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96-709: Alku and Alku Toinen ( pronounced [ˈɑlku ˈtoi̯nen] ) are apartment buildings built in 1916 by the Finnish American immigrant community in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn , New York City . Located at 816–826 43rd Street, they were the first nonprofit housing cooperatives in New York City. The buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 20, 2019. Finntown , an enclave of Finnish immigrants in northern Sunset Park,
192-577: A Norman lieu-dit La Guerre . This toponymic likely derived from Latin ager , the Breton gwern or from the Late Latin varectum ( fallow ). The toponyms Gara, Gare, Gaire, (the sound [ä] often mutated in [æ] ) also appear in historical texts cited by Lucien Musset , where the word ga(i)ra means gore . It could also be linked with a patronymic from the Old Norse verr . Before Delaware
288-488: A Declaration of Independence. Only the dramatic overnight ride of Caesar Rodney gave the delegation the votes needed to cast Delaware's vote for independence. Initially led by John Haslet , Delaware provided one of the premier regiments in the Continental Army , known as the "Delaware Blues" and nicknamed the " Blue Hen's Chicks ". In August 1777 General Sir William Howe led a British army through Delaware on his way to
384-613: A collaboration between Finnish-Americans and Finnish-Canadians: 2000 ( Toronto, Ontario ), 2005 ( Marquette, Michigan ) and 2010 ( Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario ). Finnish American culture is also celebrated at Finlandia University in Hancock, Michigan , formerly Suomi College, which has been the only Finnish American institution of higher learning in the United States since the closing of Work People's College in Duluth, Minnesota in 1941. Finlandia
480-465: A few individuals and groups dared make the move. This was largely due to the long distance between Europe and America, and the difficulties associated with crossing it. However, as the Industrial Revolution began with the turn of the 19th century, bringing with it such technological innovations as railroads and steam ships , these obstacles slowly began to disappear. While the rest of Europe
576-590: A few years in North America, and then return to their native land once they had become rich. However, only about twenty percent of the migrants returned to Finland . Those who did, managed to import new ideas and technologies into Finland and put them into use there. Approximately ten thousand Finns returned from the New World, not to Finland but to the Soviet Union, in the 1920s and the 1930s to "build socialism" in
672-706: A group of Laestadian preachers and their followers immigrated to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan , bringing their faith with them. In 1873 the Finnish Laestadians started their own congregation at Calumet , Michigan . By 1906 the Laestadian or Apostolic Lutheran movement in America had 68 churches and a communicant body of over 8,000. The denomination was a significant minority within the Finnish Lutheran community in
768-570: A kind of "cultural capital" of the Finnish Americans. Finland Calling , a weekly Finnish cultural television program hosted by Carl Pellonpaa, was broadcast on WLUC-TV in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. In March 2015 the program's final episode aired, ending 53 years of weekly broadcasts. Stanton Township, Michigan , is the place in the U.S. with the largest proportion of people with Finnish ancestry, at 47%. The median Finnish-American household income
864-518: A rivalry with the Du Ponts until the passage of the 17th Amendment . The allegiance of industries with the Republican party allowed them to gain control of the state's governorship throughout most of the 20th century. The GOP ensured black people could vote because of their general support for Republicans and thus undid restrictions on Black suffrage. Delaware benefited greatly from World War I because of
960-587: A slave society and cultivated tobacco as a cash crop, although English immigrants continued to arrive. Like the other middle colonies, the Lower Counties on the Delaware initially showed little enthusiasm for a break with Britain . The citizenry had a good relationship with the Proprietary government, and generally were allowed more independence of action in their Colonial Assembly than in other colonies. Merchants at
1056-514: A total area of 2,489 square miles (6,450 km ), making it the second-smallest state by either metric in the United States after Rhode Island . Delaware is bounded to the north by Pennsylvania ; to the east by the Delaware River , Delaware Bay , New Jersey , and the Atlantic Ocean; and to the west and south by Maryland . Small portions of Delaware are also situated on the eastern side of
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#17328594586501152-607: A victory at the Battle of Brandywine and capture of the city of Philadelphia. The only real engagement on Delaware soil was the Battle of Cooch's Bridge , fought on September 3, 1777, at Cooch's Bridge in New Castle County, although there was a minor Loyalist rebellion in 1778. Following the Battle of Brandywine, Wilmington was occupied by the British, and State President John McKinly
1248-646: Is $ 70,045. Finnish Americans by metropolitan statistical area in 2019: Architect and product designer Eero Saarinen immigrated to the United States in 1923 when he was thirteen years of age and grew up in Michigan . His father was architect Eliel Saarinen , the first president of the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He studied architecture at the Cranbrook Academy of Art and later
