Fort Delaware Museum of Colonial History

The Fort Delaware Museum is a museum of colonial history and provides an authentic depiction of the life of the Delaware Company Pioneers who settled in the Upper Delaware Valley in 1754. A tour of the facilities includes demonstrations of early settlers’ lifestyles and their craft-making.

“We are a living history museum with colonial period-attired docents interpreting the lives and lifestyles of the first European settlers in the Upper Delaware River valley during the Revolutionary War period and discussing their place in local and Early American history. Blacksmithing, candle making, farming, cabin keeping, spinning, weaving, woodworking, religion, schooling, musketry and cannon firings are among the daily activities with periodic encampments, lectures, and militia drills rounding out the programs.”

A group calling itself the Delaware Company, comprising about 30 families and led by hardy men named Skinner and Thomas and Tyler, consummated with several local Lenape chieftains what became a controversial purchase of a tract of land running about 30 miles north and south on both sides of the Delaware River from about present day Lackawaxen to Callicoon. By 1757, this group had formed a small settlement on the new property. The place became known as Cushetunk, a close approximation of the Lenape word for the area.

Within a few years the Delaware Company was soliciting additional settlers through a prospectus that claimed they had established three separate communities, each extending ten miles along the Delaware River and eight miles wide. These new communities consisted of thirty cabins, three log houses, a grist mill, and a saw mill.

Because of the hostile nature of the frontier at the time, around 1760 or so two separate portions of Cushetunk were surrounded by stockades for protection. These stockades became known as the “upper fort” and the “lower fort.”

Each building is set up as it might have looked when this area was on the frontier, and the structures provide a nice glimpse into what life was like in colonial times. Modern restrooms, a gift shop, and a picnic pavilion are on site.

“We visited on a quiet Sunday morning in October which was ideal, giving us lots of opportunity to talk with knowledgeable, friendly staff and learn more about colonial life spanning three decades.

This museum really does the “living history” thing well. The building reproductions and picturesque grounds are immediately engaging, and it was the well-trained, costumed staff that made the visit memorable. They shared fascinating stories about local Indigenous and settler history that sparked curiosity and a deeper appreciation for this pivotal time in North American history. If you are traveling with children be sure to add Fort Delaware to your must-see list.”