National Delaware Day 2023: Date, History, Facts about Delaware

Native American communities such as the Lenni Lenape, Susquehanna, and Nanticoke once inhabited the modern state of Delaware. Later, Dutch and Swedish colonisers colonised the region.

National Delaware Day is annually observed on July 13. The purpose of the holiday is to commemorate Delaware’s status as the first American state to declare independence from the British. Delaware was formerly a part of the states of New York and Pennsylvania, but now it proudly stands on its own. The state was named for the Delaware River and Bay, which were named for Thomas West, Third Baron De La Warr. It became a state when the 13 colonies declared independence from the British in 1776.

The background of National Delaware Day

Native American communities such as the Lenni Lenape, Susquehanna, and Nanticoke once inhabited the modern state of Delaware. Later, Dutch and Swedish colonisers colonised the region.

Delaware was one of the thirteen colonies that rebelled against the British in order to achieve independence from imperial rule. After the outbreak of the American Revolution in 1776, Delaware adopted its first constitution, which stipulated that all state administrators would be referred to as “President.” The Battle of Cooch’s Bridge was the only battle fought on Delaware soil during the American Revolution, in which outnumbered American forces commanded by George Washington were forcibly driven back. The British ruled the state until its independence; it also witnessed the ‘Clow Rebellion’ in 1778, a Loyalist uprising. Delaware became a state of the newly independent United States upon the country’s declaration of independence.

Delaware is host to many historical firsts, including the ratification of the United States Constitution. In addition, it contains the oldest church in the United States, the Holy Trinity Church. Peter Spencer chartered the Union congregation of Africans (now A.U.M.P. Church) in 1801 as the state’s oldest African-American congregation. Delaware was also the location where the nation’s first railway vehicle was discovered. The state is the leading producer of peaches in the United States and the nation’s chemical manufacturing centre.