1344-621: Is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states region of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey to its northeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state's name derives from the adjacent Delaware Bay , which in turn was named after Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr , an English nobleman and the Colony of Virginia 's first colonial-era governor. Delaware occupies
1440-619: Is in New Castle County, in the town of Townsend . According to HUD 's 2022 Annual Homeless Assessment Report , there were an estimated 2,369 homeless people in Delaware. According to the 2010 United States census, the racial composition of the state was 68.9% White American (65.3% Non-Hispanic White , 3.6% White Hispanic ), 21.4% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native , 3.2% Asian American, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander , 3.4% some other race, and 2.7% of multiracial origin . People of Hispanic or Latino origin, of any race, made up 8.2% of
1536-482: Is of Finnish descent although she was born in Sweden . FinnFest USA is an annual festival held to celebrate Finnish heritage and culture in the United States. Organized by a non-profit organization of the same name, FinnFest USA has been held in a different location each year since 1983, often incorporating regional cultural elements of the local site into the year's event. To date there have also been three FinnGrandFests,
1632-453: Is significant variation in mean temperature and amount of snowfall between Sussex County and New Castle County. Moderated by the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay , the southern portion of the state has a milder climate and a longer growing season than the northern portion of the state. Summers are long, hot, and humid in Delaware, often with intense (but brief) late day thundershowers. Delaware averages 2,300 hrs of sunshine annually (higher than
1728-513: The A.U.M.P. Church . In 1814, Spencer called for the first annual gathering, known as the Big August Quarterly , which continues to draw members of this denomination and their descendants together in a religious and cultural festival. Delaware voted against secession on January 3, 1861, and so remained in the Union. While most Delaware citizens who fought in the war served in the regiments of
1824-623: The Arrowhead Region , along with portions of Aitkin , Crow Wing , and Carlton counties, often working in the region's iron mines . A number of the Finns fleeing the Russification efforts in their native country also immigrated to many of the mill-towns of New England, where they became known for their woodworking skills. The first immigrants to North America arrived at the New Sweden colony by
1920-499: The Brown ruling was that Delaware became fully integrated, albeit with time and much effort. In October 1954, the city of Milford became the scene of one of the country's first pro-segregation boycotts after eleven Black students were enrolled in the previously all-white Milford High School . Mass protests continued in Milford; the school board eventually ceded to the protestors, expelling
2016-793: The Chesapeake and Delaware Canal embody a Southern culture , while densely-populated Northern Delaware above the canal—particularly Wilmington, a part of the Philadelphia metropolitan area —has more in common with that of the Northeast and the North . The U.S. Census Bureau designates Delaware as one of the South Atlantic States , but it is commonly associated with the Mid-Atlantic States or northeastern United States by other federal agencies,
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#17328594586502112-2051: The Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis, Missouri , the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, Michigan, the TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy International Airport, and the main terminal of Dulles International Airport near Washington, D.C. Eero's son, Eric Saarinen , is a cinematographer and film director, who has photographed and cinematographed several features, including The Hills Have Eyes , Lost in America , and Exploratorium . Notable Americans of some Finnish descent also include several film stars such as actresses Anna Easteden , Christine Lahti , Marian Nixon , Maila Nurmi , Pamela Anderson , Leslie Mann and Jessica Lange , actors Albert Salmi, Matt Damon , Richard Davalos and George Gaynes , and director David Lynch . Other notable individuals are author Jean M. Auel , historian Max Dimont (born in Finland of Russian Jewish parentage), cook and cookbook author Beatrice Ojakangas , politician Emil Hurja , labor activist T-Bone Slim , U.S. Communist Party leader Gus Hall (originally Arvo Kustaa Halberg), Finnish-Kiowa-Comanche U.S. Attorney Arvo Mikkanen , mathematician Lars Ahlfors , musicians Dave Mustaine , Jaco Pastorius , Einar Aaron Swan , Jorma Kaukonen and Mark Hoppus , singer-songwriter Amelia Presley, science fiction author Hannu Rajaniemi , computer scientists Linus Torvalds and Alfred Aho , former Google executive and CEO of Yahoo Marissa Mayer , co-founder of Apple Mike Markkula , chairman and CEO of General Motors Mary Barra , astronaut Timothy L. Kopra , special forces officer Larry Thorne , ice hockey player Matt Niskanen and serial killer Aileen Wuornos . Porn actress Puma Swede
