Originally called "Marettico", meaning hill of hard stone, by the Indians who inhabited this area. Known as Iron Hill as early as 1661 when three Englishmen were reportedly killed there by Minquas Indians. Indians frequented Iron Hill to obtain . . . — — Map (db m155424) HM
In 1701, William Penn granted 30,000 acres of land to a group of Welsh settlers who were attracted to the area by the iron on Iron Hill. An iron mining and smelting industry grew up around both Iron and Chestnut hills and continued until 1891 when . . . — — Map (db m155426) HM
1701
40,000 acres of land called "The Welsh Tract" was granted by William Penn to Welsh Baptists to build a new church and to mine for iron.
1702- James James, the 1st of the Welsh settlers to select land, chose 1,244 acres: from Iron . . . — — Map (db m238408) HM
One of the first tasks the Welsh performed was the establishment of two houses of worship. Among the Welsh were both Baptist and Presbyterian and the Baptist built their church on the north side of Iron Hill in 1703. Rebuilt in 1746, it remains . . . — — Map (db m158217) HM
Constructed in 1749, the area is home to one of the earliest mill sites on the Red Clay Creek. A three-story flour mill once served as the center of activity on the site, and was the location of Oliver Evans’ first automated flour mill operation. In . . . — — Map (db m145422) HM
Delaware clock-maker of great distinction and silversmith lived and labored here for about thirty years until his death in 1797. Was a prominent member of Old Drawyers Presbyterian Church. Made contract with State of Delaware in 1776 for manufacture . . . — — Map (db m236871) HM
Indian Village Appoquinimi. Part of large grant to Alexander D'Hinoyessa, vice-director of New Amstel. Edmund Cantwell second owner of tract, 1673. Village named Cantwell's Bridge, 1731. Once important grain shipping center. Named Odessa 1855, after . . . — — Map (db m10307) HM
The history of this congregation may be traced to the 1670s, when Dutch and Swedish members of the "Reformed Church" were gathering locally for worship. By the first decade of the 18th century the settlement of persons largely of Scottish descent . . . — — Map (db m10538) HM
Site of Margaret
Stewart Darrach House
is listed in the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the United States
Department of the Interior
c. 1730
— — Map (db m174826) HM
The Stewart House built in the mid-1700's, was owned by at least six generations of the family. David Stewart, Sr., credited with founding Port Penn, planned for the town to become a shipping port that could compete with the firmly established . . . — — Map (db m10392) HM
Port Penn’s name is attributed to a visit that William Penn made to the area in 1682. Dr. David Stewart founded Port Penn in the 1760s and laid out the town in a grid pattern. A protected deep water harbor and access to an active peach and grain . . . — — Map (db m140576) HM
Built in the mid-eighteenth century by Captain David Clark, Clearfield Farm was the home of his grandson John Clark (1761 -1821), Governor of Delaware from 1817 -1820. John Clark served as Colonel in the Delaware Militia and as Justice of the Peace . . . — — Map (db m69112) HM
Organized about the year 1769. Early meetings held in academy woods, Gilpin’s Wharf and Thelwell’s School. Church Built in 1789.
Dedicated to Bishop Francis Asbury. Here is buried Allen McLane, Lieutenant in Caesar Rodney’s Regiment 1779; . . . — — Map (db m92275) HM
In 1684, William Penn deeded this property to Adam Stedham, who built a small two-room stone house on the land. Stedham's son, William, expanded the house into the Crooked Billet Tavern in 1702. George Washington and his troops stopped at the tavern . . . — — Map (db m243658) HM
Willingtown Square honors Thomas Willing and the original name of the town he helped found in 1731. The four brick structures, built between 1748 and 1801, represent the types of houses common in early Willingtown. Buildings like these often . . . — — Map (db m165576) HM
The oldest existing school in Delaware, Wilmington Friends was founded in 1748. It resided in the first meeting house of the Wilmington Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) at Fourth and West Streets, which had been built ten . . . — — Map (db m140064) HM
A geological oddity
Many people call the huge rocks you see along this trail "blue granite" or "blue rock." This is because when they are broken, the fresh exposed rock is a brilliant blue color. Continued exposure to air soon gives them . . . — — Map (db m240819) HM
This millstone for many years was used in the
Richardson Mill, located along Little Mill
Creek about 100 yards from this spot.
This mill site was one of the first used in Delaware.
