Woodland Ferry keeps history alive

For nearly three centuries the Woodland Ferry has connected the north and south sides of the Nanticoke River near Seaford and Laurel.

A lot can fit into that 500-foot trip across the river.

There are, of course, the six vehicles that can fit on the ferry, but if you stop and take a deep breath you'll see much more.

There is life in the river, beavers and otters swimming near docks on the shore. There is life in the air, great blue herons swooping over the river and ospreys diving for fish.

But more important than all that, there are people in the cars traveling across the river. Terry Downing has worked as a mate on the ferry for 19 years, opening the gates for drivers, securing their vehicles and shutting the gates behind them. It's repeated with each crossing. Back and forth, back and forth, 70,000 vehicles a year.

In that time he has connected with the people riding the ferry, and through those connections he has volunteered in the community, for various charity walks and as a fireman with the Seaford Volunteer Fire Department. That is what sticks out to him in his nearly two decades of working on the water.

"I like to be around people, good people," Downing said.

And he doesn't get tired of the view either.

The Woodland Ferry is one of the oldest continuously running ferries in the country. It has been in service since 1743, at first a rudimentary service to transport people, horses and carts from shore to shore. Today the ferry is a 65-foot vessel driven along a cable with two thrusters, far more powerful than the old-fashioned days.

It's actually more affordable to use the ferry today than it would have been in the late-1700s– back then it cost 5 cents a person to cross, and 30 cents for a carriage, while today the ferry is a free service operated by the Delaware Department of Transportation.

A few years ago there were issues with the latest ferry boat, the Tina Fallon, and the service was closed for a few years. After that, it was hard to muster up excitement over an annual festival to celebrate the ferry – that's when Don Allen and his wife Laura got involved.

They promote the ferry as members of the Woodland Ferry Association. To them, it is a piece of history worth preserving, that also helps keep the area rural, where as a bridge might increase traffic.

The couple has lived one and six-tenths of a mile north of the ferry for more than three decades. Don Allen grew up just north of the ferry in Reliance, and remembers taking the ferry when he was younger as a short-cut to get to Salisbury. Laura Allen remembers thinking the ferry was quaint when she first saw it.

"It was something unique,” she said. “It's a time-saver. I love the river, I’m a nature lover, so the chance to see eagles or osprey or blue herons, such as that. It just gives a sense of peace to me.”

And it is something that leaves a lasting impression on the travelers passing through, Don Allen said. In the past the association has fielded requests for ferry prints or ornaments from people across the country.

“It has that kind of an impact on people, and that’s important too," Don Allen said.

The ferry is a piece of the Nanticoke Heritage Byway, a route for visitors interested in exploring the region's history.

The ferry has always been cable-operated, meaning it runs along a cable which rests on the river bed when not in use.

"It is keeping us from getting swept away in the current, it just guides us along," Captain Donald Deputy said.

Thruster tubes on each side of the ferry propel it from one side of the river to the other.

When the ferry switched from a three-car capacity to a six-car capacity, there was a slight concern in town about the added traffic, according to Don Allen. That concern, keeping the town rural, may be one reason the ferry has never been replaced with a bridge. According to Jim Westhoff, spokesperson for the Delaware Department of Transportation, the primary reason they continue to operate the ferry is its cultural value.

There is a lot of regional history surrounding the ferry, including a connection to Patty Cannon, a notorious kidnapper and slave trader.

"It provides a fascinating lesson in American history," Westhoff said. “A bridge would probably be more efficient at moving vehicles, but it wouldn’t be better.”

rpacella@gannett.com

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On Twitter @rachaelpacella