Historic Delaware Period Homes | Historic Odessa Foundation

Collins-Sharp House viewed from 2nd street

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Upcoming Events

2025 Candlelight Tours

Christmas Event

December 2–30, 2025 | 6:00 to 7:30pm

You are invited to step back in time through the doors of the Historic Odessa Foundation and explore the Christmas traditions of yesteryear! Participants experience a special candlelight tour of our 2025 holiday exhibit. Additional Candlelight Tour dates include: December 4 - Reservations available...

HOF Participates in “Christmas in Odessa”

Christmas Event

December 6, 2025 | 10:00am

The first “Christmas in Odessa” took place 61 years ago as a fundraiser for the Women’s Club of Odessa. The purpose was to fund college scholarships for local high school seniors. With the help and cooperation of Odessa homeowners and the Historic Odessa Foundation, the Women’s Club of Odessa has...

By Reservation: Storybook Time (pre-K and Kindergarten)

Christmas Event

December 10, 2025 | 11:00am

Join HOF and the Corbit-Calloway Memorial Library as we read excerpts from this year’s Historic Odessa Foundation featured work of classic children’s literature. Children's Storytime in Odessa Then, explore scenes from the story brought to life in our annual holiday exhibit. Admission is free but...

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News Spotlight

Join Us for the First Annual Twinklefest

Kick off the holiday season in magical, old-fashioned style at the first-ever Twinklefest — a fun-filled, family-friendly celebration set in the heart of Historic Odessa. Enjoy a full day of holiday cheer, interactive exhibits, live entertainment, crafts, and festive treats for guests of all ages.

From the Collection

Platter

Historic Odessa Foundation, The David Wilson Mansion, Inc.

1835-1860

Welcome to our colonial village!

This tranquil hamlet of tree-lined streets and National Register historic homes was once a thriving grain shipping port and vital Mid-Atlantic transportation and trade hub of the 18th and 19th centuries.

At its economic height, Odessa, or Cantwell’s Bridge as it was originally named, shipped out hundreds of thousands of bushels of wheat and other goods annually from the banks of the Appoquinimink River. Locally grown and made products found their way to Philadelphia, down to the southern colonies, and across the Atlantic to Europe. The town’s slow decline came with the advent of the railroad in 1855, and America’s expansion westward.

By the early 20th century, Odessa was a mere shadow of its former prosperity. That is until 1938, when prominent Delaware preservationist H. Rodney Sharp (1880-1968) purchased Odessa’s Corbit mansion — today’s Corbit-Sharp House (c. 1774), a National Historic Landmark and National Park Service Network to Freedom site — beginning a three-decade-long, full-scale colonial revival of old Odessa and its architectural gems.

Mr. Sharp gave his beloved Corbit house to Winterthur Museum In 1958 and they operated the Odessa properties until 2003 when they were permanently closed.

In 2005, The Historic Odessa Foundation was incorporated continuing Sharp’s ground-breaking work, preserving and interpreting the past through tours, exhibitions and living history programs for children and adults.

I encourage you to use our website to plan your visit. Stroll our tree-lined streets. Tour our beautifully restored 18th and 19 century houses. Wander through picturesque gardens. Dine at the historic Cantwell’s Tavern.

And I invite you to consider becoming a Member of the Historic Odessa Foundation. Your Membership will entitle you to a full year of free and discounted opportunities including a 10% discount on food and beverages every time you dine.

Help us ensure that our educational programming and preservation initiatives continue to thrive and endure.

We look forward to seeing you on Main Street!

Debbie Buckson
Executive Director