April is the month when folks tend to start getting outdoors more often. Exploring local and national parks, historic sites, and other famed features is an excellent idea and makes for many a memorable experience. Here in the Mid-Atlantic region, options are especially abundant with day drip destinations that the rest of the nation can only envy from afar, especially when you get into the concept of exploring historic sites, many of which even played a direct role in the colonization and establishment of the New World. And the convenience and ease of navigating from one significant site to the next is certainly one for the books as well. From larger states like Pennsylvania and Virginia to smaller designations like Maryland and the District of Columbia, there are more historic callouts within this part of the country per capita than in other regions.
Even our smallest Mid-Atlantic state, Delaware, packs plentiful historic callouts of great acclaim. But that’s to be expected given its status as the First State to ratify the Constitution and one of diverse settlements as well. Many of its most noteworthy national historic highlights are, befittingly enough, featured as part of the First State National Historical Park.
So, where exactly is First State National Historical Park located, then? The answer isn’t so simple. For this Flashback Friday Feature, I’m offering an overview of the many sites comprising this famed designation.
How It Came About
In short, First State National Historical Park comprises several distinct places, located all throughout Delaware. Portions expand across the Pennsylvania border as well, encompassing a couple of hundred acres in Chadds Ford.
The story of its designation as a National Park Service unit can be traced back as early as the dawn of the 2000s. But it wasn’t until 2013 that the First State National Monument came about, under the Antiquities Act on March 25. The park and the driving, statewide ambition behind it all was eventually redesignated as First State National Historical Park by Congress.
Historic Highlights
While initially having started as a monument, First State National Historical Park has grown to cover many main milestones of significance throughout Delaware’s storied history. By extension, this reflects on the foundational past of the entire nation.
Specific, time-honored places and locations comprise part of its massive chain of explorable locations and significant people, especially those that contributed directly to the settlement of the Delaware Valley, the testing of the U.S. Constitution, and the conservation of our natural resources.
As an ongoing project, the park continues to expand even today. It is currently divided into numerous individual sites.
Brandywine Valley
One subsection is the Brandywine Valley. Originally known as “Beaver Valley,” the land that makes up Brandywine Valley was purchased in the early 1900s by Quaker industrialist and conservationist William Poole Bancroft. The driving motivation behind his action was to preserve as much land as possible along the Brandywine River. This was done in order to preserve the natural, scenic beauty for future generations.
Visitors today are delighted and enchanted by the fact that so much of the 1,100 acres comprising the site has remained unchanged since those days. Located 12 miles north of New Castle, the tract runs adjacent to Delaware’s Brandywine Creek State Park, as well as the Brandywine Valley National Scenic Byway, which runs through it.
Dover Green
It was under direct orders from William Penn himself that the Green was established in Dover back in 1717. In accordance with the orders of those days, the Green was complete with government buildings, shops, homes, and taverns, and overall life, commerce, and activity. It withstood the American Revolution and played host to 30 delegates (10 from each county) several years later, on December 7, 1787. This was the event that resulted in the ratification of the United States Constitution and Delaware’s established claim as “The First State.”
Fort Christina
Traveling to Wilmington, you’ll find Fort Christina, home to the original landing site, more familiarly known as “The Rocks.” This was where colonists established New Sweden back in 1638, along the banks of the Christina River. As the name implies, the original settlers were largely of Swedish and Finnish descent.
They arrived via the Kalmar Nyckel and the Fogel Grip and negotiated with the local Leni Lenape tribe to purchase the land on which to build a living. They built a fort and town at this site, and the colony flourished. Eventually, more outposts were established in New Jersey, outside present-day Philadelphia, and along the Brandywine River.
Visitors today not only enjoy visits to the fort directly, but also come and see the stately, famed monument by Swedish sculptor Carl Milles that was donated by Sweden for the colony’s tricentennial anniversary.
John Dickinson Plantation
This part of the park doubles as the main visitor’s center and touring orientation location. While you can complete the park tour in any order, most opt to start their endeavors here. Gather all your resources and even watch a video about John Dickinson to learn all about the history and heritage at hand.
Built in 1740, the John Dickinson Plantation houses the boyhood home and country estate of the one and only John Dickinson. Renowned for being “the Penman of the Revolution,” John Dickinson is famous for many written attributes, including his Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania and “The Liberty Song” (which included the first use of the phrase “united we stand, divided we fall”). He also wrote the Olive Branch Petition and the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms as a delegate. He later went on to transcribe the and was one of the drafters of the U.S. Constitution.
New Castle Court House
New Castle is home to many historic locations, including the New Castle Courthouse. Dating back to 1730, it remains one of the country’s oldest courthouses and played host to a number of historic milestones. Pay close attention to the cupola of the Court House as it not only serves as the center architecturally but also forms the border between Delaware, Pennsylvania, and.
It was here in this building that Delaware’s colonial assembly voted for independence from both Pennsylvania and England in 1776. The Declaration of Independence was also read here as well as the first draft of Delaware’s first Constitution. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase was also impeached here back in 1800. And it was here that the infamous Garrett trial, inspiration to Harriet Beecher Stowe for certain scenes in Uncle Tom’s Cabin, took place. First and foremost, however, New Castle Court House served as Delaware’s first court and state capitol.
New Castle Green
Laid out in the 1650s by Dutch colonists, New Castle Green served as the town commons. It sits about a block away from the spot where William Penn first arrived in America in 1682, and is bounded by several historic structures. These include the aforementioned Courthouse, the 1809 federal Arsenal, and the 1703 Immanuel Episcopal Church, where founder George Read is buried.
New Castle Sheriff’s House Welcome Center
Built in 1857, the Sheriff’s House was actually established on the preexisting site of the circa 1793 jail, which is all that remains of Delaware’s first prison system. The Sheriff’s House is the only National Park Service-owned facility in all of New Castle, donated by the State of Delaware in 2013 as part of First State National Monument.
Old Swedes Historic Site
Old Swedes Church stands out for being one of the country’s oldest church buildings still in service today. Originally constructed between 1698 and 1699 by the Swedish Government, it served to support the growing needs of the nearby Lutheran community of the New Sweden Colony.
Delaware is delightfully decked out with plenty of other historic sites and highlights to behold. While navigating the many sites featured as part of First State National Historical Park is a premium pastime, as always, you should consider making up your own itineraries and get out and start exploring.