Delaware Colony facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Lower Counties on
the Delaware |
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| 1664–1776 | |||||||||
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Delaware in 1757 ("Delaware Counties", center-left)
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| Status | Colony of England (1664–1707) Colony of Great Britain (1707–1776) |
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| Capital | New Castle | ||||||||
| Common languages | English, Dutch, Munsee, Unami | ||||||||
| Government | Semiautonomous proprietary colony | ||||||||
| Proprietor | |||||||||
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• 1664–1682
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Territory contested | ||||||||
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• 1682–1718
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William Penn (first) | ||||||||
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• 1775–1776
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John Penn (last) | ||||||||
| Legislature | General Assembly | ||||||||
| History | |||||||||
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• Established
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1664 | ||||||||
| 1776 | |||||||||
| Currency | Delaware pound | ||||||||
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| Today part of | United States | ||||||||
The Lower Counties on the Delaware was a colonial region in North America that eventually became the state of Delaware. Long ago, this land sat along the western shore of the Delaware Bay and the winding Delaware River. Before European explorers arrived, Native American nations like the Lenape and the Assateague lived here successfully. Over many decades, settlers arrived from the Netherlands, Sweden, and England to build new communities. Today, people remember this vibrant historical place as an important part of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Contents
Early Explorers and the First European Settlements
Long before towns existed in this region, Native American families lived in harmony with the local forests and rivers. The Lenape hunted wild game, fished in clear streams, and grew crops like corn, beans, and squash. They shared the waterways with neighboring groups like the Assateague people. The river provided rich resources for traveling, trading, and gathering seasonal food.
European exploration of the Delaware Valley began in 1609. An English explorer named Henry Hudson sailed an exploration vessel called the Halve Maen for the Dutch. Hudson was looking for a famous water route called the Northwest Passage to reach Asia quickly. Instead of finding Asia, he sailed right into the wide waters of the Delaware Bay. Hudson originally called this water the South River.
A year later, in 1610, an English captain named Samuel Argall sailed into the same bay by accident. A storm had blown his ship off course while he traveled toward Virginia. Argall decided to honor Thomas West, Lord De La Warr, who was the colonial governor of Virginia. He named the waterway the river Delaware. Soon, mapmakers began using this title for both the river and the surrounding shores.
Dutch navigators continued exploring the coast. In 1613, Cornelius May mapped parts of the coast, followed by Cornelius Hendrickson in 1614. Their detailed charts helped add the region to the Dutch colonial territory called New Netherland. Early Dutch traders built an outpost named Fort Nassau along Big Timber Creek, near modern Gloucester City, New Jersey.
In 1629, agents named Gillis Hossitt and Jacob Jansz arrived to buy land for the Dutch West India Company. Dutch leaders preferred purchasing land directly from local tribes instead of fighting for it. However, Native Americans believed that land was shared by everyone like the air and sunshine. They viewed trade goods as friendly gifts rather than permanent purchases of territory. Hossitt and Jansz secured a large coastal strip matching modern Sussex and Kent counties.
In 1631, twenty-eight men built a small settlement named the Zwaanendael Colony near modern Cape Henlopen. The Dutch hoped to catch whales and make valuable lamp oil from whale blubber. Sadly, serious misunderstandings between the colonists and the local Native Americans ended the colony within a year. A Dutch leader named Patroon David Pietersz. de Vries brought fifty more settlers soon afterward. Seeing the danger, de Vries chose to guide his group north to New Amsterdam instead.
New Sweden and the Struggle for Land
In March 1638, a new group of brave voyagers arrived aboard a famous ship named the Kalmar Nyckel. They were Swedes who wanted to start a permanent trading colony called New Sweden. Their ship landed at a rocky shore along the Minquas Kill, now celebrated as Swedes' Landing in Wilmington, Delaware. This exciting expedition was led by Peter Minuit, an experienced leader who had once managed New Netherland.
