BERLIN – A Dagsboro native is using her love of history and genealogy to share stories of Sussex County traditions, industries, people and pastimes.
In Sandie Gerken’s new book, “Storied Sussex,” readers get a glimpse of Sussex County’s history through a compilation of 42 short essays.
“I’m not in it for the money,” she said.
“It has to do with my love of history. I think people should know the history of the area in which they live.”
Gerken said she developed a love for history and a passion for genealogy through local lore she learned as a child.
“My mother was interested in genealogy and we would take Sunday rides to graveyards looking for elusive ancestors’ graves …,” she said. “That’s how we absorbed Sussex County lore.”
Gerken said her first foray into writing began in 2013, when she wrote “Memories of the Clayton Theatre” as part of a fundraiser for Clayton Theatre’s conversion to digital projection. From there, Gerken began writing history articles for High Tide News.
“About that time, I met Judy Layman of Layman Enterprises,” she said. “She had started a newspaper called High Tide News and wanted ideas for history articles … I wrote for that newspaper for three years.”
Gerken said it was Layman who inspired and helped her to turn her history articles into a book.
Gerken said “Storied Sussex” includes essays on Zippy Lewis, a Delaware native who lived in a beach shack awaiting her husband’s return from sea, the legend of the Great Cypress Swamp monster, the building of DuPont Highway and the 1948 collapse of the Indian River Bridge, to name a few. She noted the book also includes a history of lost industries in Sussex County.
“I think Sussex County has a very storied past and there’s a lot more stories that I could tell,” she said.
Gerken said her knowledge of Sussex County’s history stemmed from years of genealogy research. Searching records for a distinctive human aspect or flavor is what she calls her “secret sauce.”
“When doing genealogy research, you have to research the area, land deeds and all these kinds of things,” she said.
“I collected so much history about different places and people in Sussex County that when I started writing these articles they were the bones of my stories.”
Gerken said she hopes her book will teach natives and newcomers of Sussex County’s past.
“My big hope is people reading my stories will want to read more about it,” she said.
Books are available online for $19.99, plus shipping and handling, and at local bookstores and various other locations in Sussex County.
For more information, or to purchase a copy of “Storied Sussex,” visit storiedsussex.com or the book’s Facebook page.
