Wawaset Park was a planned residential community built by E. I. Du Pont de Nemours & Co. in 1918 and located in the city of Wilmington, Delaware. Bounded by Greenhill Avenue, Woodlawn Avenue, Pennsylvania Avenue, and 7th Street on Wilmington’s western edge, the original property was on three trolley lines and included a horse track, and later a fair grounds and an auto park. When purchased by the DuPont Company in 1917, the company began construction on a wide array of “Period” housing to accommodate its expanding workforce following a dramatic increase in business during the First World War. The company planned to offer the houses for sale to the general public, but only on a secondary basis, as DuPont Company employees were experiencing a severe housing shortage. The homes were built for DuPont executive staff and scientists.

Wawaset Park was designed by Baltimore architect Edward L. Palmer (1877-1952) in the tradition of famed landscape architect Frederick Law Olmstead (1822-1903), thus encompassing a park-like setting with curving streets. DuPont Company hired Palmer to initially design and construct 100 homes on the property, including the street arrangement and the landscaping. Many of the homes are Tudor cottages, while others are brick Georgian mansions. Some of the smaller houses were built in the Gothic and the then out-of-vogue “Picturesque” style. Many of the homes initially sold for about $6,000 plus an additional $1,500 for the lots. The larger semi-detached and detached houses sold for $9,000 to $20,000. Most did not include garages, but they could be built later with the extra cost added to the existing payments.

Palmer’s attention to natural contours contrasted with that of Wilmington’s other developments in the early twentieth century. Palmer’s previous work in Baltimore, particularly at Roland Park, encompassed similar designs and styles. There, he designed several neighborhoods using a typical Olmstead influence, paying close attention to aesthetics and curvilinear streets that wound around hills. At Wawaset Park, Palmer paid special attention to planting various elm and oak trees, most of which provided shaded walkways. By 1930, the majority of new home construction had finished. Fulfilling Palmer’s vision, Wawaset Park offered residents the convenience of suburban living within the city, with the privacy of the countryside.

Wawaset Park has maintained its distinct style and character under the care of the Wawaset Park Maintenance Corporation, formed to approve any such additions, alterations, and plans for new structures, staying true to the original deed restrictions that established set backs, building codes, and limitations on street alterations to maintain Palmer’s original design. Any additions or alterations were decided by the Maintenance Corporation through a vote by its members. In 1986, the historic district of Wawaset Park and its 321 buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places.