Portal:Delaware/Intro

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Delaware (IPA: /ˈdɛ.ləˌwɛɹ/), named after Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, was the first state to ratify the United States Constitution. The state, located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, ranks 49th in land area, and 45th in population, but 7th in population density. The highest elevation, located at Ebright Azimuth, in the Brandywine Hundred, does not even rise 450 feet above sea level. Delaware's largest city and economic hub, Wilmington, is located about halfway between New York City and Washington, DC, within commuting distance of both Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Baltimore, Maryland.

Before the Dutch established a trading post at Zwaanendael in 1631, the area was home to a number of Eastern Algonquian tribes of Native Americans. Prior to the American Revolution, the territory became known as the "Lower Counties on the Delaware", under the control of William Penn and his heirs. Delaware declared its independence from the colony of Pennsylvania and the Kingdom of Great Britain on June 15, 1776. The all night ride of Caesar Rodney to cast the deciding vote for the Declaration of Independence is commemorated in the state quarter issued in 1999.

Delaware's largest private employers include Bank of America, DuPont, Christiana Care Health System, JPMorgan Chase, AstraZeneca, Wal-Mart, Mountaire Farms, Dover Downs, Alfred I. duPont Institute, Perdue Farms, Chrysler, General Motors, Wilmington Trust, and Pepco Holdings. The state's Congressional Delegation includes Democratic Senators Thomas R. Carper and Joseph R. Biden, Jr., and Republican Representative Michael N. Castle.

Delaware has several National Historic Landmarks and National Wildlife Refuges, along with other botanical gardens, museums, festivals, parks, houses, lighthouses, and historic places.