Delaware
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As the many state and local slogans proclaim, America started here.

The area is indeed very rich in history, much of which has been preserved for us to enjoy today. Trace the steps of our founding fathers in historic Philadelphia. Experience the charm and history of Old New Castle (one of America’s earliest settlements). Visit the birthplace of the DuPont Company at Hagley and discover the legacy of the du Pont family. Or, turn on the Bob Marley and drive by the Chrysler Plant in Newark where the reggae musician worked-briefly-before becoming an icon. No matter where your interest in history lies, our roads, rivers and railways can take you there.
Discovery

August 28, 1609–The Spanish and Portuguese are believed to have made explorations of the Delaware coastline in the early sixteenth century (as early as 1526!). However, Henry Hudson–an English navigator under the employ of the Dutch East India Trading Company–is credited with the discovery of what would become known as the Delaware River and the Delaware Bay.

Hudson’s magnificent discoveries would eventually give the Dutch the right to claim a major chunk of the New World (much of what is now the mid-Atlantic region) as the New Netherlands.

It’s important to note that at the time, Holland was the major maritime power and the world’s greatest trading country. Explorers were sent to the New World not to build a political empire, but to find a faster route to India. It was hoped, briefly, that the Delaware River would be a shortcut to China. It wasn’t.
What’s in a name?

One source we consulted states that the English allowed the Dutch to name both the Delaware River and the Delaware Bay in honor of Lord de la Warr who was believed to have discovered both on his voyage to Virginia in 1610. It has since been proven that Lord la Warr never made it this far north, but the name stuck and over time de la Warr became Delaware.

We also read a more dramatic story about a Dutch captain name Samuel Argall who was blown off course during a storm. Seeking calm seas, he sailed into a strange bay. He survived (as you probably guessed) and thrilled that he did, he named this bay (the Delaware Bay) in honor of his governor, Lord De la Warr.

This Lord de la Warr (if you’re wondering) was the first Governor of Virginia, a title he earned for life even though he ultimately 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. (confused? Us too.) Apparently, Thomas had two older brothers, and as the third son of Lord la Warr, he was ineligible for the title. Now, it’s our guess that Thomas could take the title and bear the crown in the event of the untimely deaths of his two brothers, or if naughty etchings of the two were to have surfaced. But, as we said, that’s just our guess.
1613-1614–People knew it was there, but the Delaware River and Bay were first explored by Captain Cornelius Hendricksen, aboard the boat called "Onrust" ("Restless"). Hendricksen is regarded by many to be the first "civilized man" to set foot in what is now Delaware. In his journal, he records that he traded with the Indians for skins of various kinds; sables, otter, mink, bear robes, etc. The forests, he said, were alive with game, bucks, does, turkeys and partridges.

At Christiana Creek, he landed and walked over land that was "destined to be covered with the streets and buildings of the city of Wilmington." There he met a band of Minquas Indians. Hendricksen "relieved" the Indians of the three white men in their capture. Apparently these "not-quite-as-civilized" men had fled the Dutch fort near the site of Albany, NY in the spring of 1616. They wandered up the Mohawk Valley, crossed the dividing ridge to the headwaters of the Delaware, descended that stream to Delaware where they fell into the hands of the Minquas who kindly made prisoners of them.


1625–"The colony of Manhattan numbered over two hundred souls." Doesn’t have much to do with the history of Delaware, but helps put things into perspective.

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