This county in southern Delaware was the site of the first Dutch settlement in the area in 1631. Initially, the county was only twelve miles wide and thirty miles long because what is now the western side of the county was claimed by Lord Baltimore until 1767 when the Maryland boundary was finally settled. Previous to the settlement of the dispute between Lord Baltimore and Penn[,] Sussex County was only 30 miles long and 12 miles wide. That is the portion referred to in these records.

This volume contains a wealth of records for that original county, including civil, court, church, and Bible records. The civil records include many letters, petitions, and resident lists; the court records include land grants, civil suits, wills, administrations, and marriage records; the church records include letters, petitions, subscriber lists, and the vestry records of St. Peter’s Church for the early 1800s; the Bible records section includes a wealth of birth, marriage, and death data. Some Kent County records are also included. Several facsimile reprints of vintage photographs and an index to full-names, places and subjects add to the value of this work.