2208-509: The Karelian ASSR . This took place mainly for ideological reasons and was strongly supported by the political elite of the USSR. Today, the greatest concentration of Finnish Americans is in Michigan's Upper Peninsula , where they form 16% of the population, and are the largest ancestral group in the peninsula's western counties. Hancock , one city of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, could be considered
2304-581: The Southern United States by the U.S. Census Bureau , but the state's geography, culture, and history are a hybrid of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the country. Before the Delaware coastline was explored and developed by Europeans in the 16th century, the state was inhabited by several Native American tribes, including the Lenape in the north and Nanticoke in the south. The state
2400-636: The Torne Valley . Many of the emigrants left by ship from the port town of Hanko . Judging from municipalities of origin and later linguistic statistics, it is estimated that about 20-22% of all Finnish emigrants from 1893 to 1929 were Finland Swedes of which two thirds came from the Swedish-speaking coastal parts of Ostrobothnia, and also many from the Åland Islands which had a high share of emigrants relative to population. This would mean an over-representation of Swedish speakers emigrating from Finland at
2496-593: The Twelve-Mile Circle . The border follows the Circle for a short distance and then continues in a straight line due north until reaching the southern border of Pennsylvania. The Wedge of land between the northwest part of the arc and the Maryland border was claimed by both Delaware and Pennsylvania until 1921, when Delaware's claim was confirmed. Delaware is on a level plain, with the lowest mean elevation of any state in
2592-707: The Yale University and graduated in 1934. After touring Europe and Africa for a couple of years he returned to the States and became a citizen in 1940. During the Second World War Saarinen worked for Office of Strategic Services (OSS) which later became the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Saarinen is famous for his furniture and architectural designs. His designs include the Gateway Arch at
2688-424: The clean-up of property "lightly contaminated" by hazardous waste , the proceeds for which come from a tax on wholesale petroleum sales. Wilmington is the state's most populous city (70,635) and its economic hub. It is located within commuting distance of both Philadelphia and Baltimore. Dover is the state capital and the second most populous city (38,079). The table below lists the ten largest municipalities in
2784-574: The cupola of the courthouse in the city of New Castle . This boundary is often referred to as the Twelve-Mile Circle . Although the Twelve-Mile Circle is often claimed to be the only territorial boundary in the U.S. that is a true arc , the Mexican boundary with Texas includes several arcs, and many cities in the South (such as Plains, Georgia ) also have circular boundaries. This border extends all
2880-473: The windmill palm , needle palm , and dwarf palmetto . Delaware's all-time record high of 110 °F (43 °C) was recorded at Millsboro on July 21, 1930. The all-time record low of −17 °F (−27 °C) was also recorded at Millsboro, on January 17, 1893. The hardiness zones are 7B and 8A at the Delaware Beaches . The transitional climate of Delaware supports a wide variety of vegetation. In
2976-491: The 1860s seemed doomed to remain laborious, stunted, and forever at the mercy of unpredictable weather. In 1867, a severe crop failure in Finland drove masses of Finns, especially from rural Ostrobothnia , to migrate into Norway , from where they later moved to the United States and Canada . The Laestadian Finns longed for a rural way of life and religious toleration which they believed they would find in America. Thus,
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3072-570: The 1870s, there were only 3,000 migrants from Finland, but their number rapidly grew thereafter. New migrants often sent letters home, describing their life in the New World, and this encouraged more and more people to leave and try their luck in America. Rumours began of the acres of land that could be cleared into vast productive fields, and the opportunity to earn "a barrel of American dollars" in mines, factories, and railroads. There were also professional recruiters, or agents, employed by mining and shipping companies, who encouraged Finns to move to
3168-566: The 1910s and 1920s. This included primary and secondary schools for Black people and women. Delaware suffered less during the Great Depression than other states, but the depression spurred further migration from the rural south to urban areas. Like in World War I, the state enjoyed a big stimulus to its gunpowder and shipyard industries in World War II. New job opportunities during and after
3264-605: The 1940s and 1950s, Delaware attempted to integrate its schools, although the last segregated school in the state did not close until 1970. The University of Delaware admitted its first black student in 1948, and local courts ruled that primary schools had to be integrated. Delaware's integration efforts partially inspired the US Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education , which found racial segregation in United States public schools to be unconstitutional. The result of
