Delaware Celebrates America at 250!: Historical Societies, Museums, & Parks

Delaware History Museum
Read House & Gardens

Marvel Museum

John Dickinson, known as the “Penman of the Revolution,” was one of America’s founding fathers who wrote of freedom and liberty for all while holding human beings in bondage. The John Dickinson Plantation was home to a variety of people. We tell the stories of the tenant farmers, indentured servants, free and enslaved Black men, women, and children who lived, worked, and died on the plantation.

Founded in 1967, the museum details the origin of recorded music. Exhibits showcase the life and legacy of Eldridge Reeves Johnson, a pioneer in early sound recording and co-founder of the Victor Talking Machine Company.

Delaware’s first court and state capitol, built in 1732. Here in 1776, Delaware declared its independence from both Pennsylvania and England.

Completed in 1791, The Old State House served as Delaware’s capitol during the United States’ critical early years as a nation.

Built in commemoration of Delaware’s first European colony, Swanendael, the museum serves as a showcase for Lewes-area maritime, military and social history.

The Bowers Beach Maritime Museum houses artifacts of Bowers, the Delaware Bay and the watermen of the area.

The mission of the Delaware Sports Museum and Hall of Fame is to celebrate the history, preserve the legacy, and honor the heroes of sports within Delaware and those who have brought recognition to Delaware by their accomplishments elsewhere.

Stretching eight miles along Delaware Bay and covering 16,251 acres, Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge provides habitat for wildlife. Four-fifths of the refuge is tidal salt marsh with a mix of cordgrass meadows, mud flats, tidal pools, rivers, creeks, and tidal streams. The upland area includes forests, freshwater impoundments, brushy and timbered swamps, and fields of herbaceous plants. This diversity of habitats is reflected in the diversity of animal life.

The refuge offers visitors a 12-mile wildlife drive, five walking trails (2 handicapped accessible), three observation towers, wildlife photography, hunting opportunities, a variety of nature and educational programs, and interpretative displays.