View beautiful fall foliage like this on a hay-covered wagon at Killen’s Pond (Photo courtesy of Killen’s Pond)
What better way to celebrate fall than with a wagon ride through a beautiful forest? Killen’s Pond will offer hayrides around the fields and forests of the pond, starting September 21 and running throughout the month of October.
For just $6 per person, bring a blanket to ride on a wagon with benches covered in hay and enjoy a 35-minute trip around the pond. Wagon rides will be held Saturdays, September 21 and 28 as well as October 5, 12, 19 and 26. There are two wagon rides per day, one at 5 PM and one at 6 PM, except for October 26 when there will only be one at 3 PM. The October 26 ride will be 40 minutes.
In addition to the hayrides, camping is still available at Killen’s Pond. Like other Delaware State Parks, Killen’s Pond offers a front row seat to nature’s transformation as trees shed their leaves in preparation for winter. Enjoy views of the historic millpond and wander the trails through stunning pine woods.
To make a reservation for the wagon rides, visit the Delaware State Park website. Reservations end 22 hours before the ride. After that, call 302-284-4299 to see if space is still available. To make camping reservations, visit the Delaware State Park camping reservation site.
The area is rich with history as well. Originally, the land was occupied by the Lenape people. Eventually, at least three plantations existed on the property. The lower end of what is now known as Coursey Pond, was part of Cambridge, owned by Dr. John Moore and Thomas Coursey. The upper end of Coursey Pond and the lower end of what is now Killen’s Pond were known as the Fromes Elsworth tract, patented by William Penn to John Brown. The final plantation on the property was known as Andrews Venture, owned by Thomas Parks.
John Craig purchased 150 acres of land at the eastern edge of the Fromes Elsworth tract and records indicate he owned the property as early as 1727 although there is no record of when he arrived in Delaware. A dam and mill were established on the property but there is no record that Craig was responsible for constructing them.
The area grew rapidly during the American Revolution as there was a need for grain to feed the Continental Army, despite the fact that not everyone in Kent County supported independence. After Craig’s death, the mill and land were sold at sheriff’s sale in 1776 to satisfy debts. The land was sold again in 1785 to Jacob Broom of Brandywine Village who, in 1783, petitioned the legislature to condemn two acres on the Murderkill River in order to raise the dam and rebuild the mill. Broom sold the land in 1801 to Joshua and Samuel Stroud.
Joshua Stroud was living in Philadelphia when he purchased the land, but Samuel was living on the property in 1805. Samuel purchased three acres of meadow from his neighbors, Margaret and Edward Polk before he and Joshua sold the mill to John Jordan.
In 1810, the mill and land were again sold, this time to Levi Jester who may have already been operating the mill for Jordan. Jordan was apparently living in New Castle County at the time. In the deed from the Stroud’s to Jordan, there is a reference to the sale of 100 acres of land to Charles Tilton who was identified as “negro” in the deed. In the 1800 census, there were nine free blacks living in the household, although the Tilton family is not listed in the area in the 1810 census. This may be because agricultural productivity declined in the area in the early 1800s, leading Tilton to move his family elsewhere.
There were at least three residences in the area of Killen’s Pond. One was the home of Samuel Stroud, the Tilton household and one where Jacob Broom lived. Those homes have long since disappeared.
Throughout the 19th century, cattle and grain crops were the predominant agricultural economy in Kent County although peaches were also an important crop in the area. Railroad towns including Felton and Harrington became the center of development, but water-powered mills were the primary occupation of the area.
In 1838, William Case and George Killen each built residences on the tract of land. Killen acquired the Case tract, which is believed to have been on the western boundary of what is know Killen’s Pond State Park. Through purchase and inheritance, the Killen family acquired more lands and the mill while the family of William Creadick farmed the land.
The pond itself was created by the dam that was constructed in the 1700s in order to allow the gristmill to grind the grains into flower. The dam that can be seen today is not the same one that was built in the 1700s, but it is in the same location as the original dam. This means that the pond is not a naturally formed pond, but is considered man-made. In fact, there are no naturally formed ponds in Kent County as all of them were formed by dams, usually to build gristmills.
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