3360-480: The 20th century, until U.S. authorities set up a quota of 529 Finnish immigrants per year in 1929. Initially, this led to an increase in Finnish immigration to Canada. But as social and economic conditions in Finland improved significantly during this era, overall immigration decreased by the middle of the century. The American revolutionary James P. Cannon noted that a considerable part of these immigrants tended towards
3456-461: The 50 U.S. states; from north to south, the three counties are: New Castle County , Kent County , and Sussex County . The southern two counties, Kent and Sussex counties, historically have been predominantly agrarian economies. New Castle is more urbanized and is considered part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan statistical area that surrounds Philadelphia . Delaware is considered part of
3552-491: The Black students. The ensuing unrest, which included cross burnings , rallies, and pro-segregation demonstrations, contributed to desegregation in most of Southern Delaware being delayed for another ten years. Sussex County did not start closing or integrating its segregated schools until 1965, 11 years after the Brown ruling. Throughout the state, integration only encouraged more white flight, and poor economic conditions for
3648-672: The Delaware River sharing land boundaries with New Jersey. The state of Delaware, together with the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland and two counties of Virginia , form the Delmarva Peninsula , which stretches down the Mid-Atlantic Coast. The definition of the northern boundary of the state is unusual. Most of the boundary between Delaware and Pennsylvania was originally defined by an arc extending 12 miles (19.3 km) from
3744-610: The English colonists had arrived as indentured servants (contracted for a fixed period to pay for their passage), and in the early years the line between servant and slave was fluid. Most of the free African-American families in Delaware before the Revolution had migrated from Maryland to find more affordable land. They were descendants chiefly of relationships or marriages between white servant women and enslaved, servant or free African or African-American men. Under slavery law, children took
3840-680: The Finnish American Reporter newspaper. Salolampi Finnish Language Village is a Finnish language immersion camp in Bemidji , Minnesota . Founded in 1978, it is a member of the Concordia Language Villages , and celebrates Finnish and Finnish-American heritage, culture, and language. Finnish-Americans historically favored Democratic Party candidates, owing to their frequent employment in mining and other blue-collar industries. This has changed in recent decades as many of
3936-400: The Finnish settlers of New Sweden was Martti Marttinen, who came to North America in 1654 and changed his name to Morton. John Morton , the politician who signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence on behalf of Pennsylvania in 1776, was his great-grandson. Migration to North America from Finland continued throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, but it was very sporadic in nature and only
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4032-470: The Lower Counties. The fact that Delaware and Pennsylvania shared the same governor was not unique; from 1703 to 1738, New York and New Jersey shared a governor. Massachusetts and New Hampshire also shared a governor for some time. Dependent in early years on indentured labor, Delaware imported more slaves as the number of English immigrants decreased with better economic conditions in England. The colony became
4128-612: The USA average). Winters are modestly cool to cold in northern Delaware, and cool to mild in southern Delaware. The normal seasonal snowfall ranges from about 20.0 inches in Wilmington to only 10.0 inches in Lewes. In many winters no snow will fall in coastal Delaware. Northern Delaware falls into USDA Garden Zone 7a, while southern and coastal areas fall into USDA zone 7b and 8a. The milder climate in southern Delaware allows for subtropical flora such as
4224-432: The United States before this; they were instrumental in the development of the New Sweden colony on the Delaware River , later absorbed into New Netherland . Many townships were established by Finnish Americans, including Herman, located in Baraga County , Michigan. The town is named for Herman Keranen , of Puolanka , Finland. A significant number of Finnish immigrants also settled in northern Minnesota , especially in
4320-474: The United States. More than 90% of the Finnish immigrants lived in urban centers. This recruitment activity was frowned upon by the authorities of the Grand Duchy, and it was mostly done in secret. It was eventually brought to an end in the late 1880s by legislation in the United States, but the decade still saw a 12-fold increase in the number of Finnish migrants compared to the previous decade, as 36,000 Finns left their home country for North America. The movement
4416-415: The United States. The Finnish-American population is around 650,000. Many Finnish people historically immigrated to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and the Iron Range of northern Minnesota to work in the mining industry; much of the population in these regions is of Finnish descent. Some Finns, like the ancestors of John Morton , came to the Swedish colony of New Sweden , located in Delaware in
4512-414: The Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Most Finnish immigrants at the time joined the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America , which eventually became part of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and remains in Calumet, Michigan, alongside various Apostolic (Laestadian) Lutheran churches. The years between 1870 and 1930 are sometimes referred to as the Great Migration of Finns to North America. In
