Delaware: The First State and Corporate America's Mailbox
Delaware ratified the U.S. Constitution on December 7, 1787, earning the title "The First State." That early move set a tone that has defined Delaware ever since: small, strategic, and disproportionately influential. More than 1.5 million businesses are incorporated in Delaware, including over two-thirds of the Fortune 500. The Court of Chancery, a business court without juries that has operated since 1792, handles corporate disputes with a speed and predictability that keeps companies filing here regardless of where they actually operate.
The population is about 1.05 million, concentrated in the northern part of the state around Wilmington and its suburbs. Wilmington sits on the Christina River just south of the Pennsylvania border and functions as a satellite of the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The DuPont company, founded as a gunpowder mill on the Brandywine Creek in 1802, shaped the city and surrounding New Castle County for two centuries. The Hagley Museum preserves the original powder works. Winterthur, the DuPont family estate, houses one of the finest collections of American decorative arts in the country.
Dover, the capital, lies in the center of the state in Kent County. Dover Air Force Base, home to the Air Mobility Command and the military mortuary that receives the remains of service members killed overseas, is the largest employer in the region. Southern Delaware, known locally as "slower lower," is more rural and agricultural, with chicken farming dominating Sussex County. Rehoboth Beach, Bethany Beach, and Dewey Beach draw summer visitors from Washington, D.C. and Baltimore.
Show more
Delaware ratified the U.S. Constitution on December 7, 1787, earning the title "The First State." That early move set a tone that has defined Delaware ever since: small, strategic, and disproportionately influential. More than 1.5 million businesses are incorporated in Delaware, including over two-thirds of the Fortune 500. The Court of Chancery, a business court without juries that has operated since 1792, handles corporate disputes with a speed and predictability that keeps companies filing here regardless of where they actually operate.
The population is about 1.05 million, concentrated in the northern part of the state around Wilmington and its suburbs. Wilmington sits on the Christina River just south of the Pennsylvania border and functions as a satellite of the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The DuPont company, founded as a gunpowder mill on the Brandywine Creek in 1802, shaped the city and surrounding New Castle County for two centuries. The Hagley Museum preserves the original powder works. Winterthur, the DuPont family estate, houses one of the finest collections of American decorative arts in the country.
Dover, the capital, lies in the center of the state in Kent County. Dover Air Force Base, home to the Air Mobility Command and the military mortuary that receives the remains of service members killed overseas, is the largest employer in the region. Southern Delaware, known locally as "slower lower," is more rural and agricultural, with chicken farming dominating Sussex County. Rehoboth Beach, Bethany Beach, and Dewey Beach draw summer visitors from Washington, D.C. and Baltimore.
Country selected
Region selected
Optional — select or proceed
