South Wilmington – Cradle of African American Political Leadership
NC-86: 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 […]
The Daniel Nichols House
NC-228: British General Sir William Howe embarked on a campaign to capture the city of Philadelphia during the Revolutionary War in 1777. While marching from Cooch’s Bridge to Kennett Square onward to the Battle of Brandywine Howe and his army passed through Mill Creek Hundred. The army ransacked farms taking livestock and supplies. The house […]
St. Josephs on the Brandywine
NCC-222: As early as 1813, Mass was celebrated in private homes throughout the area. St. Joseph Church was built in 1841 by a diverse community of Roman Catholic immigrants to meet the needs of the growing Catholic population. The nearby DuPont powder mills, where many parishioners worked, provided the stonemasons who built the walls of […]
One Love Park
NCC-216: Originally named Tatnall Street Playground in 1907, this park is located across the street from the home at 2311 Tatnall Street that singer-songwriter Bob Marley occupied with his mother in 1966. In order to raise funds to start his own record label in Jamaica, Marley assumed the alias “Donald Marley” and worked as a […]
Union Lodge No. 5, A.F. & A. M.
NC-214: Chartered on June 24, 1765 by the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania A.Y.M., Lodge No. 5 at Cantwell’s Bridge (later known as Odessa) became the first Masonic lodge established in Delaware. The lodge was admitted to membership under the Grand Lodge of Delaware in January, 1816. Lodge No. 5 moved to Middletown in 1822 and […]
William “Judy” Johnson Park
NC-212: Regarded as one of the best third baseman to have played in the Negro Leagues, William Julius “Judy” Johnson (1899-1989) grew up nearby on the west side of Delamore Place. During his youth, Johnson played baseball at various sand lots in the city, including one located between 2nd and 3rd Streets and DuPont and […]
Christiana Public School #111C
NCC-205: Formal education for African American children in Christiana began in the 1880s with the construction of a one-room schoolhouse. Many African American schools in existence at this time were marked by dilapidated facilities, a lack of running water, insufficient lighting, and poor heating sources. In an effort to remedy these and other deplorable school […]
Poplar Hall
NCC-203: James Boulden the Elder and his family moved to Delaware from Maryland in the mid-18th century, amassing wealth and expanding their land ownership in Pencader Hundred as the century progressed. The two-story brick mansion house was built during this time period and is a strong representation of Gregorian architecture. A service wing erected between […]
Landing of The Swedes
NC-197: 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 1638. Under Peter Minuit’s leadership, Fort Christina was erected to protect the […]
Peniel United Methodist Church
NCC-191: Tradition states that a young Irish immigrant moved to the local area in 1786 and sought out a Methodist minister from Wilmington to preach in Newport. By the early nineteenth century, a permanent Methodist Society had been established in the area. In 1809, a small frame meeting house was built on land conveyed by […]
