The Sound of Delaware: A Conversation with the Creators of the Delaware Music History Archive
(Paul Campagna and Chris Haug)
When two music enthusiasts from Delaware—Chris Haug and Paul Campagna—met at a University of Delaware WVUD CD release show in 1995, they probably didn’t know that their shared passion for local music would lead them to create something monumental. Both 13 years old at the time, Chris and Paul were united by a love of bands whose performances that night set the stage for a lifelong friendship and collaboration.
Fast-forward to today, and their shared vision has evolved into the Delaware Music History Archive (DMHA), a groundbreaking project that aims to preserve and celebrate the rich musical history of Delaware. With its goal of centralizing and digitizing a diverse range of historical data—from performance dates and photos to personal stories—the DMHA is fast becoming a virtual museum, bringing Delaware's vibrant music scene into the digital age.
In this interview, we sit down with Chris to learn more about their journey from that memorable night in 1995 to the creation of the Delaware Music History Archive, and how they plan to make the state’s musical legacy accessible for generations to come.
(Botch at The Brookside Community center in Newark 7/17/1998 (with Authors Chris and Paul on the right in the crowd)
How did you two meet?
We met on October 6, 1995, at a University of Delaware WVUD CD release show for a compilation of local bands called Scare Your Roommate. The lineup was Boysetsfire, Caterpillar, and The Crash. We were both 13.
What is the Delaware Music History Archive?
The Delaware Music History Archive (DMHA) is a living history of Delaware music and music performed in Delaware, starting from 1940 to present. DMHA’s mission is to centralize and make accessible the extensive and culturally diverse musical history in Delaware via a digital map that displays our wide range of data. The archive will include: performance dates, photos, flyers, videos, news ads and articles, ephemera, and personal stories. We’re thinking about it like a digital museum exhibit, making our research interactive and easily accessible.
What sparked the idea to document and share?
We kind of stumbled into the project accidentally. Paul was working on an amorphous NYC history TV show concept, and then had the idea of doing a similar approach to shooting some content of lesser-known Delaware music history, but with our personal narrative woven through. As some preliminary research was gathered, we got carried away, and next thing we knew, Paul had shelved the NYC project (for now), and couldn't stop collecting Delaware music history facts. Chris was a little resistant at first ("is this really what we were talking about?"), but then we both got sucked into it. It's been such a treat to talk to musicians from past bands and work with them to help tell their story.
We’re amateur researchers, no fancy degrees or anything, but quickly found that the hunt for information scratches the same itch that record collecting does. There's a euphoria that comes with the dopamine rush when you turn over a bunch of rocks, and finally find what you were looking for under one of them. Or even better, you find something amazing that you weren't even looking for.
What has been the biggest challenge so far?
Hard to narrow it down to just one. We relish the opportunity to share less documented stories, and to create long term access to knowledge about forgotten musicians and venues. But Delaware's African-American music history, especially from segregation years, is minimally documented. The oral histories exist, and they are important, but it’s hard to find show listings, ads, photos for Chitlin’ Circuit / Green Book / juke joint venues. The News Journal archives are all available online, but they weren't writing about most of these performances. Tracking down any kind of documentation for this era has been especially challenging but also very worthwhile.
(And an old Poster for Sister Rosetta Tharpe playing at Rosedale Beach in Millsboro, DE, 7/19/1959)
What are you doing to overcome that challenge?
We’ve been visiting major libraries, collaborating with research librarians, talking to historians, trying to keep diligent notes. Mostly just never giving up. We feel pretty sure there are collectors out there somewhere who have flyers and ephemera, maybe even photos. But in the case of a couple of the major African-American venues we're looking into from the 40s and 50s, it's pretty bare. If anyone has leads, we’d love for them to reach out to us.
What do you hope to accomplish?
We want to find a sweet spot between the rigor of academia and the entertainment of a fun music book. Edutainment. We're always talking about who our audience is, and trying to make sure we’re making something that people will want to engage with and can learn from. And, like we were talking about above, we want to make sure that generations to come can find out about the history of Chitlin’ Circuit hotspots such as Rosedale Beach and Spot Cafe.
Where can people find and access the archives?
We’re a long way off from having the end product that we want to share. But in the meantime, they can visit and bookmark www.delawaremusichistory.com and use the submission box to share their Delaware music stories with us. Please rest assured: we know that George Thorogood is from Delaware, that Bob Marley lived in Wilmington, and that Tom Verlaine and Richard Hell met at Sanford before forming Neon Boys / Television with Billy Ficca. Tell us about that show you have photos of, of the promoter who happens to be your uncle, about that print shop that you recovered a bunch of deadstock posters from, about going to see Puerto Rican salsa bands in Wilmington in the 70s. We want it all. We should have some blog content up on our website soon. Keep an eye out for some scavenger hunt stuff. This archive is for everyone, so we encourage your participation.
