What is it?

Situated on the banks of White Clay Creek near Stanton, Delaware, the historic Hale-Byrnes House dates from circa 1750. Built by millwright Warwick Hale, who left it to his son Samuel, the house was purchased first by David Finney of New Castle who added the south wing, and then by Quaker Daniel Byrnes (1730-1797) in 1773. Byrnes, who became prosperous operating a grist mill on the creek, added the house’s service wing. The southern section has four fireplaces and is a fine example of Georgian brick architecture. This was the first building in Delaware to receive the State “Heritage Plaque” and is a registered National Historic Landmark.

Where is it?

The house is located on old Route 7 just south of Stanton, near the intersection of Route 4 East and Route 7 North. The street address is: 606 Stanton-Christiana Road, Newark, DE 19713.

What happened here?

On September 6, 1777, three days after the Battle of Cooch’s Bridge, General George Washington held a council of war in the Hale-Byrnes House with other officers of the Continental army, including the Marquis de Lafayette who turned twenty that day. From there the American troops marched north to Chadds Ford in Pennsylvania, where they unsuccessfully engaged a British-Hessian army under General William Howe at the Battle of Brandywine on September 11.

Kim Burdick oversees this treasured link to our colonial past. She is a retired history instructor, founder and chairman of the American Revolution Round Table of Northern Delaware, and former chairman of the Delaware Humanities Council. The author of Revolutionary Delaware: Independence in the First State (The History Press, 2016), Kim has written frequently for the Journal of the American Revolution, including her 2015 article, “A Quaker Struggles with the War,” about pacifist Daniel Byrnes. She recounts the depredations Byrnes suffered at the hands of his Patriot neighbors because he stubbornly adhered to his religious convictions in refusing to support the war effort, as well as his letter to President Washington in 1793 seeking compensation for eight wheels of cheese as “the Army had my property to Live upon and I think the States aught in Justice to pay me a Reasonable price for it.”

What’s happening here?

During April through December, Hale-Byrnes House is open to visitors on the first Wednesday of each month from 12 to 3 p.m. (yes, that includes NOW) and at other times by appointment. In addition, it can be rented for meetings and weddings. Please note: the house is closed from January through March. You can email to [email protected], which is the much-preferred method of contact, or leave a voice message at 302-998-3792. And you’ll find more information on the website, including the public programs—currently on Zoom—listed on its calendar of events.

History lives here. Check it out.