History of Milton
Date Posted: Tuesday, December 16th, 2014
“MILTON, only 7 miles from the Delaware Bay in a direct line but many more by the convoluted Broadkill, is one of the little old Delaware towns that prospered through shipbuilding and shipping in the 19 century. The shipyards have long ago disappeared from the foot of Union and Federal Streets… The business section displays a rare lot of the permanent store awnings, wood or metal roofed, that was used to shade the sidewalk in front of nearly every store in lower Delaware, but have disappeared from main streets. The old part of the town contains many old cypress-shingled houses characteristic of eastern Sussex County.”
From Delaware – A Guide to the First State, American Guide Series, 1938
“MILTON – Classic example of life in a small historic town. Extensive Victorian home district in relatively rural area. Its ice cream parlor (King´s Ice Cream at Union and Broad Street, the oldest commercial building in continuous use in Sussex County) is renowned throughout the region.” – From Delaware – Quality of Life, Delaware Economic Development Office, June 1996
Milton´s history is written in its streets, its architecture, its relationship to the Broadkill River, its industrial heritage, and its image and reputation throughout Delaware and beyond. The area was first settled in prehistoric times by the Leni Lenape and Nanticoke Indians. Beginning in 1675, English planters began settling in the area, following earlier Dutch settlement in Lewes. The beginnings of the Town itself reached back to the early 18th century lumbering, mill, shipping and shipbuilding activities at the head of the Broadkill, or Broadkiln, River.
Milton
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Driving around Milton, DE area:
