Delaware
Discover Delaware
Introduction
Delaware is the second-smallest state and the first one there was: it ratified the Constitution on 7 December 1787, ahead of everyone else, and has called itself the First State ever since.
It is about 100 miles top to bottom and divides cleanly in three. The north around Wilmington is industrial and corporate, and holds the du Pont family's museums, gardens and estates. The middle is flat farmland. The south is 25 miles of Atlantic beaches and the resort towns along them.
Two things shape a visit more than anything in a guidebook. There is no sales tax at all, which is why people drive here to shop. And in summer, the single main road to the coast is where the entire state's traffic goes.
It is also a serious wildlife destination, though almost nobody comes for it: Delaware Bay holds the largest horseshoe crab spawning population on earth.