offered during daily history walks in the Historic Area. These hourlong walks are held three times a day during March. In addition there will be lectures and panel discussions covering such topics as women who influenced Martha and how she was depicted in paintings. These presentations will take place in the DeWitt Wallace Gallery's Hennage Auditorium with admission by Colonial Williamsburg Good Neighbor Pass, Patriot Pass or museum ticket. Call (804) 220-7435 or (800) HISTORY.
On the four Tuesdays in March, women's history programs will be presented at the Museum of Frontier Culture in Staunton, Va. The first lecture (March 7) examines the experiences of a white schoolteacher from Massachusetts who went to Charlottesville, Va., after the Civil War to teach freedmen. On March 14 the topic will be farm women of the Shenandoah Valley during the middle of the 19th century -- their relationships with men and with each other, childbearing, religious and health issues. Lives of girls from upper middle class families in Augusta County, Va., will be compared to those in Louisa May Alcott's book "Little Women" March 21. The final presentation, March 28, offers information on the suffrage movement in the South and the final years of that struggle. All programs take place at 7:30 p.m., and admission is free. Call (703) 332-7850.
Fort Ward Museum and Historic Site at 4301 W. Braddock Road in Alexandria, Va., offers a series of lectures on women of the Civil War. Topics include: women soldiers March 11; women nurses March 18 and notable black women March 25. All lectures will be held at 10 a.m. in the museum library. There is a suggested donation of $3 per lecture, and reservations are required. Call (703) 838-4848.