First State National Historical Park
Pennsylvania, Delaware
Tonight
🌗 46% moon
6.4 h fully dark
Crowds
low
Open today
Open
New Castle Court House Museum: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 24 – Dec 24; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Jan 18 – Jan 18; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Jul 4 – Jul 4; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Jan 1 – Mar 5; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Dec 24 – Dec 24; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Jul 4 – Jul 4; Fort Christina: closed Oct 12 – Oct 12; Fort Christina: closed Nov 11 – Nov 11; Fort Christina: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; Fort Christina: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; Fort Christina: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; Fort Christina: closed Jan 1 – Jan 18; Fort Christina: closed Feb 15 – Feb 15; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Dec 24 – Dec 24; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Jul 4 – Jul 4
Entrance
Free entry
Famous as the First State to ratify the Constitution, Delaware was born out of a conflict among three world powers for dominance of the Delaware Valley. From this beginning, the region developed a distinct character that tolerated diversity in religion and national origin and valued independence.
Activities
Topics
No entrance fee.
Hours & seasons
The New Castle Court House Museum is open Wednesday - Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and Sunday 1:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Tours are available at 10:00 a.m., 11:00a.m., 1:00 p.m., 2:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. During tours, visitors are welcome to check out the waiting area to pick up information, ask questions, or get their passport stamped. The New Castle Court House Museum is closed on Tuesdays.
⚠ New Castle Court House Museum: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 24 – Dec 24; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Jan 18 – Jan 18; New Castle Court House Museum: closed Jul 4 – Jul 4; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Jan 1 – Mar 5; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Dec 24 – Dec 24; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; Old Swedes Historic Site: closed Jul 4 – Jul 4; Fort Christina: closed Oct 12 – Oct 12; Fort Christina: closed Nov 11 – Nov 11; Fort Christina: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; Fort Christina: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; Fort Christina: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; Fort Christina: closed Jan 1 – Jan 18; Fort Christina: closed Feb 15 – Feb 15; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Nov 26 – Nov 26; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Dec 24 – Dec 24; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Dec 25 – Dec 25; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Jan 1 – Jan 1; John Dickinson Plantation: closed Jul 4 – Jul 4
Generally open:
winterspringsummerfallHours are reported by the park — verify before you go.
📞 302-317-3854
✉ firststate@nps.govConditions
Quietest months (fewer crowds): Jan, Feb, Mar, Dec
Typical crowds: low
Weather now: ⛅ Partly cloudy, 86°F
☁️ 88°/76°
🌦️ 89°/73°
🌦️ 92°/71°
Typical monthly recreation visits · NPS avg 2023–2025 — orange months are the quietest by crowds.
Quietest months
Relative crowds by month — lighter is quieter; ringed months are the calmest by crowds.
Jan
11%
Feb
11%
Mar
27%
Apr
29%
May
50%
Jun
64%
Jul
73%
Aug
51%
Sep
39%
Oct
100%
Nov
31%
Dec
19%
Log a sky reading
Measured the sky with an SQM meter or app? Add your reading (16 = city glow … 22 = pristine). Opt in under “Travelers like you” to share it on the community leaderboard.
Visitor centers
Sheriff's House Welcome Center
Accessibility
17 audio-described place(s)
Reported by the park — verify before you go.
Parking
Delaware Street Parking · 30 accessible spacesaccessible
Lot #1 · 4 accessible spaces
Lot #2 · 2 accessible spaces
Lot #3 - Smith Bridge parking lot · 66 accessible spaces
Lot #4 - Ramsey Parking Lot · 10 accessible spaces
Not an official safety source — always defer to NPS.gov and rangers for life-safety decisions.
By the numbers
A visual read on First State National Historical Park — its character, trails, sky, and weather.
Park fingerprint
How this park scores across the dimensions travelers care about.
3-day forecast
Daily high and low temperatures (°F).
People & stories
Figures tied to First State National Historical Park — each spans a cross-park journey.
Anthony Swart
— New Sweden, Slavery, Slave TradeFlorence Bayard Hilles
— Delaware, National Womans Party, Womans HistoryHarriet Tubman
— Underground Railroad, Civil War, American HeroesJohn Dickinson
— American Revolution, Slavery, AbolitionMabel Lloyd Ridgely
— First State National Historical Park, Women's History, Suffrage MovementMabel Vernon
— Suffragist, Delaware, Women HistoryOliver Evans
— Industrial Revolution, First State National Historical Park, DelawareSamuel Burris
— First State National Historical Park, Slavery, AbolitionPassport stamps
Mark the stamps you've collected — they show in your memory and along your routes.
🎫 John Dickinson Plantation Visitor Center
🎫 John Dickinson Plantation Visitor Center
🎫 New Castle Court House Museum
🎫 Old Swedes Church
🎫 Sheriff's House Welcome Center
🎫 The Old State House
Places to see
Beaver Creek Ruins
audio
Delaware-Pennsylvania Border Marker
audio
Fort Christina & The Rocks
audio
John Bell House
audio
John Dickinson Plantation Visitor Center
audio
Mica Mining Pit
audio
New Castle Court House Museum
audio
Old Swedes Burial Grounds
audio
Old Swedes Church
audio
Parking Lot 1 Trailhead
audio
Parking Lot 2 Trailhead
audio
Parking Lot 4 Trailhead
audioAudio & media
🎧
🎬
🖼
Learn more
In May 2016, First State NHP partnered with The Nature Conservancy in Delaware (TNC) to host a public BioBlitz at the park, to celebrate the National Park Service's 100th Birthday!
Historic Preservation allows us to reflect, understand and appreciate our history to build connections to others and learn from the past. However, historic preservation does not just protect physical things such as buildings and places, it can include anything including art, food, and dance! Do you have something that you want to preserve forever?
Named for the colonial battery that once defended New Castle from river borne threats, Battery Park has witnessed centuries of change. From cannons and powder taxes to railroads, coal wharves, and seaside recreation, the site evolved with the needs of the community. Officially opened as a city park in 1939, it remains a place where history and river views meet.
Trace the history of education for Black students in New Castle, from early church-based and Quaker schools to DuPont-funded schools and eventual integration after Brown v. Board of Education.
Learn about how Brandywine Valley became associated with the 18th-19th century "Butter Belt".
A discussion of the hamlet of "Chandler's Hollow" that once existed in the Brandywine Valley.
Claymont Community Center in Claymont, Delaware, was the recent recipient of a National Park Foundation, ParkVentures grant to create a multi-generational art program for community residents. “A Walk in the Park: Discovering the First State through Nature and Art,” allowed participants to engage in recreational and educational opportunities available at partnering sites of First State National Historical Park, Delaware’s only National Park Service location.
Meet Olf Mouyaka, a park guide at New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, who has also worked at Lowell National Historical Park and First State National Historical Park. From a volunteer to a youth program participant to a seasonal and finally a full-time employee, learn more about Olf’s incredible journey to the National Park Service.
Ranger School
Park-grounded courses you can learn with the Ranger.
How First State National Historical Park connects
This park's activities, topics, location, and on-the-ground places — one hop in the graph. Drag to explore; click an activity, topic, or related park to follow it.
Park
Activity
Topic
State
VisitorCenter
ParkingLot
PassportStamp
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