New Castle Our Town

New Castle celebrates its heritage with many events over the course of the year. Two perennial tourist favorites are: A Day in Old New Castle, when the town dresses in colonial garb and throws an “Open House” with tours of private historic homes, gardens, churches and public buildings; and Separation Day, with a parade, festivities, reenactments, booths, rides, food, an evening concert and fireworks. These are just two of the mainy unique activities which will enrich your visit to our historic town (see Tourist Events for a complete list).

When you step into New Castle you will step back in time. Today’s town is a vibrant, harmonious and quiet community, but it once bustled as one of the hubs of colonial America. It was Delaware’s first capital, it was a leader of the effort to approve the Declaration of Independence, it guided Delaware as it became the first State to ratify the Constitution and it was a major seaport and center of American commerce. But, all of that changed…first for the worse and then for the better…and that is why we are the unique historic community that we are today.

Roughly 175 years ago the world “forgot” about New Castle. With the advent of railroads (which bypassed the town) and a dramatic decrease in shipping due to the completion of

The Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. New Castle ceased to be a center of commerce and transportation. In fact, it became a bit of an afterthought, and so began a 100 year period of slow economic decline. With a depressed economy there was little incentive (or money) to replace historic buildings with more modern ones, so much of the town remained untouched. However, "progress" was inevitable and in the 1920's and 1930's new construction started to replace the old. To preserve our heritage, a group of concerned citizens banded together and formed The New Castle Historical Society in 1934. They saved the legacy of our town and their work over the past 75 years is a large reason why New Castle remains the charming "time capsule" that you experience today.

New Castle is located on the banks of the Delaware River, just 7 miles south of Wilmington. You can walk to all the attractions in town, so park your car and forget about it until it is time to go home. Taking a walking tour (either on your own or with a guide) is a great way to experience our history and historic buildings. For complete information on how to “do it yourself”, or to set up a group visit, see Walking & Group Tours.

Of course sightseeing isn’t the only activity that will please you during your visit. Old New Castle has many excellent restaurants and shops for your enjoyment (see Dining and Shopping). If you plan to stay the night you will find some classically historic B&Bs right here in town and more contemporary hotels on the outskirts (see Lodging). And when you have finished strolling our charming cobblestone streets and brick sidewalks a visit to our riverside Battery Park is a nice way to cap off a relaxing day.