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rk and to take part in the free popular government of William Penn in Pennsylvania。 They became magistrates and officials; members of the council and of the legislature。 They soon found that all their avenues of trade and life were quickened。 They passed from mere farmers supplying their own needs to exporters of the products of their farms。

Descendants of the Swedes and Dutch still form the basis of the population of Delaware。* There were some Finns at Marcus Hook; which was called Finland; and it may be noted in passing that there were not a few French among the Dutch; as among the Germans in Pennsylvania; Huguenots who had fled from religious persecution in France。 The name Jaquette; well known in Delaware; marks one of these families; whose immigrant ancestor was one of the Dutch governors。 In the ten or dozen generations since the English conquest intermarriage has in many instances inextricably mixed up Swede; Dutch; and French; as well as the English stock; so that many persons with Dutch names are of Swedish or French descent and vice versa; and some with English names like Oldham are of Dutch descent。 There has been apparently much more intermarriage among the different nationalities in the province and less standing aloof than among the alien divisions of Pennsylvania。

* Swedish names anglicized are now found everywhere。 Gostafsson has become Justison and Justis。 Bond has become Boon; Hoppman; Hoffman; Kalsberg; Colesberry; Wihler; Wheeler; Joccom; Yocum; Dahlbo; Dalbow; Konigh; King; Kyn; Keen; and so on。 Then there are also such names as Wallraven; Hendrickson; Stedham; Peterson; Matson; Talley; Anderson; and the omnipresent Rambo; which have suffered little; if any; change。 Dutch names are also numerous; such as Lockermans; Vandever; Van Dyke; Vangezel; Vandegrift; Alricks; Statts; Van Zandt; Hyatt; Cochran (originally Kolchman); Vance; and Blackstone (originally Blackenstein)。


After the English conquest some Irish Presbyterians or Scotch…Irish entered Delaware。 Finally came the Quakers; comparatively few in colonial times but more numerous after the Revolution; especially in Wilmington and its neighborhood。 True to their characteristics; they left descendants who have become the most prominent and useful citizens down into our own time。 At present Wilmington has become almost as distinctive a Quaker town as Philadelphia。 〃Thee〃 and 〃thou〃 are frequently heard in the streets; and a surprisingly large proportion of the people of prominence and importance are Quakers or of Quaker descent。 Many of the neat and pleasant characteristics of the town are distinctly of Quaker origin; and these characteristics are found wherever Quaker influence prevails。

Wilmington was founded about 1731 by Thomas Willing; an Englishman; who had married into the Swedish family of Justison。 He laid out a few streets on his wife's land on the hill behind the site of old Fort Christina; in close imitation of the plan of Philadelphia; and from that small beginning the present city grew; and was at first called Willingtown。* William Shipley; a Pennsylvania Quaker born in England; bought land in it in 1735; and having more capital than Willing; pushed the fortunes of the town more rapidly。 He probably had not a little to do with bringing Quakers to Wilmington; indeed; their first meetings were held in a house belonging to him until they could build a meeting house of their own in 1738。

* Some years later in a borough charter granted by Penn; the name was changed to Wilmington in honor of the Earl of Wilmington。


Both Shipley and Willing had been impressed with the natural beauty of the situation; the wide view over the level moorland and green marsh and across the broad river to the Jersey shore; as well as by the natural conveniences of the place for trade and commerce。 Wilmington has ever since profited by its excellent situation; with the level moorland for industry; the river for traffic; and the first terraces or hills of the Piedmont for residence; and; for scenery; the Brandywine tumbling through rocks and bowlders in a long series of rapids。