From before 1684 until 1923 mills were in operation in this . . . — — Map (db m196508) HM
Black walnut nutmeats are used in candies, bread, and ice cream. The wood has been highly prized for furniture, gunstocks, and cabinets since Colonial times. — — Map (db m240739) HM
Around 1740 water-powered mills began to appear in this area where the Brandywine River ends its journey falling 124 feet in its final five miles. Small vessels carrying grain from nearby farms sailed directly to the mills. Other ships laden with . . . — — Map (db m235147) HM
Built about 1760. Anthony Wayne's Headquarters 1777. Generals Washington, Lafayette, Wayne, and other officers met here to hold council and hear reports prior to the Battle of Brandywine. Later occupied by British. Joseph Tatnall owned and operated . . . — — Map (db m185987) HM
The Swedes Landing Trail, which highlights “Wilmington’s Waterfront Heritage” theme reflects the maritime heritage of the first permanent Swedish settlement in the United States. The one mule trail includes land along the northern bank of the . . . — — Map (db m64625) HM
This Historic Trail links the historical, social, and cultural patterns of development in Wilmington. The commercial and residential structures along this trail recreate the vitality and historic importance of 17th and 18th-century Wilmington. The . . . — — Map (db m130469) HM
Ancient History
4000 BC
Ancient Sanskrit and Greek writings recommend water treatment methods, including filtering through charcoal, exposing water to sunlight, boiling, and straining.
1500 BC
To clarify water, Egyptians . . . — — Map (db m216060) HM
The Tilton Mansion was constructed in 1802 by the nation’s first Army Surgeon General, Dr. James Tilton (1745-1822). Throughout his lifetime Tilton advocated for increased hospital sanitation and was the founder and first President of The Medical . . . — — Map (db m144389) HM
A black man named Anthony was among the first permanent settlers of New Sweden. He came to the colony from the West Indies in 1639 aboard the Swedish ship Vogel Grip. Records indicate that Black Anthony became a free man named Antoni Swart, an . . . — — Map (db m228037) HM
This Tanbark stone came from J.E. Rhoads & Sons of Delaware. Founded in 1702 in Chester County, Pa. as a leather tannery, it is the oldest firm in the United States.
As shown above, the stone was rolled on its serrated edge to grind tanbark . . . — — Map (db m240909) HM
Delaware's only known foreign-born governor, John McKinly emigrated from Northern Ireland to Wilmington in 1742, began a medical practice and became actively involved in Delaware politics. McKinly served as a member of the Colonial Assembly, . . . — — Map (db m39575) HM
Near this site the first grist mill was built about 1640 by Ashmond Stidham.
It was here that the "Old Barley Mill" was built in 1765.
This stone is the lone relic of these vanished mills. — — Map (db m191647) HM
In 1682, William Penn granted 986 acres of land at this location to Valentine Hollingsworth. A portion of the tract was subsequently conveyed to the Robinson family in 1726. The present stone dwelling was erected here circa 1750. In 1785, Gunning . . . — — Map (db m92148) HM
This church originally stood at the corner of 10th and Market Streets and was the first Presbyterian church in the city. It was constructed in 1740, just after Wilmington received its charter from King George II. Following the Battle of the . . . — — Map (db m13557) HM
This is the original Presbyterian Meeting House built in 1740 near Tenth & Market Streets
Presented by The First Presbyterian Church of Wilmington, Delaware to The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of Delaware and The National Society of . . . — — Map (db m240742) HM
These are the earliest dated fieldstone markers in the churchyard. Along with the carved initials, 1726 is still visible.
The initials stand for Kathrina and Brita Cock, Swedish sisters who died from typhoid fever within two days of each . . . — — Map (db m174903) HM
This small stone is probably one of the oldest still visible in the churchyard. It is not known who M. B. was or when he or she died.
The stone is typical of the simple rough markers of the late 1600s and early 1700s. — — Map (db m174891) HM
He was born in Sweden in 1658 and educated in London. On his way home from his duties in the Swedish Legation one evening in 1678, he was kidnapped and shipped to Virginia to serve five years as an indentured servant. Springer learned of the . . . — — Map (db m174895) HM
Born Halland, Sweden, Christiern first appears Old Swedes Church records in 1714. The daughter of Elizabeth Justis and Matthias Peterson, Maria descends from Måns and Brita Andersson who arrived on Kalmar Nyckel in 1640. Christiern and Maria . . . — — Map (db m174896) HM
As noted at marker #8 "Iron Letters on the Church," wrought iron letters were hammered into the mortar on this east wall, above the altar window. Originally the lettering was "LUX-L.I. TENEBR ORIENS-EX ALTO." (Light from on high . . . — — Map (db m174906) HM
Preparations to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the consecration of Old Swedes in 1998 produced some unexpected results.
