THE CITY MAYOR SILLS STATUE DEDICATED
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ayor Purzycki joined the dedication ceremony honoring former Mayor James H. Sills Jr., the first African American elected Mayor of Wilmington who served from 1993 until 2001. Former Mayor Sills was joined by friends, family members, elected official, and other well-wishers in Brandywine Park on Saturday, April 30, where a new statue of his likeness was unveiled at the foot of the bridge that also bears his name.
KALMAR NYCKEL CELEBRATES 25 YEARS
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Mayor Purzycki helps celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Delaware’s tall ship, the Kalmar Nyckel in April. “It was magical,” said the Mayor, recalling watching the ship launch in 1997 as head of the Riverfront Development Corp. The Mayor also proclaimed April 22 as Kalmar Nyckel Tall Ship of Delaware Day in Wilmington. Photos: Jan Ross/Kalmar Nyckel Foundation
52 JUNE 2022 | OUTANDABOUTNOW.COM
n 1637, an expedition of the New Sweden Co. led by Peter Minuit and consisting of two ships, including the Kalmar Nyckel, left Gothenburg, Sweden, to establish a colony in the Delaware River Valley. It anchored in March 1638 off “The Rocks” on the Christina River, and, when spring arrived, the colonists built Fort Christina — the first settlement of New Sweden. Three hundred and eighty-five years later the replica Kalmar Nyckel, first launched in Wilmington on September 28, 1997, is the official Tall Ship of Delaware and an ambassador for the City of Wilmington while serving as a floating classroom and inspirational platform offering educational programs that reach more than 30,000 people each year.
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