Vandalism of historic Black church is latest in problems Iron Hill residents have endured

Racial slurs scratched onto a historic Black church on Easter weekend are the latest in hateful vandalism that has plagued property owners in this Iron Hill community for the last several years.

For about four years, property owners along Whittaker Road said they've experienced everything from busted mailboxes to property damage to vandalism along the trails belonging to the adjacent Delaware Academy of Science , which operates the Iron Hill Science Center and Iron Hill Museum — a historic African American one-room school building.

"I was very disappointed to know that the vandalism has spread from just our property and the Whittaker Road area onto the historic area itself for African Americans," said Robin Broomall, the academy's president. "We, at the Delaware Academy of Science, have put up with minor vandalism, which has kind of escalated into more racial slurs in the past few months."

Racial slurs, along with calls for death and attempts to intimidate, were scratched onto the side of the church located at 1578 Whittaker Road just before Easter.

The damage comes as the FBI reports a 7% increase in hate crimes across the nation. According to the agency's latest hate crimes statistics, there were 11,634 cases in 2022, compared to 10,840 in the previous year — an increase of 794 incidents.

While there are few reported hate crimes in Delaware, FBI statistics show a 77% jump in 2022 from 2021. There were 16 reported incidents in 2022 , compared to 9 in the previous year.

Destruction or vandalism of property was the most common offense in Delaware. These reported crimes include:

• eight incidents that were anti-Black
• three anti-Jewish incidents
• two reported anti-gay incidents

There were also incidents against Asians; people of other races, ethnicity or ancestry; and against multiple religions. Each of these three categories reported an incident.

"Unfortunately, it's a byproduct of our society," said Freeman Williams, president of the Newark NAACP. "Those kinds of things have escalated. Unfortunately, it's right in step with a lot of things in our community."

People are feeling emboldened and display those types of behaviors, said Williams, adding that what is most concerning about this is a church has now been targeted.

Williams said the NAACP has been aware of these incidents in the area and has been in contact with Delaware State Police and New Castle County Police to end it, not only at St. Daniel's Community Church of Iron Hill, but also in the nearby community.

"There's obviously a level of frustration that will continue to happen until the perpetrator or perpetrators are identified and are dealt with in the legal system," he said.

State and county police said they have been investigating the incidents and asked people with information to contact them.

County police can be reached by contacting Detective Holubinka at (302) 395-8110 or adam.holubinka@newcastlede.gov . State police Sgt. A. Zickgraf can be reached (302) 365-8437.

The departments also encourage people to call 911 if they see any suspicious activity.

'I want like crazy to catch this guy'

With an elevation peaking at 328 feet, Iron Hill is arguably Delaware's most prominent peak. Tens of thousands of motorists see it daily as they leave or enter the western part of the state on I-95. The hill, covered in a dense forest and winding trails, includes a county park, a disc golf course and a historic look into mining history.

But for the last four years, residents living along the southern portion of Whittaker Road, have had to put up with ongoing vandalism. This includes someone going through their mailboxes, removing parcels and dumping them along the road.

The vandal has also taken down residents' mailboxes and caused damage to residential property.

"He's come up and trashed my place, but then I put up expensive cameras and kept him at bay," said Whit Knopf, an active community member who watches over the southern end of Whittaker Road. "After I got those up, he hasn't penetrated my property again, but I wouldn't put it past him.

"At any point, if I make him mad enough, he'll probably be back. That would be my guess."

Knopf, who has lived on Whittaker Road since 2006, said it's not always been like this. But the ongoing vandalism —which now has escalated to use racial slurs — is leaving him and others beyond frustrated.

"This is my last house I'm living in," he said. "I'm not going anywhere else. So I'm stuck with this problem, but you know, it gets old after three, almost four years.

"I want like crazy to catch this guy," he added.

Damage to historic trails

Not far from Whittaker Road are a series of trails and sites with meaningful history, including links to African American miners and farm workers, as well as their descendants, who lived in the area and attended a one-room school funded by Pierre S. du Pont.

Knopf, a Delaware Academy of Science volunteer, pointed out the damage while walking along some of the trails on a brisk April weekend. There are trail signs that have been pulled out, some with racial slurs carved into them. In another area, one can see a wooden bridge with derogatory remarks carved into it.

"It's just that it gets worse and worse, the racial content," Knopf said.

There were also, what appeared to be recent carvings in a pair of trees threatening Knopf: "FU Knof DIE," the carvings said misspelling his last name.

"I have to be concerned at some level," Knopf said of the carvings aimed at him. "He's done plenty of damage to my own residential property over the years  — far more than any other address on Whittaker Road certainly. The implicit threat in that can't be ignored.

"I also have to think of my wife Adele. She hasn't been threatened by name, but what's to stop that?"

Both state and county police have been made aware of these markings.

About the only thing that seemed untouched along the trails was a sign explaining how Delaware was a border state during the Civil War.

Broomall, the academy's president, said it's demoralizing to see the volunteers' hard work destroyed. She added that it costs them a lot of time, energy and money to repair or replace signs that have been vandalized.

"We don't have a budget item for replacing vandalized signs and cleaning signs and cleaning off racial slurs from the back of the school building," she said, "We are a small nonprofit and have to put out the extra money for this —most of it is coming out of our volunteers' pockets."

Attack on St. Daniels an escalation of the problem

Knopf said he wishes more people were as angry as he was, especially after the vandal damaged St. Daniel's Community Church of Iron Hill on Easter Weekend.

More: A historic Black church in Iron Hill was vandalized over the Easter weekend

The vandalism was discovered one day before the congregation was to celebrate Easter services forcing them to relocate to another church for safety issues.

The damages to the church remain on the structure, which was constructed between 1852 and 1856, and is the oldest known surviving free Black church in northern Delaware that was built as part of Peter Spencer’s African Union Church movement.

That's because the damaged slate contains asbestos and they need to figure out how to remedy this, St. Daniels Pastor Joseph E. Field III said.

Field said no one has been charged in connection with the vandalism, but said they have received offers to help them from local businesses and lawmakers. Field said he isn't focused on future threats.

"I don't want to think in that direction," he said.

But Knopf said he was concerned at what could come next.

"I'm concerned that since he's hit St. Daniels once, they're a sitting duck," he said. "I don't know how to protect them."

Send tips or story ideas to Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299 or eparra@delawareonline.com .

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Vandalism of historic Black church is latest in problems Iron Hill residents have endured