Home for Sale - 18 East Third Street, New Castle, Delaware

18 East Third Street, New Castle, Delaware 19720
Realtors: Laura Greeley & Martin Willeford, Long and Foster.
Historic home in Old New Castle, Delaware. Four floors, 8 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths. Overlooking one of America's oldest "Commons."
Built in 1802, the John Wiley House is the finest early Federal house presently available in Delaware.

Around 1800, prominent lawyer John Wiley had a four story home built on 18 East Third Street, facing east and overlooking New Castle Commons. The early Federal construction is attributed to Philadelphia architect Peter Crowding, who built the famous George Read II House on The Strand. Crowdings' sophsticated “punch and gouge” carving on fireplac mantels throughout the house nad neoclassical mouldings on the facade have all been meticulously restored. The pediment of the front door surround incorporates the original fanlight. This is the best preserved of its kind in New Castle.

In the main hall, mahogany chair rail is a curved and panled architrace design. The main parlor to the left has an unobstructed view of the Common and the old Courthouse. The fireplace in the man parlor features an exceptional punch and gouge mantel with built-in side cupboards. A sympathetic modern converson of two passages flanking the fireplaced leads to additional living space behind and repeats the architrave design in the hall.

The original kitchen wing now serves as the dining room. Its orgnal fireplace, hearth and hardware are intact. Beyond the dining roo a well-equipped modern kitchen and dining area adjoins a screen porch overlooking the gardens.

The Wiley House also features the original turned bannister staircase and mahogany stair rail. Each floor has a large gallery-like halls leading to large sleeping quarters. The secnd floor wing is an expansive suite with plenty of storage and a refined tiled modern full bath. Two large bedroms, one of which expands the width of the home, share this level.

The third floor bedrooms have access to an oversized bathwith tub and dual sink vanity. The fourth floor has 3 more rooms, 2 of which look over a protective cedar shake roof.

The Wiley House gardens, which extend all the way to 4th Street, are beautifully laid out. A meandering brick path planeted with seasonal perennials, native plants and shrubs provide year round interest and low maintenance. An architecturally accurate recreation of a period building serves as a garden shed.

NEW CASTLE HISTORY
New Castle was originally settled by the Dutch West India Company in 1651, under the leadership of Peter Stuyvesant. Originally named Fort Casimir, in 1654, the Swedes renamed it Fort Trinity. In 1655, the Dutch reconquered New Sweden and rechristened the fort Nieuw-Amstel ("New Amstel"). The Dutch expanded the settlement and designed a grid of streets. In 1655, The Green or Market Plaine was laid out by Dutch Governor Petrus Stuyvesant. It remains one of the oldest Commons in America.

In the mid-1600s, King Charles II had borrowed money to rebuild England's navy from Admiral William Penn. After the Admiral's death, the King granted a significant portion of his American land – what is now Delaware and Pennsylvania - to the young William Penn to clear the debt. In October 1682, William Penn landed in New Castle with 100 fellow Quakers to establish a colony based on religious freedom. He later moved up the river to found Philadelphia.

On the southern edge of the Common is the New Castle Court House. Built in 1732, it served as the meeting place for Delaware’s colonial assembly from 1732 to 1777 when New Castle was Delaware’s capital. Prior to the establishment of Penn's Philadelphia, New Castle was the center of government. Delaware formally broke from Pennsylvania in 1704.

Two signers of the Declaration of Independence were from New Castle — Thomas McKean and George Read. The Courthouse and Sheriff's house were recently designated as part of the Delaware National Monument.

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