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Delaware
The 1st State
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Links to Genealogy and History sites below the state information.
Delaware has only three counties, New Castle, Kent and Sussex.
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The state of Delaware was named for Lord De La Warr- who was the first Governor of Virginia, a title he earned for life even though he returned home to Europe. His real name was Sir Thomas West. He became Lord de La Warr only as a courtesy to his father Lord de la Warr.
Early explorations of the Delaware coastline were made by the Spaniards and Portuguese in the sixteenth century, by Henry Hudson in 1609 under the flag of the Dutch, again by Samuel Argall in 1610, three year later by Cornelius May in 1613, and again by Cornelius Hendricksen in 1614.
Samuel Argall was blown off course during a storm,sailed into a strange bay which he named then in honor of his governor. Probably, Lord De La Warr never saw, or explored, the bay, river, and state which today bears his name. In 1631, 11 years after the landing of the English pilgrims at Plymouth, Massachusetts, the first white settlement was made on Delaware soil.
More on the early days of Delaware- Delaware Living History
Delaware became a state in 1776, just two months after the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The capital was moved from New Castle to Dover in 1777. Delaware's first constitution was adopted in 1797. Delaware is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay, as well as by the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland
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The
state seal was first adopted on January 17, 1777, and
contains the coat of arms. It also bears the inscription
around it "Great Seal of the State of Delaware"
and the dates 1793, 1847, and 1907. A description of the
contents of the seal are as follows:
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Adopted on July 24, 1913, the state flag has a background of colonial blue surrounding a diamond of buff color in which the coat of arms of the state of Delaware is placed. Below the diamond are the words "December 7, 1787," indicating the day on which Delaware was the first state to ratify the federal Constitution. Because of this action, Delaware became the first state in the Union, and is, therefore, accorded the first position in such national events as presidential inaugurations. According to members of the original commission established to design the flag, the shades of buff and colonial blue represent those of the uniform of General George Washington as shown on a specific plate from an official U.S. Army publication |
| The official state song consist of a poem "Our Delaware" containing three verses in honor of each county of the State, written by George B. Hynson: "Our Delaware" | First VerseOh
the hills of dear New Castle, |
| Nicknames
for the State of Delaware include: The
First State": "The
Diamond State": "Blue
Hen State": |
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State Bird: "Blue Hen" During the Revolutionary War, the men of Captain Jonathan Caldwell's company, recruited in Kent County, took with them game chickens that were said to be of the brood of a famous Blue Hen and were noted for their fighting ability. When not fighting the enemy, the officers and men amused themselves by pitting their Blue Hen chickens in cockfights. The fame of these cockfights spread throughout the army and when in battle, the Delaware men fought so valiantly that they were compared to these fighting cocks. |
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State
Flower- Peach Blossom: Passage of the act to adopt the Peach Blossom on May 9, 1895, was prompted by Delaware's reputation as the "Peach State," since her orchards contained more than 800,000 peach trees yielding a crop worth thousands of dollars at that time. |
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State Tree: Adopted May 1, 1939, the American Holly (ilex opaca aiton) is regarded as one of Delaware's most important forest trees. Often called Christmas holly or evergreen holly, the tree has dark, thorny-leaved foliage and red berries. In Delaware, the tree can reach a maximum of 60 feet in height and a trunk diameter of 20 inches. |
Please note: these are off page links, please use your "back" to return here, or right click on URL and use open in new window
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State of Delaware- Official State Directory
Deleware Birth and Death Certificates-- no early information listed as available online. Births and marriages from 1960- deaths from 1928- ID required [from VitaChek] For Vital Records prior to years stated above, contact the:
Delaware Public Archives at 302-739-5318. or mail request to:
Delaware Public
Archives
121 Duke of York Street
Dover, DE 19901
(302) 739-5318 -- E-mail: [email protected]
Tour the Governor's Home with history of the earlier occupants :
Delaware State Museums administers eight museums located throughout the state. Sites are open to the public free of charge. Donations are welcomed.
The Delaware Agricultural Museum and
Village
866 North DuPont
Highway
Dover, Delaware 19901
302-734-1618 / fax 203-734-0457
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Genealogical and Historical Links to Delaware Information
Delaware/African-Americans in Delaware & Maryland
Delaware/American Local History Network
Delaware/American History and Genealogy Project
Delaware Books for Sale- not endorsed by this site
Delaware Counties and "Hundreds"
Delaware County and Church records online
"Delaware" from 50states.com- general information
Delaware Roots Network- part of the Mid-Atlantic Roots Network
Delware Soldiers buried at Arlington
Delaware Cemeteries-Interment.Net
Delaware Tombstone Transcription Project
Delaware Civil War History Project
University of Delaware Library
The Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History & Culture
Rootsweb Resources for Delaware
"The Charter of Delaware"- from Avalon Project-Yale University
Geographic Names Mapping Service
"The Quaker Corner" type in Delaware
Migrations- Delaware State Page
Delaware State Veteran Cemeteries- no websites
DELAWARE |
| DELAWARE VETERANS MEMORIAL CEMETERY
* 2465 Chesapeake City Road Bear, Delaware 19701 (John J. Jones, Administrator) phone:(302) 834-8046 FAX(302) 834-3787 |
| DELAWARE VETERANS MEMORIALCEMETERY –
SUSSEX COUNTY * RD 5 Box 100 Millsboro, Delaware 19966 Wes Jones pager/302-247-8696 phone: (302) 934-5653 Fax (302) 934-5647 [email protected] |
The state today and a 1826 map
of the state of Delaware showed county boundaries, roads,
settlements, and topographical features. The map also depicts the
location of sandbars in Delaware Bay.
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