Restoration moves forward at historic Wiltbank Cemetery
The restoration of the historic John Wiltbank family cemetery outside Lewes is moving forward after completion of a delineation survey.
The Greater Lewes Foundation hired archaeologist Ed Otter to mark the boundaries of the burial ground ahead of the installation of a fence enclosure.
Otter said in his report that there are 12 known individuals interred in the cemetery, based on the inscribed headstones. He said he identified two unmarked burials during the delineation.
Otter said it appears the cemetery was active between 1791 and 1830.
Otter’s study did not include a complete search of the archival record, as much of the property and Wiltbank genealogy has already been researched.
The cemetery is located on New Road, outside Lewes city limits, on a 23.5-acre parcel owned by Karen Truitt.
Earlier this year, Truitt said that there were 14 people buried on the site, 12 of them Wiltbank family descendants.
The Wiltbank family was the longest-tenured owners of the Fourth Street Preserve in Lewes, more than 140 years.
GLF raised $8 million to buy the 30-acre parcel from the Rollins family and transfer ownership to the City of Lewes. The preserve will remain as open space in perpetuity.
Mike Rawl, GLF executive director, said the Daughters of the American Revolution Col. David Hall Chapter will be taking over the restoration project and make it an official part of the Lewes 250 celebration.
Rawl said the next steps will be clearing the brush, smoothing out the ground, having a professional stone conservator repair broken and unstable headstones, and installing a historically appropriate fence.
Otter’s report said the area with marked graves measures 20-by-20-feet. He said he staked out an area about 10 feet outside that space for the fence and said installation would not disturb any human remains.
DAR volunteers will clean the headstones after they are repaired. The DAR has also applied for a state historic marker for the cemetery. A rededication ceremony is planned for the spring. Rawl said he expects some Wiltbank ancestors will attend the event.
Bill Shull has been covering Lewes for the Cape Gazette since 2023. He comes to the world of print journalism after 40 years in TV news. Bill has worked in his hometown of Philadelphia, as well as Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He came to Lewes in 2014 to help launch WRDE-TV. Bill served as WRDE’s news director for more than eight years, working in Lewes and Milton. He is a 1986 graduate of Penn State University. Bill is an avid aviation and wildlife photographer, and a big Penn State football, Eagles, Phillies and PGA Tour golf fan. Bill, his wife Jill and their rescue cat, Lucky, live in Rehoboth Beach.
