Apr. 14, 2006 - Brief History of Delaware

Delaware was first settled in 1631 by the Dutch. But by 1632, all the settlers had been killed by Indians. In 1638, Swedish colonists settled in the region and called the teritory New Sweden. In 1664, the British took over. They gave the land to WIlliam Penn to add to his colony of Pennsylvania. But by 1701, the area became a separate region called the Three Lower Colonies. It was not called Delaware until 1776, after Lord De La Warr, the first governor of the Virginia colony. Delaware was the first state to approve the United States Constitution.