Rehoboth history lecture to spotlight Townsends and Lingos Aug. 19

The Rehoboth Beach Museum will present local historian Paul Lovett at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 19, at the Boardwalk Plaza Hotel for a lecture about “Prominent Families of Railroad Era Rehoboth: Townsends and Lingos.”

Two canneries were built side by side along the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal in the mid-1910s; one was established by the Townsend family and one by the Lingo family. The factories would employ hundreds of itinerant and local West Rehoboth residents over the next 40 years. The canneries were served both by the railroad and by boat through the canal.

In the early 1900s, both families were active in Delaware politics. Befriending the du Pont family, John G. Townsend Jr. built a conglomerate empire of businesses that was a major factor in the development of Sussex County. He gained national prominence serving as Delaware governor (1917-21) and as a U.S. senator for Delaware, and as a participant in the founding of the United Nations.

John A. Lingo Sr. operated a mercantile business from his Dagsboro home in the late 1880s and was elected to serve as Delaware state auditor. In 1899, he decided to build a large, elegant hotel and retail establishment in Rehoboth. A part of that business would remain a Rehoboth fixture for over 120 years, finally closing in 2022. After a distinguished career in the Air Force, John A. Lingo’s grandson, John “Jack” Lingo, founded the Jack Lingo Realtor company in 1974.

Although the two families developed quite differently, they would eventually wind up linked together as a big part of the Southern Delaware real estate business, helping to build the sense of prestige that the Southern Delaware region enjoys today.

Lovett will present photographs and a compelling history on these two families who were so prominent in Rehoboth Beach and Sussex County development. For tickets and more information, go to tinyurl.com/3zrdkpad.

This event is presented by the Rehoboth Beach Historical Society and Museum. The museum is located at 511 Rehoboth Ave. and is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., weekdays (except Wednesdays) and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. Learn more at rehobothbeachmuseum.org.