History lovers traveling the Delaware Crossing Scenic Byway can enrich their curiosity with a stop in the town of Hopkinton.

Nestled along the Maquoketa River, Hopkinton is home to the former Lenox College, an educational institution with several historical claims.

Sack: One of our graduates became the governor of California.

Another one ran for mayor of Chicago.

Kohlsdorf: The school was in operation from the mid-1850's to 1944, and is registered on the National List of Historic Places.

♪♪♪ Today, the former Lennox College is home to the Delaware County Historical Museum.

The organization serves as the curator for the history of the college and its community.

♪♪♪ Their collections of pottery, stoneware, of 4-H displays old-time pictures of all the towns in the county.

Then there's rock collections, and there's a medical collection, an old pharmacy, a whole room just full of -- a drugstore back in 1900.

And then they have a dental office.

They have a doctor's office and the old chairs, and then they have pictures of all the classes that graduated from here.

♪♪♪ Kohlsdorf: The college celebrates a distinct dedication to military service.

The school closed briefly during the Civil War, as male students and staff enlisted for service.

♪♪♪ Doctor Mary Edwards Walker attended Lenox College before becoming the first and only female recipient of the Medal of Honor for her work treating the wounded during the Civil War.

Sack: We're just trying to keep everybody's attention and say, you know, slow down and look around and pay attention.

And if you've got kids with you, show them how it was.

'Cause a lot of these museums have the old-time farm equipment, and they've got the old pictures, and people have stories to tell.

Kohlsdorf: Hopkinton and the Delaware County Historical Society celebrate the college's history with Civil War Days, an annual event scheduled for the first week of June.