Painters removed dozens of coats of paint from the south doors in preparation for painting. They found carved . . . — — Map (db m174892) HM
Originally it was one room with fireplace down stairs and a large bedroom above. The Hendricksons raised eight children in this house. It was enlarged later, and served as home to five generations of Hendricksons.
After many years of . . . — — Map (db m174858) HM
In 1638 a colony from Sweden landed at the Rocks nearby. There they built Fort Christina, worshiped therin until 1667 and then built a log church at Cranehook on South side of Christiana River. In 1698, inspired by their pastor, Eric Bjork, they . . . — — Map (db m11014) HM
Notice the numerals on the bell tower's north side and the letters on the south side.
The church was built with a hip roof at both ends. Before the consecration in 1699, Matthias de Foss, a blacksmith of the colony, forged iron letters and . . . — — Map (db m174846) HM
By 1750 the heavy roof had begun to force the thick walls apart, most noticeably on the north side, and much earlier than on the south side (see mark #14). Four stone "buttresses" were built to counter this effect. Years later, these open porticos . . . — — Map (db m174914) HM
Upon arrival from Sweden in 1697, Pastor Eric Björk began his quest to build a stone church to replace the decaying log structure on the south bank of the Christina River that had served the Swedish Lutheran congregation. Helga Trefaldighet . . . — — Map (db m174436) HM
By 1763, the foundation proved inadequate and the heavy roof began o force the thick walls apart. To counter this development, two large stone buttresses were built. In 1774, the gallery was built to add 25 new pews. The stairs were placed . . . — — Map (db m174911) HM
The Stidhams were another prominent family in the early days of the New Sweden Colony and Old Swedes.
Dr. Tymen Stidham arrived on the fourth voyage of Kalmar Nyckel. He was the the first physician in this area. Much of the success and . . . — — Map (db m174847) HM
1638: Peter Minuit with a crew of Dutch sailors and Swedish soldiers, landed the Kalmar Nyckel and the Fogel Grip at a natural outcropping of rocks on the Minquas Kill. They named the river and the fort they built for Sweden's Queen . . . — — Map (db m174888) HM
Their ancestor became Lutheran, fled the Netherlands to avoid persecution, and settled on the Brandywine, calling his place "Vendever's Island."
In the presence of William Penn, Dr. Cornelius and Jacob Vandever became naturalized citizens in . . . — — Map (db m174905) HM
The Dingee brothers built their houses side by side at 105 and 107 East Seventh Street. Jacob's house, built first, uses old fashioned glaze-headed bricks. The brothers, both cabinetmakers, probably used the front rooms of the first floor as . . . — — Map (db m210787) HM
Job and Mary Jacobs built this house, the oldest in the square. It originally stood at 414 West Second Street in the Quaker Hill neighborhood.
The decorative brickwork gives the date of the house and the initials of the owners. The date is . . . — — Map (db m210788) HM
Nearby is grave of John Dickinson, Lawyer, Scholar, and Statesman. Member Colonial Assemblies of Delaware
and Pennsylvania and Legislative Council of Delaware State. Delegate from Pennsylvania to Stamp Act
Congress. Representative in Continental . . . — — Map (db m129371) HM
Grew from New-Wark Meeting established 1682. Present house is third in this vicinity. Friends School begun here in 1748 has operated continuously. Among 3,000 buried in yard are founders of Wilmington, John Dickinson, "Penman of the Revolution," and . . . — — Map (db m10943) HM
Willingtown Square honors Thomas Willing and the original name of the town he helped found in 1731. The four brick structures, built between 1731 and 1801, represent the types of houses common in early Willingtown. Buildings like these often . . . — — Map (db m210784) HM
Born 14 December 1739 in Paris, France,
Died 7 August 1817 at Eleutherian Mills.
