Census and tax records, births, deaths, marriage, burials, city directories

Genealogies, wills, inventories, birth records and biographies

• Biographical and Genealogical History of the State of Delaware
• Robert Clay and Ann Curtis
• Van Dyke Family
• Reminiscences by Elizabeth Booth1884
• Rossiana: Genealogy of the Ross and Read families (American part)
• Historical Reminiscences of the McCulloughs, 1860, by a firsthand victim of the fire of 1824
• Calendar of Delaware Wills, New Castle County (1682-1800)
• Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania Van Leuvenigh, Armitage, McWilliam, Van Dyke, du Pont
• Life and Correspondence of George Read, by William T. Read
• Wills and Inventories

  Will	Inv.	Individual
  X	X	Samuel Silsbee, 1751, carpenter, Dutch House, 32 E. 3rd St.
  X	X	Mary Thompson, 1795, Dutch House, 32 E. 3rd St
  X	X	Richard McWilliam, Esq, 1785, Lawyer, private banker, 8 The Strand
  	X	George Read (II), Esq, 1836, Lawyer, U.S. Attorney, 42 The Strand
  	X	Hugh Mercer, blacksmith, 126 Harmony St. Receivables.
  X	X	Ira Lunt, 1915, Builder of New Castle Ice Piers, 227 Chestnut St

Theses and Student Papers

Students spend considerable effort gathering valuable information for their theses and papers. Unfortunately, in the case of most papers, the detailed work disappears at the end of the semester. These student papers were written for graduate school classes and not as polished professional presentations. However they are filled with interesting results of the student's research. In all the cases below, I have contacted the authors and gotten their permission to reproduce their work, with the exception of Stuart P. Dixon, who died in 2008.


• Theses
  • William F. Holmes, 1961, "The New Castle And Frenchtown Turnpike and Railroad Company 1809-1838" (29 mb)
  • Robert Frank Brown, 1961, "Front Street, New Castle, Delaware"
  • Eliza Wolcott Morehead, 1971, "George Read (II) and His House"
  • Louise B. Heite, 1978, "New Castle under the Duke of York"
  • Lucille Toro, 1971, "The Latrobe Survey of New Castle".
  • Constance J. Cooper, 1983, "A Town Among Cities"
  • Robert Curtice Cottrell, 1991, "Town Planning in New Castle, Delaware, 1797-1838"
  • Kristen Wildes, 2003, "The Preservation of Historic New Castle: A Study in Perceptions"
  • Elizabeth Peebles, 2010, "The moderate and the modern Aladdin buildings in Delaware 1914 - 1920". Includes kit-built 166 W. 3rd.
• Student Papers
  • Madelyn Ladner, 1983, Practice NRHP nomination form for L. E and J. T. Eliason Houses, 72, 80 W 5th St.
  • Stuart P. Dixon, 1983, Practice NHRP nomination for "Ira Lunt House Complex", 227 Chestnut Street (pdf 7 mb)
  • Annette Woolard-Provine, 1983, Practice NHRP nomination for Mt. Salem Methodist Episcopal Church, 138 E. Fourth St.
  • Susan Williams, 1988,"The John Wiley House -- An Urban Case Study in Federal New Castle", 18 E 3rd St. (pdf, 8MB)
  • Jeannine Disviscour, 1989, "53 and 55 The Strand: A Study of a Double House in New Castle, Delaware
  • Julia (Wellman) Hess, 1989, "Changes in an Old New Castle Row House", Cloud's Row
  • Christopher Schroeder, 1991, "The Hermitage Plantation: A landscape of Social Distance in Federalist New Castle"; Additional photos
  • Constance Anderton, 1992, "A Brief Study of the McWilliam House, (Number 8, The Strand, New Castle) During the Eighteenth Century (pdf, 1.5 mb)
  • Ellen (Felser) Morfei, 1993/4, "Symbol of Social Change: The Archibald Alexander House" (26-28 E. 3rd St.)
  • Eric J. Borden, 1997, "Booth House 212-214 Delaware Street"
  • Elizabeth W. Garrett, 2004, "Purpose Built: The George B. Rodney House and Law Office 14-16 E. Third St., New Castle, Delaware" (pdf, 1.7 mb)
  • Amy S. Mann, 2004, "The Middle Class in Nineteenth Century New Castle: 127-129 Harmony Street and the Family Who Built It
  • Rachel Delphia, 2004, "Separated Spaces, Multiple Uses: Exploring Family Living and Tenancy in the Hugh Mercer House, 1803-1830." 126 Harmony St.
  • Lisa Minardi, 2004, "All in the Family: Sociability and Service in the Darragh Household", 19 E 2nd
  • Justina Barrett, 2004, "The embedded meanings of Front Street: The tension between commercial and residential landscapes in 24 The Strand"
  • Karen Gloyd, 2004, "Ornament and Economy: Case Study of a House on Front Street, New Castle, DE, 27 The Strand"
  • Rebecca Ayres Schwartz, 2004, "Jenny's World, or the Architecture of a "Person of Evil," 47 E 2nd St.
  • Andrea Renner, 2004, "30 The Strand: A New Castilian lives in Philadelphia"
  • David Amott, 2005, "A House of a City Builder, 11 & 13 Market Street New Castle, Delaware" 11, 13, 15 & 17 E 2nd
• High School Student Papers
  • Thomas Kinservik, 2019, "New Castle Reviewed: The City Through a Traveler's Lens"

Owner's research and title chains

• Robert Poskitt, 17 The Strand, Owners & House
• De Haes & Janvier, 22 The Strand
• Jim Meek, 30 The Strand
• Phee Price, 17 E 2nd
• Richard Cooch 8 E Third
• Linda Suskie, 119 E 3rd. Greek revival,1854-60
• Paul Hanum 18 E 4th St., the Poor House
• Roger Clark, 71 W 4th
• Richard Day Jessops Tavern, 114 Delaware
• Midge McGraw 118 Harmony, Rising Sun Tavern
• Bruce Burk, 213 Harmony