4608-407: The agriculture economy from tobacco to mixed farming resulted in less need for slaves' labor. In addition local Methodists and Quakers encouraged slaveholders to free their slaves following the American Revolution, and many did so in a surge of individual manumissions for idealistic reasons. By 1810, three-quarters of all blacks in Delaware were free. When John Dickinson freed his slaves in 1777, he
4704-706: The area's average rents of $ 75 to $ 85 at the time. The apartments, built for 16 families, each contain five rooms and at the time of opening were outfitted with modern conveniences including heat, electricity, kitchens and bathrooms. Members wrote a constitution and bylaws to govern the building and outline five principles: democratic control, a nonprofit structure, voluntary membership with individual economic participation, and concern for community. Finnish Americans Finnish Americans ( Finnish : amerikansuomalaiset , pronounced [ˈɑmerikɑnˌsuo̯mɑlɑi̯set] ) comprise Americans with ancestral roots in Finland , or Finnish people who immigrated to and reside in
4800-521: The available farmland in the United States was already taken and Canada's was largely still available. While many immigrants pursued farming , others found employment in mining , construction , and the forest industry, while women usually worked as maids . In the case of the Finnish-American enclave in the Finger Lakes region south of Ithaca, New York early in the 20th century, Finns left urban jobs in order to acquire farms that had been sold by their previous owners. The migration continued well into
4896-524: The black population led to some violence during the 1960s. Riots broke out in Wilmington in 1967 and again in 1968 in response to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr , after which the National Guard occupied the city for nine months to prevent further violence. Since WWII, the state has been generally economically prosperous and enjoyed relatively high per capita income because of its location between major cities like Philadelphia, New York, and Washington, DC. Its population grew rapidly, particularly in
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#17328594586504992-399: The city grew from $ 5.5 million in 1860 to $ 44 million in 1900. The most notable manufacturer in the state was the chemical company DuPont , which to this day is heavily credited with making the state what it is today in many ways. Because of Wilmington's growth, local politicians from the city and New Castle County pressured the state government to adopt a new constitution providing
5088-414: The construction of housing cooperatives over New York City, and by 2017, one observer wrote that there were three co-op units for every condominium in New York City. The Finns also kept building co-ops in Sunset Park, with 50 cooperatives in the neighborhood by 1947. The building exteriors are made of brick. Members paid an initial payment of $ 500 and a recurring monthly fee of $ 25 to $ 33, in contrast with
5184-469: The day. Members of the Finnish Home Building Association wrote a constitution and bylaws, as well as a set of five principles. These principles set the foundation for future cooperatives, both in New York City and nationwide. By 1922, the Finns had constructed twenty co-ops in Sunset Park. These initially catered primarily to Finnish residents, but others of European descent also lived in these co-ops. The construction of Alku and Alku Toinen subsequently led to
5280-519: The direction of James, the Duke of York . Fighting off a prior claim by Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore , Proprietor of Maryland , the Duke passed his somewhat dubious ownership on to William Penn in 1682. Penn strongly desired access to the sea for his Pennsylvania province and leased what then came to be known as the "Lower Counties on the Delaware" from the Duke. Penn established representative government and briefly combined his two possessions under one General Assembly in 1682. However, by 1704
5376-478: The former slave states. The Delaware legislature declared Black people to be second-class citizens in 1866, and restricted their voting rights despite the 15th Amendment, ensuring continued Democratic success in the state throughout most of the 19th century. Fearful that the 1875 Civil Rights Act passed by Congress might establish racial equality, Delaware legislators passed Jim Crow laws that mandated segregation in public facilities. The state's educational system
5472-463: The group incorporated the Finnish Home Building Association and began construction on units for 16 families. The structures were called "Alku" and "Alku Toinen", which translated respectively to "Beginning" and "Beginning Second". The apartments were designed by Eric O. Holmgren in the Arts and Crafts architectural style. Because Alku and Alku Toinen comprised the first purpose-built, nonprofit housing cooperative in New York City, they were subject to
5568-422: The head of a group of Swedes, Finns and Dutch. The colony of New Sweden lasted 17 years. In 1651, the Dutch, reinvigorated by the leadership of Peter Stuyvesant , established a fort at present-day New Castle and, in 1655, they conquered the New Sweden colony, annexing it into the Dutch New Netherland . Only nine years later, in 1664, the Dutch were conquered by a fleet of English ships by Sir Robert Carr under
