Delaware City is a city in

New Castle County, Delaware New Castle County is the northernmost of the three List of counties in Delaware, counties of the U.S. state of Delaware (New Castle, Kent County, Delaware, Kent, and Sussex County, Delaware, Sussex). As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

, United States. The population was 1,885 as of 2020. It is a small port town on the eastern terminus of the

Chesapeake and Delaware Canal The Chesapeake & Delaware Canal (C&D Canal) is a -long, -wide and -deep ship canal that connects the Delaware River with the Chesapeake Bay in the states of Delaware and Maryland in the United States. In the mid-17th century, mapmaker Augus ...

and is the location of the Forts Ferry Crossing to Fort Delaware on Pea Patch Island.

History

The Delaware City Historic District, Chelsea, Eastern Lock of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, Fairview, and Fort Delaware on Pea Patch Island are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Geography

Delaware City is located at (39.5778901, –75.5888150). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (6.01%) is water.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,453 people, 567 households, and 395 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 616 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 87.47%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 10.32%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.41% Native American, 0.21% Asian, 0.69% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 1.24% of the population. There were 567 households, out of which 31.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.0% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 16.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.03. The age distribution of the population of the city in 2000 was 24.8% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 27.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females, there were 101.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $43,611, and the median income for a family was $50,294. Males had a median income of $40,192 versus $27,800 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $21,992. About 5.9% of families and 8.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 11.7% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Economy

Delaware City is close to the

Delaware City Oil Refinery The Delaware City Refinery, currently owned by Delaware City Refining Corporation, a subsidiary of PBF Energy, is an oil refinery in Delaware City, Delaware. When operational it has a total throughput capacity of , and employs around 570 indivi ...

belonging to PBF Energy.

Entertainment and leisure

Delaware City's Fort DuPont State Park contains the home field of the Diamond State Base Ball Club, a vintage base ball team. The Diamond State Base Ball Club typically plays 4-6 games there per year. The Diamond State Base Ball Club also plays at least once per year at Fort Delaware on Pea Patch Island and also at nearby Port Penn, Delaware. The Diamond State Base Ball Club is a non-profit amateur organization created for the purposes of providing physical fitness to its members, educating the public on the history of baseball and local history, and serving as a point of public pride.

Education

Delaware City is in the Colonial School District. It operates William Penn High School. Previously Delaware City was in the New Castle-Gunning Bedford School District. That district merged into the New Castle County School District in 1978. That district was divided into four districts, among them the Colonial district, in 1981. Delaware City Public Library is the public library of the municipality.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Delaware Route 9 Delaware Route 9 (DE 9) is a state highway that runs from Delaware Route 1, DE 1 near Dover Air Force Base in Kent County, Delaware, Kent County north to Delaware Route 2, DE 2 in the city of Wilmington, Delaware, Wilmingt ...

serves as the main road through Delaware City, passing southeast–northwest through the city on 5th Street. South of Delaware City, DE 9 passes over the

on the Reedy Point Bridge. North of Delaware City, DE 9 has an intersection with Delaware Route 72, which provides access to U.S. Route 13 and

Delaware Route 1 Delaware Route 1 (DE 1) is the longest numbered state highway in the U.S. state of Delaware. The route runs from the Maryland state line in Fenwick Island, Delaware, Fenwick Island, Sussex County, Delaware, Sussex County, where the ...

DART First State The Delaware Transit Corporation, operating as DART First State, is the only public transportation system that operates throughout the U.S. state of Delaware. DART First State provides local and inter-county bus service throughout the state and al ...

provides bus service to Delaware City along Route 44, which heads north to Christiana Mall. Delaware City is at the east end of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, which provides boaters with access to the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

to the east and the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Ea ...

to the west. The Forts Ferry Crossing is a passenger ferry that provides access from Delaware City to Fort Delaware on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River and to Fort Mott in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

Utilities

Delmarva Power Delmarva Power is an energy company that provides electricity and natural gas to customers on portions of the Delmarva Peninsula in the states of Delaware and Maryland. The company is a subsidiary of Exelon. Electricity and natural gas Delmarva P ...

, a subsidiary of

Exelon Exelon Corporation is an American public utility headquartered in Chicago, and incorporated in Pennsylvania. Exelon is the largest electric parent company in the United States by revenue and is the largest regulated electric utility in the Uni ...

, provides electricity and natural gas to Delaware City. The water system in Delaware City is owned by the city and operated under contract by Artesian Water Company, a subsidiary of Artesian Resources. Sewer service in Delaware City is provided by New Castle County. Trash collection is provided under contract by Waste Industries while recycling collection is provided by the city. Cable and internet in Delaware City is provided by

Atlantic Broadband Breezeline (previously Atlantic Broadband) is the trade name for the United States operations of Cogeco Communications, constituting the 8th largest cable operator in the United States, based on the number of television service customers served. ...

and

Verizon Verizon Communications Inc. ( ), is an American telecommunications company headquartered in New York City. It is the world's second-largest telecommunications company by revenue and its mobile network is the largest wireless carrier in the ...

. Telephone service is provided mostly by Verizon, with

Cavalier Telephone Cavalier Telephone is an American Local Exchange Carrier (NRCLEC) company, owned by parent company Windstream Communications operating in 16 states and DC throughout the eastern US. Cavalier, founded in 1998, is an internet and telecommunicatio ...

also serving the city.

Notable people

* Nana Akosah-Bempah, soccer player * Lt. Gen. Eugene Reybold, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, chief of engineers, during World War II * John E. Rickards, first Lieutenant Governor of Montana and the second

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

* Bill Press, liberal political commentator and former candidate for Senator of California.

References

External links

Official city website

Tourism website
{{authority control Cities in New Castle County, Delaware Cities in Delaware Delaware populated places on the Delaware River