'The Navy at Cape Henlopen: A Century of Service' set Dec. 6 at Rehoboth Library

Join the Rehoboth Beach Public Library at 6 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 6, for “The Navy at Cape Helopen: A Century of Service," presented by William H.J. Manthrope Jr.

This presentation commemorates the presence of the U.S. Navy on Cape Henlopen from 1898 to 1996. It highlights one aspect of Delaware’s maritime heritage, the little-known, but important role that naval activities on Cape Henlopen have played in national defense. The presentation recalls the principal U.S. Navy installations that were on the Cape and illustrates what the facilities looked like when they were operational and what the locations look like today. It describes how the organizations operated and pictures the equipment used and the daily life of the sailors.

Manthorpe graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1955, earned a masters degree from George Washington University and did further graduate work at American University and Harvard. He served 24 years as a naval intelligence officer, retiring as a captain. For another 16 years he served the Navy as a civilian senior executive in the office of the Chief of Naval Operations, retiring as the deputy director of naval intelligence.

Subsequently he was involved in strategic planning with Johns Hopkins University, attaining the rank of professor while lecturing in the graduate engineering management and ROTC curricula.

For the past 15 years he has been teaching a graduate level course in leadership and management as an adjunct professor at the Joint Military Intelligence College and at various intelligence agencies. Since relocating full-time to Rehoboth Beach he has also been researching, speaking and writing on Delaware’s naval history.

For additional information or to register for the program, call the library at 302-227-8044 or go to http://www.rehobothlibrary.org.