You’ve probably heard the trivia. Delaware is the "First State." It’s on the license plates, the quarters, and basically every tourism brochure from Wilmington to Rehoboth. But if you ask a historian exactly when was delaware established, you’re going to get a long, slightly frustrated sigh.
History isn't usually a single ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Honestly, Delaware’s birth was more like a decades-long custody battle between three different countries and a very stressed-out William Penn. Depending on who you ask, the "founding" could be 1631, 1638, 1704, or 1787.
Let's break down why this tiny slice of the Delmarva Peninsula has such a complicated birth certificate.
The 1631 Disaster at Zwaanendael
The first time Europeans tried to "establish" Delaware, it ended in a literal massacre. In 1631, Dutch explorers under David Pietersen de Vries landed near what is now Lewes. They called it Zwaanendael, or "Valley of the Swans."
They weren't there for the beaches. They wanted whale oil and farm crops.
The Dutch left a small group of 28 men to hold the fort. Less than a year later, de Vries returned to find the settlement burned to the ground and everyone dead. A dispute over a stolen piece of tin—which bore the Dutch coat of arms—had spiraled into a fatal conflict with the local Siconese tribe.
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Because the settlement didn't survive, most people don't count 1631 as the official "establishment." It was a tragic false start.
1638: New Sweden and the Log Cabin
The real, permanent European footprint happened in 1638. This is the date many history books point to when discussing the establishment of Delaware as a colonial entity.
Peter Minuit (the guy famous for "buying" Manhattan) led a Swedish expedition into the Christina River. They built Fort Christina in what is now Wilmington. This wasn't a Dutch project; it was New Sweden.
Interestingly, these Swedish and Finnish settlers brought something to America that became an icon of the frontier: the log cabin. Before the Swedes showed up in 1638, nobody in the colonies was building them.
The Great Colonial Identity Crisis
Delaware spent the next century being passed around like a hot potato.
- 1655: The Dutch (led by Peter Stuyvesant) marched down from New Amsterdam and took the land back from the Swedes.
- 1664: The English sent a fleet, kicked the Dutch out, and claimed the whole region for the Duke of York.
- 1682: This is where it gets weird. William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania, realized his new colony was landlocked. He desperately needed access to the ocean. He begged the Duke of York for the land along the Delaware River.
The Duke eventually gave in, leasing the "Three Lower Counties" (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex) to Penn. For a long time, Delaware was basically just Pennsylvania’s backyard.
1704: The Year Delaware Gained a Soul
If you’re looking for the moment Delaware became "Delaware" in spirit, it’s 1704.
The people living in the Three Lower Counties were tired of trekking all the way to Philadelphia for government business. They felt the Quakers in Philly didn't understand their needs.
In 1704, William Penn finally allowed them to have their own separate assembly in New Castle. They still shared a governor with Pennsylvania, but they were finally making their own laws.
Why We Call It "The First State"
So, if the colony was sort of established in 1638 or 1704, why does everyone focus on 1787?
It's all about the U.S. Constitution. After the Revolutionary War, the newly independent states had to ratify the new framework for the national government.
On December 7, 1787, Delaware’s delegates met at the Golden Fleece Tavern in Dover. They voted unanimously to ratify the Constitution. Because they were the very first state to do so—beating Pennsylvania by just five days—they earned the permanent title of "The First State."
Common Misconceptions
- Myth: Delaware was one of the original 13 "separate" colonies from the start.
- Reality: Technically, it was often legally tied to Pennsylvania. In the eyes of the British Crown for many years, they were one and the same.
- Myth: The name comes from a Native American word.
- Reality: It’s actually named after Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, who was the governor of Virginia. He never even lived in Delaware.
Making History Practical
If you want to actually see where Delaware was established, skip the textbooks and go to the sites.
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- Zwaanendael Museum (Lewes): It looks like a Dutch city hall and tells the story of that ill-fated 1631 colony.
- Fort Christina Park (Wilmington): You can stand on "The Rocks," the literal spot where the Swedes landed in 1638.
- The Old State House (Dover): This is where the political identity of the state truly solidified during the late 1700s.
Delaware's history is a bit of a jigsaw puzzle. It wasn't born in a day; it was built through survival, Swedish engineering, Dutch persistence, and a very lucky 1787 vote.
To get the most out of a visit to these historic sites, start your journey at the New Castle Court House Museum. It served as the first capitol and is the best place to visualize the era when Delaware finally broke away from Pennsylvania’s shadow. From there, follow the Coastal Highway south to Lewes to see where the Dutch experiment began and ended in a single year.