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Wilmington & the Brandywine Valley, Delaware (March 19, 2019) – Anyone who has visited Wilmington & the Brandywine Valley knows this region is filled with historic charm, a vibrant riverfront, and beauty hidden in plain sight. Take in a show at The Playhouse on Rodney Square, the oldest continuously operating theater in the country. Have your pick of more than 350 Belgian bottle beers at Jessop’s Tavern, a colonial restaurant in Historic New Castle. Visitors can even explore the largest collection of patent models in the world. Intrigued? Here are more details about what makes this region so special:

  • The town of Yorklyn, just 20 minutes from downtown Wilmington, is where visitors will find one of Delaware’s hidden treasures. Offering good, old-fashioned fun, The Marshall Steam Museum features the world’s largest operating collection of Stanley steam cars, a 1916 electric car, and two 1930s Packards. Visitors get a chance to climb into a historic automobile and experience what it was like to travel at the turn of the 20th century. This family-friendly museum also includes a hands-on engine display, children’s activities, exhibits, and special guided tours of the antique-furnished Auburn Heights mansion and its collections.
     
  • The Hagley Museum and Library is the former industrial site of the original black powder works of the DuPont Company, founded in Delaware in 1802. Today Hagley is the home to 5,000 U.S. patent models, the largest private collection in the world. Visitors can see about 100 of these models on display in the site’s Library at no charge during its operating hours. For a behind-the-scenes experience, guests can join museum experts for a guided Patent Model Tour on the second Saturday of each month. The introductory tour presents the history of these fascinating miniature models of invention and the patent process that was established in 1790.  
     
  • Mt. Cuba Center in Hockessin, Delaware, is a botanical garden unlike any other. An inspiring place for gardeners to learn about what will work best in their own garden, Mt. Cuba is home to living collections of plants native to the Eastern Temperate Forests of the United States. With an emphasis on the Appalachian Piedmont, which spans nine states, the nonprofit garden is dedicated to supporting the environment through the practice and promotion of ecological horticulture. When Mt. Cuba opens for the season on April 3, visitors are invited to experience the beauty of spring’s wildflowers blooming across more than 1,000 acres while learning about the important role plants play in our ecosystem.
     
  • Wilmington and the Brandywine Valley’s art scene is a cultural haven for art lovers. The Delaware Art Museum’s artistic roots trace back to as early as 1912. The museum regularly exhibits works by Wilmington native Howard Pyle and fellow American illustrators alongside the largest and most significant British Pre-Raphaelite holding outside the United Kingdom. The collection is comprised of paintings, drawings, photographs, decorative arts, and illustrated books. Museum guides lead public tours highlighting the museum’s collections and special exhibits every weekend.
     
  • Since its inception in 1698-1699, the Old Swedes Church has been sought by visitors from around the world. The nation’s oldest church is still standing as originally built and continues to be a place of worship. Visitors can see the church’s vibrant history through some remarkable artifacts, including a Tiffany stained-glass window, alter candles gifted to the church by Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf, and donated planks and logs for the oldest known pulpit in the U.S. by early parishioners. Learn about the life in a typical 18th-century Colonial Swedish farmhouse, tour the church, and view the graves of some of Delaware’s most notable citizens and discover their stories.

About Wilmington & the Brandywine Valley, Delaware

Wilmington & the Brandywine Valley is in the heart of the Mid-Atlantic region and less than a two-hour drive from both New York City and Washington. Steeped in American history and the legacy of the famed du Pont family, Greater Wilmington is a destination marked by sharp contrasts – town and garden, past and present, historic and hip. From renowned gardens, world-class museums, colonial towns, outdoor adventure, festivals and an ever-growing craft beer and restaurant scene, each experience is more vibrant, more unique and more authentic than the last. Learn more at VisitWilmingtonDE.com. And to see the beauty of the Brandywine Valley now, watch this: https://youtu.be/KyPWLnciO0E

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