Mary Alice Reporting –
The Ernest Warther Museum and Gardens is now officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Dover museum was granted this designation at the state and national level by the National Park Service, explains museum Director Kristen Harmon.
She notes that the honor came at a significant anniversary.
“It was right around the 50-year mark of Mooney Warther’s passing. That same day is also the anniversary of our building opening. The original museum opened in 1936 but the museum that everyone knows it today opened June 8, 1963 and then Mooney passed exactly ten years later.”
To be approved for this distinction, Harmon notes that it was a long process.
“I wrote about an 80 page paper and I worked with the members of the state preservation office, who guided me and helped me make sure that we were meeting what the National Park Service looks for.”
A plaque will eventually be placed at the museum. Harmon adds that being on the register could aid them in the event any future restoration is need, such as the slate roof on the Warther home.
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