New Castle United Methodist Church
NC-111: originally installed in 2000. The origin of Methodism in this community can be traced to the years prior to the American Revolution when pioneering clergymen such as Thomas Webb and Francis Asbury visited here to spread the message of their faith. Due to the predominance of long-established denominations, and a relatively small membership early […]
Rockford Tower
NCC-110: In 1895, Theodore Leisen, engineer for the Wilmington Board of Park Commissioners, recommended that “a large pavilion and observatory” be built in Rockford Park on what was called Mt. Salem Hill, the highest point in the city at 330 feet above sea level. His proposal coincided with the Board of Water Commissioners’ conclusion that […]
Claymont Stone School
NC-105: originally installed in 1999. Also known as Naaman’s Creek School #1, the Claymont Stone School was built on land donated by John Dickinson, the “Penman of the American Revolution,” in 1805. The building was expanded and renovated in 1905. Evidence suggests that it may have been the first racially integrated public school in the […]
Old Claymont High School
NCC-099: Constructed 1924-25. Also known as the Green Street School. Prominent in United States history as the first public high school in the 17 segregated states to be legally integrated. In January 1951, eight black students applied for admission. Due to the “separate but equal” education system in place at that time, the Claymont Board […]
Delaware City School #118C
In 1919 Delaware radically altered its state school system, opening a new era in the education of African-American youth. Progress was stimulated by the efforts of the Delaware School Auxiliary Association and its primary supporter, P.S. du Pont, who conducted a statewide effort to replace outdated and overcrowded facilities. On March 9, 1922, the State […]
St. Joseph Church
NC-94: The cradle of African-American Catholicism in Delaware, St. Joseph Church was organized in 1889 by Father John A. DeRuyter of the Josephites. Services were first held in the basement of St. Mary’s Church on 6th and Pine Streets. Incorporated as St. Joseph’s Society for Colored Missions on March 4, 1890, the first church structure […]
Darley House
NC-91: originally installed in 1993. The home of world-renowned illustrator Felix O. C. Darley (1822-1888). Built in the late 18th century and enlarged several times during the first half of the 19th century, the house was purchased by Darley in 1863 and renamed “The Wren’s Nest.” During his career, Darley illustrated books for Washington Irving, […]
South Wilmington – Cradle of African American Political Leadership
William J. Winchester, after serving 16 years on Wilmington City Council, became the first of his race elected to the Delaware House of Representatives. He served from 1948 until his death in 1952. Herman M. Holloway, Sr., became the first African-American elected to the State Senate in 1964. Henrietta Johnson was the first African-American female […]
Gravesite of Bishop Peter Spencer and His Devoted Wife, Annes
Born a slave, Bishop Spencer was the father of Delaware’s independent Black church movement. In 1813, he founded the Union Church of Africans, presently known as the African Union Methodist Protestant Church. The mother AUMP church stood on this site from 1813 to 1970. The Union American Methodist Episcopal Church (UAME), formally organized in 1865, […]
Eastburn-Jeanes Mining Complex
This is the site of the Eastburn-Jeanes farms and mining industry. Marble from the Cockeysville formation, found in three quarries in the area, was heated in kilns to produce quicklime for fertilizer and mortar. The lime was transported over Limestone Road to nearby Pennsylvania, Maryland and southern Delaware. The remaining historic structures include nearby kilns, […]
