White Clay Valley Timeline

  • Archaic period - Thousands of years ago Native Americans settle in the region. The Opasiskunk settlement of the Lenni Lenape was located in the present day Delaware and Pennsylvania Preserves
  • 1625-1650 - European settlements by Dutch and Swedes began in Delaware and Pennsylvania.
  • 1680-1705 - King of England gives William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, a land grant to charter the states of Delaware and Pennsylvania.
  • 1683 - Chief Kekelappen, of the Lenni Lenape sells a tract of land to William Penn that includes the area of present-day White Clay Creek.
  • Late 1600's - Farms and small mills arise in the White Clay Creek Valley, the latter using the White Clay Creek to run the water-powered mills.
  • 1764 - The famous survey team of Mason and Dixon begin their survey which will determine Delaware's borders with Maryland and Pennsylvania.
  • 1870's - The Wilmington and Western and the Pomeroy and Newark Railroad tracks were laid through the Landenberg area to ship farm produce, crushed limestone, and milled goods to markets in Delaware.
  • 1960 - A dam is proposed for White Clay Creek to create a water supply reservoir.
  • 1965 - Citizen opposition to the dam results in the incorporation of the White Clay Watershed Association.
  • 1968 - The State of Delaware begins land acquisition efforts, creating Walter S. Carpenter State Park, later renamed White Clay Creek State Park.
  • Mid 1970s - Plans for a White Clay Creek dam are abandoned amidst opposition from citizens, United Auto Workers' members, and conservation organizations as well as new studies predicting lower future water needs.
  • 1984 - The DuPont Company donates almost 1700 acres to the states of Pennsylvania and Delaware for inclusion in the White Clay Creek Bi-state Preserve to ensure its protection.
  • 2000 - White Clay Creek is designated as a National Wild and Scenic River. The Wild and Scenic legislation can be viewed here.
  • 2005 - Total area of Pennsylvania's White Clay Creek Preserve and Delaware's White Clay Creek State Park and Preserve totals 5,000 acres after a series of land acquisitions in the preceding two decades.

The New Garden Township Historical Commission has information on both historical and cultural resources within their township:  Pomeroy and Newark Railway, Proposed Stream Names for tributaries of the East Branch of the White Clay Creek and information on Historic Structures, the Landenberg Bridge, New Garden Biographies, Cemeteries, and publications and events.