5664-418: The leading proponents of a strong central United States with equal representation for each state. Many colonial settlers came to Delaware from Maryland and Virginia , where the population had been increasing rapidly. The economies of these colonies were chiefly based on labor-intensive tobacco and increasingly dependent on African slaves because of a decline in working class immigrants from England. Most of
5760-462: The loss of their lands on the Delaware River and the destruction of the Minqua by the Iroquois of the Five Nations in the 1670s, the remnants of the Lenape who wished to remain identified as such left the region and moved over the Allegheny Mountains by the mid-18th century. Generally, those who did not relocate out of the state of Delaware were baptized, became Christian and were grouped together with other persons of color in official records and in
5856-414: The lower Delaware River in 1640. Finland was an integrated part of the Kingdom of Sweden at the time, and a Swedish colony in the New World thus had subjects from Finland as well. In two years' time, the number of Finns in the settlement had grown to fifty, and was increasing. New Sweden changed hands and came under Dutch control in 1655 and the Finnish community, while still small, was growing. Among
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#17328594586505952-445: The media, and some residents. Delaware is the sixth most densely populated state, with a population density of 442.6 people per square mile, 356.4 per square mile more than the national average, and ranking 45th in population. Delaware is one of five U.S. states ( Maine , Vermont , West Virginia , Wyoming ) that do not have a single city with a population over 100,000 as of the 2010 census. The center of population of Delaware
6048-421: The mid-17th century. In Russian America , Finns came to Sitka (when it was still called New Archangel) as migrant workers. Arvid Adolf Etholén was the first Finnish governor of Russian America, and the Lutheran Church was built for Finns. Finns started coming to the United States in large numbers in the late 19th century, and this movement continued until the mid-20th century. However, there were some Finns in
6144-474: The minds of their non-Native American neighbors. The Dutch were the first Europeans to settle in present-day Delaware in the middle region by establishing a trading post at Zwaanendael , near the site of Lewes in 1631. Within a year, all the settlers were killed in a dispute with Native American tribes living in the area. In 1638, New Sweden , a Swedish trading post and colony, was established at Fort Christina (now in Wilmington ) by Peter Minuit at
6240-541: The nation. Its highest elevation, located at Ebright Azimuth , near Concord High School , is less than 450 feet (140 m) above sea level. The northernmost part of the state is part of the Piedmont Plateau with hills and rolling surfaces. The Atlantic Seaboard fall line approximately follows the Robert Kirkwood Highway between Newark and Wilmington ; south of this road is the Atlantic Coastal Plain with flat, sandy, and, in some parts, swampy ground. A ridge about 75 to 80 feet (23 to 24 m) high extends along
6336-415: The north with more representation. However, the subsequent 1897 constitution did not proportionally represent the north and continued to give the southern counties disproportionate influence. As manufacturing expanded, businesses became major players in state affairs and funders of politicians through families such as the Du Ponts. Republican John Addicks attempted to buy a US Senate seat multiple times in
6432-436: The northeastern portion of the Delmarva Peninsula , and some islands and territory within the Delaware River . It is the second-smallest and sixth-least populous state, but also the sixth-most densely populated . Delaware's most populous city is Wilmington , and the state's capital is Dover , the second-most populous city in Delaware . The state is divided into three counties , the fewest number of counties of any of
6528-440: The northern third of the state are found Northeastern coastal forests and mixed oak forests typical of the northeastern United States. In the southern two-thirds of the state are found Middle Atlantic coastal forests . Trap Pond State Park , along with areas in other parts of Sussex County, for example, support the northernmost stands of bald cypress trees in North America. Delaware provides government subsidy support for
6624-534: The port of Wilmington had trading ties with the British. New Castle lawyer Thomas McKean denounced the Stamp Act in the strongest terms, and Kent County native John Dickinson became the "Penman of the Revolution". Anticipating the Declaration of Independence, Patriot leaders Thomas McKean and Caesar Rodney convinced the Colonial Assembly to declare itself separated from British and Pennsylvania rule on June 15, 1776. The person best representing Delaware's majority, George Read , could not bring himself to vote for
6720-406: The province of Pennsylvania had grown so large their representatives wanted to make decisions without the assent of the Lower Counties, and the two groups of representatives began meeting on their own, one at Philadelphia , and the other at New Castle. Penn and his heirs remained proprietors of both and always appointed the same person Governor for their province of Pennsylvania and their territory of
