Great Places
Brandywine Springs Park
39°44'55.25"N 75°38'40.32"W
3300 Faulkland Road
Wilmington, DE 19808
Phone: (302) 571-4006
Visit Website
Visit Website
Brandywine Springs County Park was a popular amusement park from about 1890 to 1923 in what was then the countryside outside Wilmington. Visitors can still find low-lying foundations along a crushed-stone path that winds over and around Hyde Run, a tributary to the Red Clay Creek.
Three trailheads to the former amusement park can be found along the park's southern tree line. Each leads downhill to a number of interpretive signs, footbridges and "Lake Washington," which today serves as a wetland pond. Bug spray is recommended in times of drought.
These days, this former state park contains three softball fields, a basketball court, picnic areas, a playground and pavilions.
For more information about the park's history, check out "Brandywine Springs Amusement Park: Echoes of the Past," by Mark R. Lawlor.
Two nearby heritage destinations include Greenbank Mill and the Wilmington & Western Railroad. The latter even offers picnic excursions to its Mt. Cuba Picnic Grove.
Photo by Shaun Bailey
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