Belltown, Delaware facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Belltown, Delaware
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 Belltown, Delaware
Location in Delaware
Belltown, Delaware
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Delaware |
| County | Sussex |
| Elevation | 26 ft (8 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| Area code(s) | 302 |
| GNIS feature ID | 213630 |
Belltown is a small community in Sussex County, Delaware, United States. It's an unincorporated community, which means it doesn't have its own local government like a city or town. Instead, it's managed by the county.
Belltown is located along U.S. Route 9. It is about 5.5 miles (8.9 km) west-northwest of Rehoboth Beach.
History of Belltown
How Belltown Started
Belltown was founded around 1840 by a man named Jacob Bell. He was known as a "free person of color." This term was used in the past for people who were not considered fully European. It included African Americans and Native Americans, such as the Nanticoke people.
A Unique Community
At that time, many communities had separate neighborhoods for different groups of people. For example, nearby Lewes had its own minority neighborhoods. However, Belltown was special. It was the first time a group of people successfully created their own separate community in that area.
Life in Belltown
Most people living in Belltown relied on the nearby town of Lewes for their jobs and daily needs. They would often travel there to work.
However, some families in Belltown were also landowners. They owned their own farms and had done so since the early 1800s. The owners of the Norwood House were an example of these important landowners. This shows that Belltown had a mix of people with different ways of life.