6816-400: The radical left in politics: "Under the impact of the Russian Revolution the foreign-born socialist movement grew by leaps and bounds. The foreign-born were organized in language federations, practically autonomous bodies affiliated with the Socialist Party. [Among others] there were about 12 thousand Finns, organized in their own federation". Most Finnish migrants had planned to stay only for
6912-560: The rules of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets , under which agricultural cooperatives were regulated. During construction, a member of the Finnish Home Building Association was tasked to supervise each day's work. Other members of the association, union -affiliated workers with knowledge in manual trades such as bricklaying and plumbing, worked on the construction itself, being hired by
7008-477: The rural regions in which they are numerous have swung to the Republican Party . In 2010, the three congressional districts with the highest concentrations of Finnish Americans (Michigan 1st, Wisconsin 7th, and Minnesota 8th), all adjacent to Lake Superior, flipped from Democratic to Republican control. General: Delaware Delaware ( / ˈ d ɛ l ə w ɛər / DEL -ə-wair )
7104-452: The social status of their mothers, so children born to white women were free, regardless of their paternity, just as children born to enslaved women were born into slavery. As the flow of indentured laborers to the colony decreased with improving economic conditions in England, more slaves were imported for labor and the caste lines hardened. By the end of the colonial period, the number of enslaved people in Delaware began to decline. Shifts in
7200-545: The state based on the 2020 United States census . The United States Census Bureau determined that the population of Delaware was 989,948 on April 1, 2020, an increase from the 2010 census figure of 897,934. Delaware's history as a border state has led it to exhibit characteristics of both the Northern and the Southern regions of the United States. Generally, the rural Southern (or "Slower Lower") regions of Delaware below
7296-507: The state's large gunpowder industry. DuPont, the most dominant business in the state by WWI, produced an estimated 40% of all gunpowder used by the Allies during the war. It produced nylon in the state after the war and began investments into General Motors . Additionally, the company invested heavily in the expansion of public schools in the state and colleges such as the University of Delaware in
7392-624: The state, some served in companies on the Confederate side in Maryland and Virginia Regiments. Delaware is notable for being the only slave state from which no Confederate regiments or militia groups were assembled. Delaware essentially freed the few slaves who were still in bondage shortly after the Civil War but rejected the 13th , 14th , and 15th Amendments to the Constitution; the 13th Amendment
7488-453: The suburbs in the north where New Castle county became an extension of the Philadelphia metropolitan area . Americans, including migrants from Puerto Rico, and immigrants from Latin America flocked to the state. By 1990, only 50% of Delaware's population consisted of natives to the state. Delaware is 96 miles (154 km) long and ranges from 9 to 35 miles (14 to 56 km) across, with a land area of 1,982 square miles (5,130 km ) and
7584-427: The time. In the years surrounding the turn of the 20th century, settlement was focused around three specific regions: The immigration of Finns gave birth to a strong Finnish-American culture, especially in cities such as Duluth and Ashtabula, Ohio. Many villages were named after places in Finland (such as Toivola, Minnesota , Savo, South Dakota , and Oulu, Wisconsin ). The Finnish exodus took place after most of
7680-447: The turn of the 20th century, Delaware has become an onshore corporate haven whose corporate laws are deemed appealing to corporations; over half of all New York Stock Exchange -listed corporations and over three-fifths of the Fortune 500 are legally incorporated in Delaware. Over 90% of all U.S. based companies that went public in 2021 incorporated themselves in Delaware. Delaware
7776-404: The war in the Wilmington area coaxed Black people from the southern counties to move to the city. The proportion of blacks constituting the city's population rose from 15% in 1950 to over 50% by 1980. The surge of Black migrants to the north sparked white flight , in which middle class whites moved from the city to suburban areas, leading to de facto segregation of Northern Delaware's society. In
7872-589: The way east to the low-tide mark on the New Jersey shore, then continues south along the shoreline until it again reaches the 12-mile (19 km) arc in the south; then the boundary continues in a more conventional way in the middle of the main channel ( thalweg ) of the Delaware River. On the west, Delaware and Maryland are mostly separated by a line running from the midpoint of the Transpeninsular Line , going slightly west of due north up to its tangent point on
7968-554: The western boundary of the state and separates the watersheds that feed Delaware River and Bay to the east and the Chesapeake Bay to the west. Since almost all of Delaware is a part of the Atlantic coastal plain , the effects of the ocean moderate its climate. The state lies in the humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa ) zone. Despite its small size (roughly 100 miles (160 km) from its northernmost to southernmost points), there
8064-639: The western part of the state before migrating across the Chesapeake Bay. The Kuskarawocks were most likely the Tuscarora . The Unami Lenape in the Delaware Valley were closely related to Munsee Lenape tribes along the Hudson River . They had a settled hunting and agricultural society, and they rapidly became middlemen in an increasingly frantic fur trade with their ancient enemy, the Minqua or Susquehannock . With
