Loockerman Hall

Loockerman Hall. Delaware State University. , The land where DSU stands was once a large slave-holding plantation owned by Nicholas Loockerman. In 1723 Loockerman purchased 600 acres of land on the St. Jones River upon which his descendants built a saw-mill and stately Georgian-style brick home with nearby slave quarters and stables., For three generations the estate remained in the Loockerman family until it was sold in 1834. However, thereafter ownership was perpetually short-lived as it exchanged hands eight times by lawsuit, auction, and various sales. Finally, in 1891 the Loockerman house and 95 acres of land was purchased by the State College for Colored Students (now DSU) for $4,400., The transaction was made possible through federal funding from the Second Morrill Act of 1890. this federal act required each state to either demonstrate that either race was not a condition of admission to state colleges or establish separate African American colleges. DSU was of the latter category., Thus Loockerman Hall came to be the first building on campus. In the early days it served to provide a reading room, dining hall, kitchen, library, and housing for faculty and students. But as the college grew, by 1961 Loockerman Hall no longer served a purpose and fell into disrepair. By 1992, through the efforts of DSU and the alumni community, the building was restored in order to preserve the history behind it.