Centerville (also known as Centreville) is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

New Castle County New Castle County is the northernmost of the three counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent, and Sussex). As of the 2020 census, the population was 570,719, making it the most populous county in Delaware, with nearly 60% of the ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, United States. Centerville is now known primarily for being the location of

Du Pont family The du Pont family () or Du Pont family is a prominent American family descended from Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739–1817). It has been one of the richest families in the United States since the mid-19th century, when it founded its fo ...

estates, as well as several other wealthy business families from nearby Wilmington, and the home of

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Jack Markell Jack Alan Markell (born November 26, 1960) is an American politician who currently serves as the United States ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. He previously served as the 73rd governor of Delaware from 2 ...

History

The village developed along the Kennett and Wilmington Pike which was chartered by the Delaware Legislature in 1811. The road, now known as

Delaware Route 52 Delaware Route 52 (DE 52) is a state highway in New Castle County, Delaware. The route runs from U.S. Route 13 Business (US 13 Bus.) in downtown Wilmington north to Pennsylvania Route 52 (PA 52) at the Pennsylvan ...

or the Kennett Pike, is part of the Brandywine Valley Scenic Byway, a

National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Co ...

. A group of fifteen houses, most of the village, was listed as the Centreville Historic District by the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1982. About the same time, three other properties near the village, the Joseph Chandler House, the Carpenter-Lippincott House, and Mt. Airy School No. 27, were separately listed by the NRHP. The

Centre Meeting and Schoolhouse Centre Meeting and Schoolhouse, also known as Centre Meeting of Religious Society of Friends, is a historic Quaker meeting house and school located on Center Meeting Road in Centerville, New Castle County, Delaware. It was built in 1796 and i ...

had been listed in 1971. The hamlet of

Fairville, Pennsylvania Fairville, Pennsylvania is an unincorporated area in southern Chester County which developed in the early nineteenth century about a mile north of the Pennsylvania-Delaware border. It is a linear village along the Kennett Pike (Pennsylvania Rout ...

, about three miles north on Kennett Pike (

Pennsylvania Route 52 Pennsylvania Route 52 (PA 52) is a state highway located in southeast Pennsylvania. The southern terminus of the route is at the Pennsylvania-Delaware state line near Kennett Square, where the road continues as Delaware Route 52 (DE 52). The nort ...

) developed about the same time as Centerville, and is also listed on the National Register. Centerville's population was 110 in 1890, 110 in 1900, and 210 in 1925.

Geography

Centerville is located at on the

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

state line, 5 mi/8 km north-northwest of Wilmington. Its elevation is .

Area attractions

Brandywine Creek State Park Brandywine Creek State Park is a state park, located north of Wilmington, Delaware along the Brandywine Creek. Open year-round, it is in area and much of the park was part of a Du Pont family estate and dairy farm before becoming a state park ...

is located just to the SE of the village center.

Delaware Museum of Natural History The Delaware Museum of Nature & Science (DMNS) is a museum located since January 1, 2022. The museum was founded in 1957 by John Eleuthere du Pont near Greenville, Delaware; it opened in 1972 on a site near Winterthur, Delaware. It is known for i ...

and the Winterthur Museum, Garden, and Library are located just to the south of Centerville, on

Education

Centerville is home to

Layton Preparatory School Centreville Layton School is a private Delaware school for children with diverse learning styles. Centreville Layton School offers a robust educational and cultural experience for students who learn differently. The program identifies academic an ...

and the Centreville Layton School/

Notable people

Isaac Collins, a colonial printer, publisher, bookseller and merchant born in Centerville.

Michael Spinks Michael Spinks (born July 13, 1956) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1977 to 1988. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the undisputed light heavyweight title from 1983 to 1985, and the lineal he ...

, a professional boxer born in

St. Louis, MO St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which ...

, Former two-division champion.

References

External links

Centreville, Delaware homepage
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in New Castle County, Delaware Unincorporated communities in Delaware