Old Swedes Historic Site (Holy Trinity Church)

Address 606 North Church Street (office) 800 East 7th Street (church and site) Wilmington, DE 19801 United States Get Directions

Phone: (302) 652-5629

Website: https://oldswedes.org/

Old Swedes Historic Site — America’s Oldest Church Still in Active Use

Where Delaware’s Colonial Story Began — and Never Stopped

The Old Swedes Historic Site in Wilmington, Delaware, is one of the most historically significant sites in the United States. The church building at its center, Holy Trinity, was constructed between 1698 and 1699 by descendants of Swedish colonists who arrived aboard the Kalmar Nyckel in 1638. It is the oldest church in America still standing as originally built and still in active use as a house of worship — a distinction it has held for over 325 years.

The site is open for guided tours Thursday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., with the last tour departing at 2:00 p.m. (March hours: Wednesday–Saturday, 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m., last tour at 2:15 p.m.) The site is closed Sunday through Wednesday for tours, except during special events and services.

Tours cover the church, the 17th-century Hendrickson House museum, and the historic burial grounds. Always verify current seasonal hours on oldswedes.org before visiting, as they shift with the seasons.

The Origin of New Sweden and the First Settlement in the Delaware Valley

The story of Old Swedes begins not in Delaware but in Sweden, where in 1637–1638 a company of Swedish, Finnish, German, and Dutch settlers departed for the New World aboard the Kalmar Nyckel. They landed in the spring of 1638 at a site along the Christina River in present-day Wilmington, establishing Fort Christina — the first permanent European settlement in the Delaware Valley.

The original Swedish settlers built an early church within Fort Christina. As the colony grew, a larger permanent church became necessary. Foundation stones for the present building at East 7th and Church Streets were laid in 1698, and Holy Trinity was consecrated on Trinity Sunday, June 4, 1699, by a congregation that still traced its roots to those first Swedish and Finnish arrivals.

The church survived a succession of colonial powers — Sweden, the Netherlands, England, and finally the new American republic — maintaining continuous use throughout their rule. By 1791, the last Swedish pastor had departed, and jurisdiction was transferred to the Protestant Episcopal Church, where it has remained ever since. Holy Trinity was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1961 and became part of the First State National Historical Park in 2013.

What to See at Old Swedes Historic Site

The site encompasses three distinct historic elements, all explored on guided tours:

Holy Trinity Church (1698–1699). The church building itself is the centerpiece of the visit. Among its notable features:

• The black-walnut pulpit, constructed from planks and logs donated by early parishioners
• A Tiffany-designed Bayard memorial stained-glass window
• Altar candles gifted to the church in 1988 by Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf on behalf of the Great Copper Mountain Mining Company
• The warden’s church chest, dated 1713, is still on the premises
• A historic labyrinth on the grounds is available for reflective walking

The Hendrickson House (ca. 1690s). In 1958, a 17th-century Swedish colonial farmhouse was moved from its original site in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, to the Old Swedes grounds. The Hendrickson House is one of the oldest surviving examples of Swedish colonial domestic architecture in America, furnished to reflect life in the New Sweden Colony. It provides a vivid contrast to the church — connecting the site’s spiritual history to the everyday lives of the settlers who built it.

The 1638 Burial Grounds. The churchyard contains gravestones spanning four centuries of American history, from early colonial-era markers to relatively recent burials. Wandering the grounds with a knowledgeable guide reveals layers of the community’s story that no exhibit could fully replicate.

Old Swedes and Delaware’s Identity as “The First State”

Delaware’s identity as the First State — the first to ratify the U.S. Constitution in 1787 — has deeper roots than the ratification vote alone. The Swedish settlement of 1638 predates the English Quaker settlements of Pennsylvania and New Jersey by more than four decades, and the history of Old Swedes Church threads directly through that founding narrative.

The church appears on the obverse of the 1937 Delaware Tercentenary commemorative half dollar — a formal acknowledgment of its place in the national historical record. It is also a living institution, not a preserved relic. Services continue today, attended by an active congregation, giving the site a vitality that sets it apart from purely museum-oriented historic properties.

Visiting Old Swedes in Context

Old Swedes Historic Site sits near Fort Christina Park and the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation’s Copeland Maritime Center on Wilmington’s South Side — making all three sites a natural half-day itinerary for visitors interested in the Swedish colonial story. The Delaware History Museum on Market Street provides additional regional context a short drive away.

This corner of Wilmington represents the oldest continuously documented history in the Delaware Valley. For anyone building an itinerary around the region’s colonial heritage, Old Swedes is not a side trip — it is the starting point.