Delaware County Historical Society

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
236411628
IRS 990 coverage
2012–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
Media, PA, USA
Phone
6103590832
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Historical Societies & Historic Preservation

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$192,876
Expenses
$231,527
Assets
$267,025
Liabilities
$190,717

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

14 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • PAUL HEWES (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • PAUL HEWES (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $60,711 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Acquire and preserve property and information of historic value and/or interest concerning Delaware county, Pennsylvania. The society also operates a research library and museum.

What it reported doing in 2025

Acquire and preserve property and information of historic value and/or interest concerning Delaware county, Pennsylvania. The society also operates a research library and museum. The society held events to promote the work of the society and showcase historical artifacts and educate the public about Delaware county history.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and most voting board members are independent. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 57
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 90
  • Sustainability: 21
  • Growth: 0

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 63.5%; rating input score 64
  • Program expense ratio: 52.7%; rating input score 53
  • Fundraising efficiency: $7.95 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 6 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 75
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Fail
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -20%; rating input score 11; 11th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.15; rating input score 45; 45th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.71; rating input score 6; 6th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 26.2%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -7.5% per year; rating input score 0; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -11.2% per year; rating input score 0; 5th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -13.7% per year; rating input score 0; 4th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 63.5% of revenue deployed · 52.7% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 6 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $122K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $61K · 14 people listed
  • Consistency: 27 of 27 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 13 filing years from 2012 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 1 filed money-flow record
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 53/100.
  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 31/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 11/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: 2 of 8 not reported.
  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 45/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 6/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 13/100.