Visiting Wilmington
Delaware’s largest city of Wilmington is located along the northern borders of the state and is actually just a 20 minute drive from Philadelphia. Wilmington, as well as Delaware for that matter, are some of those places in the country that are almost unheard of to most Americans. Delaware proudly claims to be America’s first state, since they were the first of the original 13 colonies that ratified the constitution. All around Wilmington you’ll see landmarks named after their early citizen Caesar Rodney, one of the founding fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence. This statue of Caesar Rodney above was taking in Rodney Square in the city center.
Wilmington is not the capital of Delaware, but it is the state’s largest city and has a capital feel to it. Surrounding Rodney Square are several government looking buildings like this one above. I thought it may have belonged to a museum or some government office, but as it turns out it actually belongs to a law firm!
Wilmington isn’t known to anyone as a travel destination. I live only about two hours away from the city and I’d say the vast majority of my friends and family know anything about Wilmington. I wasn’t any more knowledgeable until I actually visited. The photos above and below show the colonials part of the city. Clearly in the photo below you can see there has been some effort to try to promote their history and culture.
At first glance the historic part of the city isn’t too impressive to be honest. You’ll see some historic buildings like one photographed above, but otherwise there doesn’t appear to be too much else going on. The street is lined with a mix of historic buildings to a few random stores like the ‘Crazy Discount’ one below.
There are a few historic buildings that are well maintained. Above is the Old City Hall, and below is a colonial square that I couldn’t find the name to. This little tiny square was actually my favorite place in Wilmington, and I was surprised there was no mention of it anywhere online!
The historic district also has some good art galleries and museums. This photograph of a painting above was for sale in an art store. I had tried to go to some museums but the day I visited Wilmington they were all closed. Below is some street art as some call it, painted on the side of a building in the historic district.
As far as history goes I’d say that the most interesting place in Wilmington is the Old Swedes Church. Swedish explorers arrived to the area in 1638 and later began their own colony. The Old Swedes Church was founded in 1699 and is still in use today. This church is actually the oldest church in the entire United States that is still in its original form!. There may be a handful of other churches that are older, but those have been reconstructed or expanded.
The house above is the Hendrickson house which is over 250 years old. It’s a rare example of a Swedish colonial house in the new world. The graves in front of it are part of the Burial Ground. There are over 5,000 graves here, some dating back nearly 400 years. Ancient by American standards!
And lastly, in my quest to reach the highest point of every state, I arrived to one neighborhood in Wilmington to reach Ebright Azimuth. The highest point in Delaware is 447 feet, (136 meters), making it the second lowest and easiest state after Florida. The photo above shows the crux of the route to the high point. If you can get through this neighborhood and cross the street without an accident, you’ll have earned your way to the top of Delaware!
More of Delaware
Fort Delaware
Trap Pond
Horseshoe Crab Migration
Nearby States
Virginia
Pennsylvania
Maryland