Minuit helped build a sturdy wooden fort named Fort Christina in honor of young Queen Christina of Sweden. The Swedish colony welcomed people from many places, including Finland, Germany, and the Netherlands. Finnish and Swedish settlers brought an amazing building style to America: the classic log cabin. These strong wooden homes were warm, simple to construct, and spread widely across the American frontier.
A colorful leader named Johan Björnsson Printz served as the governor of New Sweden from 1643 to 1653. Printz was a very tall, strict man who expanded the colony's fur trading network. Later, Johan Classon Risingh took over as the final governor of New Sweden. The colony relied heavily on trading beaver pelts along the Great Minquas Path near modern Philadelphia.
The Dutch government never liked having a Swedish colony so close to their own trading posts. In 1651, the Dutch governor Peter Stuyvesant took action. He moved Fort Nassau downriver to construct Fort Casimir, surrounding the Swedish outposts. In response, Swedish forces captured Fort Casimir in 1654 and renamed it Fort Trinity. They also abandoned an older post called Fort Beversreede.
Governor Stuyvesant returned in September 1655 with an entire naval fleet and hundreds of soldiers. The Dutch easily recaptured the region and took full control of New Sweden. Stuyvesant renamed Fort Casimir as New Amstel, which later became the historic town of New Castle. It quickly became a bustling center for trade, government, and new farming families.
English Rule and Joining Pennsylvania
In 1664, English ships arrived in North America to challenge Dutch control. English commander Richard Nicolls took over New Amsterdam without any fighting. An officer named Robert Carr was sent south to capture the settlements along the Delaware River. Carr seized New Amstel, renamed it New Castle, and claimed all the land for England.
Carr's soldiers marched across the countryside, destroying several local settlements along the coast. They even broke up a peaceful farming community led by Pieter Corneliszoon Plockhoy near Lewes, Delaware. With this takeover, Dutch rule in North America came to an end. The territory was placed under the authority of James, Duke of York, who later became King James II.
In 1681, King Charles II granted land to a peaceful Quaker leader named William Penn. This vast forested region became the famous Province of Pennsylvania. Penn wanted a direct water route to the Atlantic Ocean for his ships. In 1682, Penn asked the Duke of York for the land along the river, gaining the lower three counties.
Governing both Pennsylvania and the lower counties proved very tricky for William Penn. The northern towns were filled with quiet Quaker merchants and farmers. In contrast, the southern counties had sandy coastal soil and large tobacco farms. These farms relied heavily on the labor of enslaved people brought from Africa. Because their daily lives and economies were so different, leaders from both sections constantly argued.
In 1701, Penn agreed to create a peaceful compromise for everyone. He allowed the lower counties to form their own separate assembly to make local laws. Delaware lawmakers met in their own capital at New Castle, while Pennsylvania leaders met in Philadelphia. Even though they had separate assemblies, both colonies shared the very same colonial governor until the American Revolutionary War.
Life in the Lower Counties
Life in the Lower Counties was a fascinating mix of languages, cultures, and traditions. People spoke English, Dutch, and Native languages like Munsee and Unami. Settlers used their own paper money, known as the Delaware pound, to buy tools and livestock. Families worshiped freely because Delaware had no single official church.
During the 1700s, thousands of Protestant families sailed across the ocean from Ulster in the Ireland. Known as Ulster Scots or Scotch-Irish, they arrived through bustling ports in New Castle and Philadelphia. These hard-working families traveled into the valleys to build farms, churches, and schools. They brought great energy and strong ideas about personal liberty.
When disagreements with the British crown turned into the American Revolutionary War in 1775, Delaware took action. On June 15, 1776, the Delaware General Assembly voted to separate from both Great Britain and Pennsylvania. This historic vote officially created the free State of Delaware. Weeks later, on July 4, 1776, Delaware joined twelve other colonies to create the United States of America.
Sources
- Johnson, Amandus. The Swedish Settlements on the Delaware, 1638–1664 (Philadelphia: Swedish Colonial Society, 1911)
- Weslager, C. A. A Man and His Ship: Peter Minuit and the Kalmar Nyckel (Kalmar Nyckel Foundation. Wilmington, Delaware. 1989)
