Wilmington

History

Wilmington is built on the site of the settlement Kristinehamn, which was planned by to be the capital of the colony of New Sweden, and Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. The modern city also encompasses other Swedish settlements, such as Timmerön / Timber Island (along Brandywine Creek), Sidoland (South Wilmington), Strandviken (along the Delaware River near Simonds Gardens) and Översidolandet (along the Christina River, near Woodcrest and Ashley Heights). The area now known as Wilmington was settled by the Lenape (or Delaware Indian) band led by Sachem (Chief) Mattahorn just before Henry Hudson sailed up the Len-api Hanna (translated as "People Like Me River," now known as the Delaware River) in 1609. The area was called "Maax-waas Unk" or "Bear Place" after the Maax-waas Hanna (Bear River) that flowed by (present Christina River). It was called the Bear River because it flowed west to the "Bear People", who are now known as the People of Conestoga or the Susquehannocks. The Dutch heard and spelled the river and the place as Minguannan. When settlers and traders from the Swedish South Company under Peter Minuit arrived in March 1638 on the Fogel Grip and Kalmar Nyckel, they purchased Maax-waas Unk from Chief Mattahorn and built Fort Christina at the mouth of the Maax-waas Hanna (which the Swedes renamed the Christina River after Queen Christina of Sweden). The area was also known as "The Rocks", and is located near the foot of present-day Seventh Street. Fort Christina served as the headquarters for the colony of New Sweden which consisted of, for the most part, the lower Delaware River region (parts of present-day Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey), but few colonists settled there. Dr. Timothy Stidham (Swedish:Timen Lulofsson…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. The total area is 36.25% water. The city sits at the confluence of the Christina and Delaware rivers, approximately southwest of Philadelphia. Wilmington Train Station, one of the southernmost stops on Philadelphia's SEPTA rail transportation system, is also served by Northeast Corridor Amtrak passenger trains. Wilmington is served by I-95 and I-495 within city limits. In addition, the twin-span Delaware Memorial Bridge, a few miles south of the city, provides direct highway access between Delaware and New Jersey, carrying the I-295 eastern bypass route around Wilmington and Philadelphia, as well as US 40, which continues eastward to Atlantic City, New Jersey. These transportation links and geographic proximity give Wilmington some of the characteristics of a satellite city to Philadelphia, but Wilmington's long history as Delaware's principal city, its urban core, and its independent value as a business destination makes it more properly considered a small but independent city in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. Wilmington lies along the Fall Line geological transition from the Mid-Atlantic Piedmont Plateau to the Atlantic Coastal Plain. East of Market Street, and along both sides of the Christina River, the Coastal Plain land is flat, low-lying, and in places marshy. The Delaware River here is an estuary at sea level (with twice-daily high and low tides), providing sea-level access for ocean-going ships. On the western side of Market Street, the Piedmont topography is rocky and hilly, rising to a point that marks the watershed between the Brandywine River and the Christina River. This watershed line runs along Delaware Avenue westward from 10th Street…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  47,000
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  42,697
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  38,744
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  38,629
• Song Sparrow

  Melospiza melodia (A.Wilson, 1810) · Aves
  37,457
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  37,451
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  32,909
• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  31,340

Largest nearby schools

• Penn (William) High School
  High · New Castle · 2,239 students · 18.1:1 ratio
• Odyssey Charter School
  Other · Wilmington · 2,123 students · 13:1 ratio
• Delcastle Technical High School
  High · Wilmington · 1,585 students · 12.4:1 ratio
• Las Americas ASPIRA Academy
  Other · Newark · 1,341 students · 15.2:1 ratio
• Christiana High School
  High · Newark · 1,256 students · 14.6:1 ratio
• Conrad Schools of Science
  High · Wilmington · 1,169 students · 18:1 ratio
• Mount Pleasant High School
  High · Wilmington · 1,107 students · 14.4:1 ratio
• Dickinson (John) School
  High · Wilmington · 1,058 students · 16.5:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 4.1 — 2017-11-30
  3 km NNE of Little Creek, Delaware
• M 2.64 — 2015-01-25
  4 km ESE of Downingtown, Pennsylvania
• M 2.78 — 2009-07-01
  3 km ESE of Pennsville, New Jersey
• M 3.37 — 2008-12-27
  2 km NNE of Landisville, Pennsylvania