How many of you have ever heard of the beach town of Lewes in the U.S. state of Delaware? It is a very popular town to many in the eastern United States of America particularly to those in the mid-Atlantic states. It is a town located where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. Originally settled by Dutch settlers it is a popular vacation town with visitors from New York City, New York, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Baltimore, Maryland, Washington D.C. and many other cities in the region. Along with a charming downtown, the town is famous for the Cape May-Lewes Ferry that takes travelers between Lewes and the famous town of Cape May in the U.S. state of New Jersey across the Delaware Bay. It is also where you will find Cape Henlopen. What is special about Cape Henlopen? It was where Fort Miles was erected to defend the entrance to Delaware Bay from a sea attack. Today, it is a park with hiking trails with views of the Atlantic Ocean, and it has great beaches too. It is also where you can see the Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse. Why visit Lewes, Delaware? It is a nice charming historic town that you will fall in love with.
Some of you are saying, “This is cool. This is great. You have a nice town settled by the Dutch that is at the point where the Delaware Bay goes into the Atlantic Ocean. This is probably a very beautiful town. There is a very big problem. It is not a railroad town. Therefore, I will not be taking a vacation in this town.”
Why visit Lewes, Delaware? It is not a railroad town. The only railroad line today is a spur line that runs from the main line that runs along the Delmarva Peninsula. In the early part of the twentieth century, it was… a railroad hub.
As you stroll through the town of Lewes, Delaware, you see charming historic structures. You see the Lightship Overalls, which is a floating lighthouse, and it is open for tours. You have the canal. Then you see the Junction and Breakwater Trail.
Some of you are saying, “Interesting. You have a trail at a junction that breaks water. How do you break water?”
What is the Junction and Breakwater Trail? It is a rail trail that gets it name from the Junction and Breakwater Railroad that ran south to the beach town of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. It was later taken over by the Pennsylvania Railroad and, later, the Penn Central Railroad who abandoned the railroad line in the 1970’s.
Some of you are saying, “Well. Is that it?”
Nope.
This brings us to the public library. What is special about the Lewes Public Library? This will give you a reason to ‘book’ a trip to Lewes, Delaware.
The Lewes Public Library was built on the site of the old train station. Yes, Lewes was once a passenger railroad hub with a train station with passengers arriving from Philadelphia, New York City, Washington, and Baltimore. A replica train station was built in its place. Along with the Pennsylvania Railroad, the Delaware Coast Line Railroad and the Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware Railroad served the station. The old railroad bed is now the Georgetown-Lewes Trail. (There are plans to extend the trail to Georgetown, Delaware and connect to a rail trail that goes to Love Point, Maryland, a point just north of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge on the east coast of the Chesapeake Bay where passengers from Baltimore, Maryland and Washington D.C. arrived by ferry to ride the train to Lewes. If you need another reason to visit the Lewes Public Library, you can see an old, refurbished caboose and coal car from the Pennsylvania Railroad next to the trail.
Lewes, Delaware is located on the Delaware Coast where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. U.S. Route 9 is the only major route in the town and crosses the Delaware Bay by way of the Cape May-Lewes Ferry. The main route is Delaware Route 1 which runs north to Interstate 95 in Wilmington. Delaware Route 404 runs west to U.S. Routes 13 and 50.
Lewes, Delaware may no longer be a railroad town, but it has not forgotten its railroad heritage. When you stroll around, you will see why many make their journey here.
