Overbrook Farm

Overbrook Farm is the ancestral home of the Nichols family.  It existed before there was a Delmar or a Wicomico County.  Located east of Delmar about where Old Stage Road and Williams Mill pond road intersects, it was established by Isaac Mitchell Nichols (1817-1874) and his wife Amanda Hearn Nichols (1834-1884).

above 1850 census

Isaac Nichols and his family appears in the 1850 census for Salisbury District 2 Somerset County, Maryland.  Of a side interest his neighbor is Hugh Jackson.  Hugh Jackson’s son was Elihu Emory Jackson.  Elihu would form a business with Mr Freeney once Delmar was created and be one of the first business people in Delmar.  When the railroad extended to Salisbury he moved to Salisbury and established a lumber business (E E Jackson).  Eventually he would become the Governor of Maryland (1882-1892).  His brother William would become a congressman from Maryland. 

Above is the 1877 map of the Parson district of Wicomico county from the Lake Griffin Stevenson atlas.  You can see a little to the left of Rum Ridge the “res. Heirs of  I. M. Nichols.”  Isaac Mitchell Nichol having died in 1874.

The property was owned by Isaac Nichols, his son George Washington Nichols and Isaac’s granddaughter, Minnie Amanda Nichols who moved to Upper Darby PA.  George W Nichols was born at Overbrook farm and 87 years later in 1945 he died at Overbrook farm and is buried at the Nichols cemetery on the farm.  Minnie A. Nichols was an accountant for the Philadelphia Transit Co for 37 years before retiring. She also is buried in the Nichols cemetery.

The property has the Nichols Family Cemetery which has over 60 Nichols and related families graves in it.

About 1890 Overbrook Farm Delmar Maryland, George W Nichols and Elizabeth Killian Wedding Photo Compare to top photograph

People in Photo were identified left to right as;

1) George Washington Nichols 2) Nick Nichols (on horse) 3) Mollie Nichols (Nick & Mollie children of George Washington Nichols First Wife) 4) Elizabeth Killian Nichols (Second Wife) 5) Frank Nichols (Adopted by George Washington Nichols) 6) Amelia Killian (Elizabeth Killian Nichols sister & Jim Nichols Wife) 7) Laura Nichols Wilkins (George Washington Nichols Sister) 8) Louise Nichols Lowe (George Washington Nichols Sister) (Written by Robert S. Nichols) 

Since the 1950s the Nichol family had a family reunion and part of the reunion is the opening of Overbrook Farm house. When Minnie Nichols would come back to Delmar for a vacation from Philadelphia she would open Overbrook Farm to stay at. She died in 1962.  In 2016 the house was torn down.