Leading Figure of the Enlightenment •
Educational Pioneer •
Physiocrat, Political Visionary, and Diplomat •
Knight of the Order of Vasa •
Devoted Patriot of . . . — — Map (db m225913) HM
A black man named Anthony was among the first permanent settlers of New Sweden. He came to the colony from the West Indies in 1639 aboard the Swedish ship Vogel Grip. Records indicate that Black Anthony became a free man named Antoni Swart, an . . . — — Map (db m228255) HM
Fort Christina-This park commemorates New Sweden, the colony founded when Peter Minuit’s expedition landed from the Swedish ships Kalmar Nyckel and Fogel Grip on the natural wharf of rocks at the riverside about March 29, 1638. Fort Christina, built . . . — — Map (db m140502) HM
The people of Sweden erected this monument to the memory of the first Swedish settlement on American soil and gave it in custody of the State of Delaware.
This monument was dedicated June 27th 1938 in the presence of the President . . . — — Map (db m174425) HM
In late 1637, the New Sweden Company sent out its first expedition to America to establish a Swedish presence in the New World. Sailing in two ships, the Kalmar Nyckel and the Fogel Grip, the expedition landed near this site in March . . . — — Map (db m228027) HM
The monument, designed and executed by the Swedish-American sculptor, Carl Milles, is an irregular hexagon of black Swedish granite. Bas reliefs show contacts between settlers and Indians, Queen Christina on horseback, Governor Johan Printz, the . . . — — Map (db m174429) HM
The park was created by the State of Delaware for the tercentenary in 1938. It was designated a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior March 29, 1963 in the presence of Prince Bertil of Sweden, Vice President Lyndon B. . . . — — Map (db m174432) HM
The roots of this congregation can be traced to the efforts of Methodist pioneer Thomas Webb, who visited this area to spread the message of his faith in the years prior to the American Revolution. Influenced by his sincerity and eloquence, a local . . . — — Map (db m128089) HM
Founded by Swedes 1638 at Fort Christina, the first permanent settlement in Delaware River Valley. Called Altenae by Dutch 1655. Known as Willingtown 1730-1739. Incorporated as borough of Wilmington in 1739 and as city in 1832. Washington's . . . — — Map (db m19461) HM
Detached from Northwest Fork Hundred by Act of General Assembly, 1869. Northwest Fork Hundred, originally claimed by Maryland, then embraced all territory west of Northwest Fork. Delaware obtained undisputed title in 1775, upon confirmation of Mason . . . — — Map (db m48997) HM
Prior to 1775 this hundred was claimed as part of
Worchester County, Maryland being named for Lord
Baltimore. After boundary line between Maryland
and Delaware was confirmed, Baltimore Hundred became
part of Sussex County, Delaware. — — Map (db m37404) HM
Settled at the site of a gristmill on Pepper Creek,
this village was originally known as Blackfoot
Town. The present name of the community is
derived from that of John Dagsworthy. A New
Jersey native who moved to this area in the
mid- 18th . . . — — Map (db m37239) HM
Before the settlement of the boundary dispute between Delaware and Maryland, this area was considered to lie in Maryland. On July 5, 1755, responding to the request of members of the Church of England residing in the upper portion of Worcester . . . — — Map (db m39556) HM
The Rev. Edward Dingle of England settled at Dagsboro, Del. Nov. 11, 1753, also built St. Martin's Church, Worcester Co. MD. 1756 completed 1759. He died 1763 and was buried with his wife under St. Martins pulpit as was the English custom. — — Map (db m190339) HM
The smallest, flattest and driest continent on earth is about the same size as the United States. Settled 200 Years ago by a contingent of outcasts and criminals from Great Britain, Australia is now populated by 16 million "ockers" and ten times . . . — — Map (db m206327) HM
This stone monument, erected April 26, 1751, marks the eastern end of the Transpeninsular Line surveyed 1751-1751 by John Watson and William Parsons of Pennsylvania and John Emory and Thomas Jones of Maryland. This line established the east-west . . . — — Map (db m1234) HM
This site was originally part of a tract known as "Bachelor's Delight". From 1711 to 1768 it was included in a 3,000 acre Nanticoke Indian Reservation, authorized by an act of the Maryland Assembly. A village known as "Laurel" existed as early as . . . — — Map (db m4423) HM
This Federalist served as the governor of Delaware between 1805-1808. He was born in Laurel in 1752, attended Old Christ Church, and is buried in this churchyard. Mitchell was commissioned as adjutant of militia 1775, promoted captain in 1776, and . . . — — Map (db m39779) HM
Established on Broad Creek in 1770 as a "Chapel of Ease" of Stepney Parish, Maryland on land purchased by a levy of 80,000 pounds of tobacco. Building completed by Robert Holston in 1772 at a cost of £510. — — Map (db m39778) HM
Here was Laurel's ancient "Wading Place", a ford for Native Americans and colonial settlers. Broad Creek crosses this fall in its flow to the Nanticoke River and Chesapeake Bay. For centuries, the Nanticoke Indians, an Algonquin people, lived in the . . . — — Map (db m11817) HM
In 1769, an international scientific effort was organized to observe a transit of Venus in order to determine the size of the solar system. This rare event, when Venus passes in front of the Sun's disk, makes such calculations possible when measured . . . — — Map (db m228456) HM
For more than 150 years, the Cape Henlopen Lighthouse guided ships into Delaware Bay on their way to the ports of Wilmington and Philadelphia.
