Places You Can Visit
Historic Sites in Delaware
Explore 14 historic places in Delaware, from museums and landmarks to destinations connected with defining events and eras in American history.
Historic Destinations in Delaware
Fort Miles Museum and Historical Area
Lewes, DE
A preserved World War II coastal-defense complex at Cape Henlopen where bunkers, heavy artillery, exhibits, and tours tell the story of guarding Delaware Bay and the Delaware River.
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Hagley Museum and Library
Wilmington, DE
A riverside industrial museum preserving the original DuPont powder works, working machinery, workers' community, and the du Pont family's first American home.
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Cannonball House Maritime Museum
Lewes, DE
An 18th-century Lewes landmark scarred by the War of 1812 bombardment and now devoted to the town's maritime heritage.
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Corbit-Sharp House
Odessa, DE
A remarkably documented 1770s Georgian mansion in historic Odessa with deep connections to Delaware’s colonial life and the Underground Railroad.
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Fort Delaware State Park
Delaware City, DE
A Civil War-era island fortress reached by ferry from Delaware City, where living-history programs interpret coastal defense and the imprisonment of Confederate soldiers.
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Fort DuPont State Park
Delaware City, DE
A Delaware River park preserving remnants of a military post that evolved from Civil War defenses into a major coastal-artillery installation used through World War II.
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Indian River Life-Saving Station
Rehoboth Beach, DE
A restored 19th-century U.S. Life-Saving Service station that brings the dangerous work of Delaware's coastal surfmen and shipwreck rescuers to life.
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John Dickinson Plantation
Dover, DE
The plantation home of statesman John Dickinson, interpreted today through both his founding-era legacy and the lives of the free and enslaved people connected to the property.
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Nemours Estate
Wilmington, DE
A grand early-twentieth-century du Pont estate featuring a 77-room mansion, formal French-inspired gardens, and a collection of vintage automobiles.
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New Castle Court House Museum
New Castle, DE
A landmark 1732 courthouse where Delaware declared its separation from Pennsylvania and Great Britain and where later legal battles over the Underground Railroad unfolded.
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Ryves Holt House Museum & Mercantile
Lewes, DE
Delaware's oldest surviving building on its original foundation, interpreting more than three centuries of colonial, maritime, and community history in Lewes.
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The Old State House
Dover, DE
Delaware's first permanent capitol in Dover, preserving an early courtroom and legislative chambers that served state government into the twentieth century.
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Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library
Wilmington, DE
A landmark Brandywine Valley estate where Henry Francis du Pont’s 175-room home, renowned American decorative arts collection, research library, and naturalistic garden come together.
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Zwaanendael Museum
Lewes, DE
A distinctive Dutch-inspired state museum in Lewes commemorating Delaware's first European colony and interpreting the region's maritime, military, and social history.
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Historical Eras Represented
Road Trips Through Delaware
Defending the Delaware: Forts from Civil War to World War II
Follow a century of Delaware coastal defense from a Civil War island fortress to a modernized river fort and the World War II batteries at Cape Henlopen.
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Brandywine Legacy: Powder Mills to du Pont Estates
Trace the du Pont family's Delaware story from the gunpowder works that launched an industrial empire to two grand estates shaped by later generations.
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Lewes & the Coast: Settlement, War, and Maritime Rescue
Explore Delaware's coastal history from Dutch settlement and colonial port life through the War of 1812 and the lifesaving crews who patrolled a dangerous shoreline.
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Freedom Through Delaware: Underground Railroad Stories
Follow stories of freedom seekers and anti-slavery resistance through the courthouse, home, and legal sites that preserve Delaware's Underground Railroad history.
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The First State: From Independence to Ratification
Follow Delaware's path from colonial independence to statehood through its first capitol, a founding-era plantation, and Dover's historic seat of government.
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