Redden is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in Sussex County,

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, United States. The community became an important railroad center on the Junction and Breakwater Railroad in the 1800s. The site of a historic 19th-century church and a

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

mess hall, Redden lost its post office and school in the 1930s.

Geography

Redden is located along

U.S. Route 113 U.S. Route 113 (US 113) is a U.S. Highway that is a spur of US 13 in the U.S. states of Maryland and Delaware. The route runs from US 13 in Pocomoke City, Maryland, north to Delaware Route 1 (DE 1) in ...

in the

Georgetown Hundred Georgetown Hundred is a hundred in Sussex County, Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland ...

, north of Georgetown, amidst tracts which comprise the Redden State Forest.

History

1800s

The original McColley's Chapel, a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

church in Redden, was built sometime after the land was donated, in 1857. The original building was replaced with the current chapel in 1898. Redden was originally known as Carey. It was renamed in honor of Col. William O. Redden, who had prominent role in Sussex County in the mid-19th century. The Redden post office began operation in 1868. In 1874, Redden was described as a post station on the

Junction and Breakwater Railroad The Junction and Breakwater Railroad was a 38 mile long railroad that ran between Harrington, Delaware and Lewes with a spur to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware during the late 19th and early 20th Century. It passed though Milford, Ellendale and Georget ...

. Redden's population was 50 residents in 1890.

1900s

The population of Redden had grown slightly to 57 in 1900. In 1904, Redden was described as a post village on the

Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad The Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad (PB&W) was a railroad that operated in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Washington, District of Columbia, the District of Columbia from 1902 until 1976. A key component of the Pennsylvania R ...

. The

right-of-way A right of way (also right-of-way) is a specific route that people, animals, vehicles, watercraft, or utility lines travel, or the legal status that gives them the right to do so. Rights-of-way in the physical sense include controlled-access h ...

is used for freight transport operated by the auspices of

Delmarva Central Railroad The Delmarva Central Railroad is an American short-line railroad owned by Carload Express that operates of track on the Delmarva Peninsula in the states of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. The railroad operates lines from Porter, Delaware to Ha ...

. The Redden School, numbered 180, was still in operation in 1928, but by 1930, a recommendation was made by the Delaware State Board of Education to close the Redden School. Redden Community Hall, used as a

mess hall The mess (also called a mess deck aboard ships) is a designated area where military personnel socialize, eat and (in some cases) live. The term is also used to indicate the groups of military personnel who belong to separate messes, such as the o ...

during World War II, is "a rare surviving example of an intact

Civilian Conservation Corps The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government unemployment, work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was ...

(CCC) camp facility in Delaware". Around this time, the Redden post office closed; it ceased operations in 1933.

2000s

McColley's Chapel was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on November 30, 2011. The church is still in operation and is under the Peninsula-Delaware Conference of the

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...

. Redden Community Hall is still used as a polling location.

References