Seal of New Castle
One of the things I enjoy while visiting historic communities is paying attention to the symbols, they choose to represent themselves. This is the official seal of New Castle, and like so much of the town, it reflects centuries of history.
The seal celebrates the everyday life that allowed the community to flourish. A farmer guides his plow while an ox patiently works beside him, reminding us that New Castle’s prosperity depended not only on its harbor and commerce but also on the fertile farmland that surrounded the town. The wheat, corn, and other agricultural symbols acknowledge the importance of the Delaware Valley as one of colonial America’s richest farming regions.
Encircling the seal is the Latin motto, Nova Inclyta Ning Crescit, meaning “The renowned New Castle continues to grow.” It is a fitting description of a town that has continually reinvented itself. From a Dutch settlement to an English colonial capital, from William Penn’s first landing in America to Delaware’s first statehouse, from a busy port to one of the nation’s earliest railroad terminals, New Castle has adapted while carefully preserving its remarkable past.
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Court House Museum
One of the highlights of our visit to New Castle was the historic Court House, one of the oldest surviving courthouses in the United States. Standing before this building, it is easy to appreciate that it was much more than a courthouse. For nearly a century, it served as the center of government for Delaware, […]
William Penn Statue
If you happened to miss the historic marker commemorating William Penn’s landing in New Castle, this statue would quickly remind you of the important role he played in the history of both Delaware and Pennsylvania. Standing on the New Castle Common, it honors the man whose arrival here in 1682 forever changed the future of […]
Delaware’s Independence Hall
One of the things I learned while exploring New Castle was that Delaware’s path to independence did not begin in Dover, but here at the Old Court House. This building is often referred to as Delaware’s Independence Hall and why it occupies such an important place in the history of the First State. Constructed in […]
