Ward, Delaware
Unincorporated community
CountryUnited States
StateDelaware
CountySussex
Time zoneEastern (EST) (UTC-5)
Time zone (DST)EDT (UTC-4)
Elevation49 ft
Coordinates38°29′07″N 75°28′40″W
Area code302
GNIS feature ID216240[1]

Ward is an unincorporated community in Sussex County, Delaware, United States.[2] in the Little Creek Hundred. The Ward post office was established in 1886, and was discontinued in 1902. Ward was also the site of the Ward's Store, the Ward's School, and is the site of the Ward Family Cemetery.

Geography

Ward is located on Delaware Route 30 northeast of Delmar. It lies adjacent to Wards Branch, a stream which is 3.3 mi (5.3 km) long.[3] Ward is 2 mi (3.2 km) north of the Maryland-Delaware boundary, which is known as the Transpeninsular Line.

History

1800s

A post office operated in Ward beginning in 1886.[4] The community of Ward's population was just 25 residents in 1890;[5] the number of residents had slightly increased to 35 residents in 1900.[6]

1900s

In the early 20th century, Ward was the location of Ward's School and Ward's Store.[7] This store was the site of a number of Democratic Party public events.[8][9]

The Ward post office closed in 1902.[4]

In 1930, the state of Delaware announced a series of road upgrades to state highways. The road from Ward's School to Delmar was selected by the state that year for upgrade to a state highway.[10]

In 1937, the Ward and Whitesville areas were the site of severe wildfires, with the Delaware State Forestry Commission stating, "The largest forest fires of the period occurred in the Whitesville — Ward's Store — Pepper Box section of Little Creek and Gumboro Hundreds in Sussex County". State officials stated that high winds during the fires caused widespread damage to that part of the state of Delaware.[11]

Ward was still considered a village of Sussex County by the US Geological Survey in 1949.[12]

The Ward Family Cemetery is located just north of Wards Corners on Gathering Garden Lane. The gravestones range in date from 1847 to 1923.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^
  2. ^ Gannett, Henry (1904). A Gazetteer of Delaware (Issue 230 of Geological Survey bulletin). U.S. Government Printing Office.
  3. ^ Delaware Place Names. Washington, DC: US Department of the Interior. 1966. p. 114.
  4. ^ "Post Offices: Ward, Delaware". www.postalhistory.com. Archived 2021-08-08 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2025-05-30.
  5. ^ Cram, George Franklin (1891). Cram's Universal Atlas: Geographical, Astronomical and Historical, Containing a Complete Series of Maps of Modern Geography, Illustrated by Numerous Views and Charts; the Whole Supplemented with Valuable Statistics, Diagrams, and a Complete Gazetteer of the United States. Chicago, IL: G.F. Cram. p. 356.
  6. ^ Cram's Modern Atlas: The New Unrivaled New Census Edition. Chicago, IL: J. R. Gray & Company. 1902. p. 84.
  7. ^ Report. Delaware State Highway Department. 1927. pp. 39, 43.
  8. ^ "Democrats Talking down in Sussex". Wilmington Evening Journal. 1908-10-29. Retrieved 2021-08-06.
  9. ^ "Democratic Mass Meetings". Wilmington Evening Journal. 1908-10-03. Retrieved 2021-08-06.
  10. ^ "Legal Advertisement". The Newark Post. p. 7. Archived 2025-05-31 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2025-05-30.
  11. ^ Commission, Delaware State Forestry (1938). Annual Report of the State Forester. State Forestry Commission. Retrieved 2025-05-30.
  12. ^ "Gazetteer of Delaware". USGS. 1949. p. 15. Retrieved 30 May 2025.
  13. ^ "Miscellaneous Cemeteries". Downstate Delaware Historical Society. 2018. p. 29. Retrieved 2025-05-30.[dead link]