Greetings from The Oddporium!
The Best Little Curiosity Shop in Delaware
In the tiny hamlet of northern Delaware sits a village. Although this village is nestled between three major highways and an interstate, It still appears to even the most seasoned traveler as an anomaly unto itself. The state of Delaware is a business mecca, a capitalist dream. Look up any corporation in America, and odds are they are incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. Google is here, and Ford is too. Amazon, CVS, and CNBC all make their homes in the state.
At least, according to business records, they make their homes in this state.
With Delaware rooted in the U.S.A. as a corporate tax haven, it seems odd to have a town built from the ideas of Henry George and Peter Kropotkin.
The homes in Arden are beautiful, and the land, which features park grounds, sculptures, and community buildings, is something to behold. But front and center in Arden might be the best centerpiece the town could have.
The Oddporium.
Ken and Beth Schuler are friends of mine and freaky people as well. And freaky isn’t being used as a pejorative either, Traveler. I am a freaky person, and I hope you are, too. But even if you don’t consider yourself freaky but you are curious, The Oddporium is for you.
It should be. It is a curiosity shop, after all.
Beth and Ken are Arden originals, urban explorers, and purveyors in the strange, obscure, and mystical. This information can be found in an interview they did with WHYY, the local Delaware PBS affiliate. The building that The Oddporium is located in was built by Ken’s family, going all the way back to that fun, pseudo-communist time of 1911. Before the brand change by Beth and Ken, it was a sandwich shop.
Driving by, you may confuse The Oddporium as a sandwich shop, seeing as the old signs are still up. My suggestion is to look for the hearse. Also, be careful driving through Arden as much of it is single-lane road usually going in one direction of traffic.
However, upon arrival, you’ll be treated to the morbid, the eclectic, and the amazing. The Oddporium can be summed up as Cheers meets American Horror Story: Freak Show. And I don’t mean either comparison negatively.
Beth and Nick can talk to you for hours about their travels and if you have any questions about anything about legend tripping, urban exploration, the occult, or medical oddities. Should he be available, Rockwood Manor’s own Dr. Lou might be available to talk history or ghost-hunting. Fun fact, Traveler! Dr. Lou taught me how to use dowsing rods. Legendary author Matt Lake, who edited together Weird Pennsylvania and several other books on the paranormal, might be working behind the counter today (although his appearances are a bit rare now).
But hidden in the depths, the liminal spaces of The Oddporium is another of Delaware’s best-kept secrets. Some time ago, the legendary Between Books, one of my favorite second-hand bookstores, relocated from Bellefonte to a back room at The Oddporium. Owner Greg is a wealth of knowledge and has been for some time. He may not remember it, but he sold me my copy of L. Ron Hubbard’s Fear (I promise it’s worth a read. It didn’t turn Stephen King on to Scientology).
As for places nearby to round out your day, there’s plenty of food nearby. The VM Italian Bistro is just down the street, as well as Delaware’s own legendary Capriotti’s sandwich shop right behind it. Ice Cream Delight is just around the corner as well. And should you need to keep your adrenaline up, there’s an Axxiom Escape Room. And while you’re in town, don’t forget to check out Jupiter Records across Marsh Road from The Oddporium.
Oh! And I almost forgot!
But, is it haunted?
Yes, yes, it is!
I can vouch for spiritual activity at the store because Dr. Lou’s session on dowsing rods did yield results! I later confirmed these results with my own rods at this same property.
Beth will be absolutely ecstatic to tell you all about the folks who have died on or in the vicinity of the property. And if that doesn’t do it for you, the shop keeps a haunted doll on location on loan from the Delaware Researchers of the Paranormal!
So please give them a look, Traveler! Be it a part of a memorable trip or an accidental stop on a journey, The Oddporium is absolutely worth a visit.
And remember, Ya gotta go sometime.
Until again,
Safe Travels
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