The custom still surviving in Wilmington of punishing certain classes of criminals by whipping appears to have originated in the days of Willing and Shipley; about the year 1740; when a cage; stocks; and whipping…post were erected。 They were placed in the most conspicuous part of the town; and there the culprit; in addition to his legal punishment; was also disciplined at the discretion of passers…by with rotten eggs and other equally potent encouragements to reform。 These gratuitous inflictions; not mentioned in the statute; as well as the public exhibition of the prisoner were abolished in later times and in this modified form the method of correction was extended to the two other counties。 Sometimes a cat…o'nine…tails was used; sometimes a rawhide whip; and sometimes a switch cut from a tree。 Nowadays; however; all the whipping for the State is done in Wilmington; where all prisoners sentenced to whipping in the State are sent。 This punishment is found to be so efficacious that its infliction a second time on the same person is exceedingly rare。

The most striking relic of the old Swedish days in Wilmington is the brick and stone church of good proportions and no small beauty; and today one of the very ancient relics of America。 It was built by the Swedes in 1698 to replace their old wooden church; which was on the lower land; and the Swedish language was used in the services down to the year 1800; when the building was turned over to the Church of England。 Old Peter Minuit; the first Swedish governor; may possibly have been buried there。 The Swedes built another pretty chapelGloria Dei; as it was calledat the village of Wicaco; on the shore of the Delaware where Philadelphia afterwards was established。 The original building was taken down in 1700; and the present one was erected on its site partly with materials from the church at Tinicum。 It remained Swedish Lutheran until 1831; when; like all the Swedish chapels; it became the property of the Church of England; between which and the Swedish Lutheran body there was a close affinity; if not in doctrine; at least in episcopal organization。* The old brick church dating from 1740; on the main street of Wilmington; is an interesting relic of the colonial Scotch…Irish Presbyterians in Delaware; and is now carefully preserved as the home of the Historical Society。

* Clay's 〃Annals of the Swedes〃; pp。 143; 153…4。


After Delaware had been eighteen years under the Duke of York; William Penn felt a need of the west side of the river all the way down to the sea to strengthen his ownership of Pennsylvania。 He also wanted to offset the ambitions of Lord Baltimore to extend Maryland northward。 Penn accordingly persuaded his friend James; the Duke of York; to give him a grant of Delaware; which Penn thereupon annexed to Pennsylvania under the name of the Territories or Three Lower Counties。 The three counties; New Castle; Kent; and Sussex;* are still the counties of Delaware; each one extending across the State and filling its whole length from the hills of the Brandywine on the Pennsylvania border to the sands of Sussex at Cape Henlopen。 The term 〃Territory〃 has ever since been used in America to describe an outlying province not yet given the privileges of a State。 Instead of townships; the three Delaware counties were divided into 〃hundreds;〃 an old Anglo…Saxon county method of division going back beyond the times of Alfred the Great。 Delaware is the only State in the Union that retains this name for county divisions。 The Three Lower Counties were allowed to send representatives to the Pennsylvania Assembly; and the Quakers of Delaware have always been part of the Yearly Meeting in Philadelphia。

* The original names were New Castle; Jones's; and Hoerekill; as it was called by the Dutch; or Deal。


In 1703; after having been a part of Pennsylvania for twenty years; the Three Lower Counties were given home rule and a legislature of their own; but they remained under the Governor of Pennsylvania until the Revolution of 1776。 They then became an entirely separate community and one of the thirteen original States。 Delaware was the first State to adopt the National Constitution; and Rhode Island; its fellow small State; the last。 Having been first to adopt the Constitution; the people of Delaware claim that on all national occasions or ceremonies they are entitled to the privilege of precedence。 They have every reason to be proud of the representative men they sent to the Continental Congress; and to the Senate in later times。 Agriculture has; of course; always been the principal occupation on the level fertile land of Delaware; and it is agriculture of a high class; for the soil; especially in certain localities; is particularly adapted to wheat; corn; and timothy grass; as well as small fruits。 That section of land crossing the State in the region of Delaware City and Middleton is one of the show regions in America; for crops of wheat and corn。 Farther south; grain growing is combined with small fruits and vegetables with a success seldom attained elsewhere。 Agriculturally there is no division of land of similar size quite equal to De

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