After renovation the school building had seven recessed areas where windows were removed. Claire heeded their call for mosaic insets. In conjunction with the local township’s 325th anniversary David Woods, 5th grade teacher, and Claire chose the theme and the specific imagery. The 5th grade students researched history, enlarged scale drawings, and rolled, cut, and glazed clay tile.
The panels are:
Linvilla Orchards: Famous for its octagonal barn (that burned in 2002) the orchard has provided fresh produce and entertainment since 1914.
Lenni Lenape: This design is lifted from the patch of the Nanticote Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation, a group made up of American Indians who remain in their local, ancestral homeland.
Tyler Arboretum: A working farm until 1944 when it was established as an arboretum, Tyler began as the private collection of two brothers, Jacob and Minshall painter.
The Mills: Middletown township is bordered by Chester Creek and Ridley Creek and filled with their tributaries. Mills dotted the township and were an important part of the development of the area in the 1800’s.
Man O’War: Samuel D. Riddle of Delaware County, PA owned this famous thoroughbred race horse.
Middletown Presbyterian Church: The oldest Presbyterian Church in Delaware County.
Wawa Dairy: Now owning hundreds of convenience stores the Dairy was begun in 1890 by George Wood and named for its location in Wawa, PA which in turn is derived from the Ojibwe word for Canada Goose (taken from Longfellow’s poem, “Song of Hiawatha”).
Indian Lane Elementary School, Media, PA
each panel 5’6″ x 2’6″
Claire Brill 484-326-6315 clairebrill@verizon.net