The Caesar Rodney Chapter

Biography of our Namesake: Caesar Rodney was one of Delaware's three delegates to the Second Continental Congress. He was in Dover when the crucial vote for independence was brought up, and when he heard that Delaware's other two delegates were divided on the issue, he traveled from Dover to Philadelphia overnight through a thunderstorm on July 1-2, 1776, so that he could cast a tie-breaking vote and make the state-by-state vote for Independence unanimous. Rodney was named brigadier general of the Kent County militia in 1776 and major general of the Delaware militia in 1777. He relinquished his military post when elected president [governor] of Delaware in 1778 and had a distinguished career in government. He died June 28, 1784, after a 15-year bout with facial cancer and was buried in a grave on his farm, Poplar Grove. The grave was not well marked, and several searches for it were unsuccessful. In 1889 remains thought to be his were moved to the Christ Church graveyard in Dover and interred under a monument, but further study indicated the remains were not his.

History of the Chapter: In October 1994 Jack Lewis -- a newly-inducted member -- was elected Vice President for Kent County and asked to form an SAR chapter in Dover. Using the list of members-at-large from Kent County and responses from notices placed in area papers, he developed a mailing list of about forty men in the community. On 12 November 1995 a petition to form an SAR chapter in Kent County, Delaware, was presented to the DESSAR Board of Managers, and on 16 January 1996 an organizational meeting was held at the Dover Library to establish the chapter. The group decided that the most appropriate name for the chapter would be Caesar Rodney, in honor of the most famous Kent County Revolutionary War hero.

The chapter has grown to over forty members and meets for luncheons at a local Restaurant. The chapter also observes Independence Day with a special ceremony at the Caesar Rodney monument which is located in the churchyard of Christ Episcopal Church.

Awards Presented: Flag Certificates have been presented each year. Each year we contact three high schools for submission of essays for the Knight Historical Essay Contest. Each year we present JROTC medals at four high schools: Capital, Caesar Rodney, Smyrna, Poly Tech. Each year we present one Eagle Scout Essay Award award.

Commemorations: Each year we present a wreath at the Veteran's Memorial in Dover at the Memorial Day ceremony.

Special Commemoration of George Washington: In February of 1999 the Caesar Rodney Chapter joined the year-long celebration of the life and death of George Washington in the 200th year of his death. The Chapter joined the Mt. Vernon Ladies Society by becoming a George Washington Community. We purchased two sets of elementary and high school books about George Washington's life to present to the Capital and Caesar Rodney Elementary and High Schools of Dover. Besides these 12 volumes, the Chapter purchased four CDROM databases for the schools and two complete band scores of the "George Washington March" for the two high school bands. We will also buy and plant a flowering weeping cherry tree in the Legislative mall area.