First settled by Swedes in 1655, Wilmington was taken over by Peter Stuyvesant and the Dutch and later by the British. It was William Penn and the Quakers who brought prosperity, making Wilmington a major shipping and commerce hub.

In modern times the city's claim to fame has been its location, halfway between New York City and Washington, D.C. Many corporations like the equal access to both commerce and government so much that they have set up shop in the city, which is sometimes called the world's corporate capital. While the DuPont Co. has long called Wilmington home, the area's biggest businesses now are credit card banks, attracted by the state's laissez faire attitude to interest rate charges. Banks have gobbled up downtown real estate, but little has been done to improve the inner city blight of rundown neighborhoods and empty stores in the city center. After 5 pm it's quiet downtown, as all movie theaters and most restaurants and housing developments are in the suburbs. Current efforts to establish a commercial waterfront center, much like Baltimore's to the south, have been slowed by city government squabbling and power plays. Wilmington's minor league baseball park is one of the waterfront project's keystones, and the club complex Kahunaville draws visitors into town after dark.