UD students envision a new future for Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site

This spring, students from the University of Delaware are learning what it takes to develop plans for a historic site by spending time proposing ideas for the Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site near Newark.

The class was taught by Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs (HCA) Historic Sites Team Manager Daniel Citron and Engagement and Collections Manager Meg Hutchins. Students were tasked with creating content to share with the public explaining what they found to be the most impactful about their experience learning about the many changes happening at the site of Delaware’s only Revolutionary War-era land battle, which is also HCA’s newest historic site and on its way to becoming a publicly accessible museum site.

“We have enjoyed giving students this behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to develop and run a complex historic site like Cooch’s Bridge,” said Hutchins. “Using this site as a sandbox for students to learn and provide creative ideas will ultimately make our community, the museum field, our students and HCA better.”

The nine students participating in the class were both graduates and undergraduates studying art conservation, art history, history and other subjects.

This marks the second time recently that HCA has partnered with UD for an immersive learning experience at Cooch’s Bridge Historic Site. In spring 2022, a mix of graduate and undergraduate students turned Cooch’s Bridge into a living classroom.

Check back in the coming months to see what each of the students found interesting through this exercise at Cooch’s Bridge. Each article will be included in HCA’s monthly newsletter. To subscribe, go to history.delaware.gov/subscribe.