The Cape Henlopen Lighthouse had its beginnings in 1761. Philadelphia merchants and ship owners . . . — — Map (db m79167) HM
Named for the river branch which runs along its northwest edge, Cool Spring Presbyterian Church was established circa 1726. Many of its members were Ulster Scots who had come to America from Ireland seeking religious freedom and economic . . . — — Map (db m150096) HM
Block House Pond, a natural spring-fed pond, has provided fresh water, ice, and recreation to the City of Lewes for several centuries. The pond was likely named for a nearby blockhouse built to protect Lewes in the 1670s, where the town residents . . . — — Map (db m232744) HM
A native and lifelong resident of this community, Henry Fisher (1735-1792) was one of Delaware's foremost leaders in the struggle for American Independence. His prominence as a skilled pilot and his firm support of the Patriot cause resulted in his . . . — — Map (db m39377) HM
The Dutch in 1673 established a court in Hoorn Kil for the inhabitants “on the east and west sides of Cape Henlopen unto Bomties (Bombay) Hook.” Governor Andros of New York in 1676 established an English court at Whorekill, the . . . — — Map (db m19408) HM
Here lived Ryves Holt, colonial chief justice; and four governors, David Hall, who commanded a Delaware regiment in the Revolution, Daniel Rodney and Caleb Rodney, sons of John Rodney, and Ebe W. Tunnell; also Colonel Henry Fisher, Revolutionary . . . — — Map (db m19409) HM
Under orders from Peter Stuyvesant the Dutch erected Fort at Hoorn Kil (Lewes Creek) 1659 but were soon dispossessed by the Marylanders. Here was also a communistic settlement established in 1662 by Mennonites from Holland under Peter Cornelius . . . — — Map (db m152856) HM
Commemorates the establishment of the first permanent European presence on the Delaware Bay
1631
In 1631, a group of settlers under David Pietersz de Vries landed near this spot to form a whale hunting station and agricultural . . . — — Map (db m38631) HM
Lewes has been a Port-of-Call and a Harbor-of-Refuge since the 17th century. For generations during the ages of sail, a public burial ground in this immediate locality became the final resting place for hundred of sailors who lost their lives and . . . — — Map (db m176163) HM
Built on the banks of the Lewes Canal, this original cottage has a corner fireplace, floor timbers made from salvaged shipwrecks, and an original, and an original cypress shingle exterior. Also, much of the interior is original.
Likely a . . . — — Map (db m190354) HM
On north side of town was Zwaanendael, first Dutch settlement on Delaware soil. Founded 1631 on creek, named by settlers Hoorn Kil in honor of town of Hoorn in Holland. Colony was destroyed by Indians same year. DeVries, a director of company which . . . — — Map (db m19407) HM
Lewes began as a colony established by the Dutch West India Company in the spring of 1631. Twenty-eight men were sent to establish a whaling station, grow tobacco and engage in fur trade with Native Americans. It was the first European settlement in . . . — — Map (db m198895) HM
Under orders from Peter Stuyvesant the Dutch erected Fort At Hoorn Kil (Lewes Creek) 1659 but were soon dispossessed by the Marylanders. Here was also a communistic settlement established in 1662 by Mennonites from Holland under Peter Cornelis . . . — — Map (db m38194) HM
In 1680, Governor Andros authorized
the erection of a court house of logs
to cost 5000 pounds of tobacco.
Near this wall was the second building
used from 1740 to 1791, when the county
seat was moved to Georgetown.
The church rented building . . . — — Map (db m37347) HM
In this house lived Ryves Holt
Chief Justice
of “Three Lower Counties On Delaware,”
1745 to 1763
Member of Assembly
of “Three Lower Counties On Delaware,”
1734-1737, 1742-1744, 1746-1755,
And Speaker of Assembly . . . — — Map (db m221639) HM
