News Release
You are viewing ARCHIVED content published online before January 20, 2025.
Please note that this content is NOT UPDATED, and links may not work. For current information,
visit https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/news/index.htm.
NPS Photo
Subscribe
 |
What is RSS
|
Contact: Lorin Felter, 302-544-6363
NEW CASTLE, Del. –The National Park Service Development Advisory Board has approved the project scope and schematic design for adaptive re-use of the historic Sheriff's House, a preliminary step in rehabilitation of the building. The Sheriff’s House is adjacent to the New Castle Courthouse on the Green in New Castle, Delaware.
The Sheriff's House will be the central visitor contact station for all seven sites of First State National Historical Park with areas for orientation, exhibits, education, and rest rooms. The project also includes a new heating and air conditioning system, accessibility and life safety improvements, and office space to support park operations.
“This approval is a major step forward in the development of First State National Historical Park and we know Delawareans are as excited about the progress as we are,” said acting park superintendent Eric Breitkreutz. “It’s an exciting next step for a project that will take several years to complete.”
The Sheriff's House project will preserve the character of the New Castle National Historic District. All repair and rehabilitation will be within the existing building footprint.
About the Sheriff’s House:
The Sheriff's House was constructed in 1857 on the site of a circa 1793 jail. It is all that remains of Delaware's first prison system. The Sheriff’s House is the only National Park Service owned facility in New Castle and was donated to the National Park Service by the State of Delaware in 2013 as part of First State National Monument.
About First State National Historical Park:
First State National Historical Park is a collection of seven sites in all three counties in Delaware: Beaver Valley, Fort Christina, Old Swedes Church, and the New Castle Court House and Green in New Castle County; John Dickinson Plantation and The Green, Dover in Kent County; and the Ryves Holt House in Sussex County. First State National Monument was established by Presidential Proclamation on March 25, 2013, and re-designated a National Historical Park on December 19, 2014.
Last updated: September 5, 2019