8160-494: Was Delaware's largest slave owner with 37 slaves. By 1860, the largest slaveholder owned 16 slaves. Although attempts to abolish slavery failed by narrow margins in the legislature, in practical terms the state had mostly ended the practice. By the 1860 census on the verge of the Civil War , 91.7% of the black population were free; 1,798 were slaves, as compared to 19,829 "free colored persons". An independent black denomination
8256-749: Was chartered in 1813 by freed slave Peter Spencer as the " Union Church of Africans ". This followed the 1793 establishment in Philadelphia of the African Methodist Episcopal Church by Richard Allen , which had ties to the Methodist Episcopal Church until 1816. Spencer built a church in Wilmington for the new denomination. This was renamed as the African Union First Colored Methodist Protestant Church and Connection , more commonly known as
8352-440: Was composed of immigrants arriving during the first decades of the 20th century. At its peak, the enclave had 10,000 Finnish residents and contained its own Finnish language newspaper. In 1916, a group of sixteen families, who were Finnish and Scandinavian Americans, began pooling their money together to build their own building in a cooperative style, as seen in Finland, to leave oppressive policies of landlords. The following year,
8448-695: Was established by the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America and is now affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America . In 2023, Finlandia University announced that it would be permanently closing following the completion of spring semester classes. Finlandia Foundation National, based in Pasedena , CA is working with the Finnish American Heritage Center to preserve their archives and continue
8544-606: Was first colonized by Dutch traders at Zwaanendael , near present-day Lewes, Delaware , in 1631. Delaware was one of the Thirteen Colonies that participated in the American Revolution against Great Britain , which established the United States as an independent nation. On December 7, 1787, Delaware was the first state to ratify the Constitution of the United States , earning it the nickname "The First State". Since
8640-488: Was industrializing, Finland, by now a Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire , was to a great extent excluded from the revolutionary process. The society was largely agrarian, and unemployment was rising, thanks to population growth and the fact that there was now little land left to cultivate in the country. America, on the other hand, possessed abundant natural resources but lacked a workforce. Rural life in Finland during
8736-551: Was named after its location on the Delaware Bay , which in turn derived its name from Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr (1577–1618), the first governor of the Colony of Virginia . The Delaware people, a name used by Europeans for Lenape people Indigenous to the Delaware Valley, also derive their name from the same source. The name de La Warr was derived from Sussex and is of Anglo -French origin. It came probably from
8832-516: Was rejected on February 8, 1865, the 14th Amendment was rejected on February 8, 1867, and the 15th Amendment was rejected on March 18, 1869. Delaware officially ratified the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments on February 12, 1901. During the Reconstruction Era that followed the Civil War , Democratic Redeemer governments led by the South's Bourbon aristocracy continued to dominate the region and imposed explicitly white supremacist regimes in
8928-434: Was segregated by operation of law. Delaware's segregation was written into the state constitution, which, while providing at Article X, Section 2, that "no distinction shall be made on account of race or color", nonetheless required that "separate schools for white and colored children shall be maintained." Beginning in the late 19th century, the Wilmington area grew into a manufacturing center. Investment in manufacturing in
9024-681: Was settled by European colonists, the present-day state was home to the Eastern Algonquian tribes known as the Unami Lenape , or Delaware, who lived mostly along the coast, and the Nanticoke who occupied much of the southern Delmarva Peninsula . John Smith also shows two Iroquoian tribes, the Kuskarawock and Tockwogh , living north of the Nanticoke—they may have held small portions of land in
9120-481: Was strengthened even further in 1899, as the Russian government started an aggressive, coordinated campaign for the Russification of Finland. Many Finns chose to escape the repression by migrating to the New World, and, during the 1900s, there were 150,000 new migrants. Most Finns who left for America came from the impoverished rural regions of Ostrobothnia . Other prominent points of departure were Northern Savonia and
9216-495: Was taken prisoner. The British remained in control of the Delaware River for much of the rest of the war, disrupting commerce and providing encouragement to an active Loyalist portion of the population, particularly in Sussex County. Because the British promised slaves of rebels freedom for fighting with them, escaped slaves flocked north to join their lines. Following the American Revolution , statesmen from Delaware were among
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