Museum
Joseph Shipley, a Quaker merchant banker, built Rockwood between 1851 and 1854. Its Gothic Revival architecture and enchanting landscape were designed to refl ect the beauty of an English country estate.
The museum reflects the way the Bringhurst family, descendants of Shipley, lived during the turn of the 20th century.
Guided Tours
Wednesday - Saturday at 10am, 11am, 12noon, 1pm, 2pm, and 3pm
Sundays at 12noon, 1pm, 2pm, and 3pm
Please arrive 5 - 10 minutes prior to the tour, tours leave promptly on the hour.
Closed on New Castle County Holidays
Admission
$10 - Adults ($5 for New Castle County Residents with ID)
$4 - Children ages 7 - 12 ($2 for New Castle County Residents With ID)
FREE - Children, 6 and under
FREE - Active Military
Beginning May 5, 2013, museum admission is FREE the first Sunday of every month!
June: Summertime
Experience the echoes of a bygone era when croquet, lawn tennis, a light afternoon tea, and summer dresses
welcome the coming summer.
July: Happy Birthday Edward Bringurst, III!
Our Edward is turning 129 on July 4! The museum will be bedecked with red, white, and blue in celebration of Edward and the U.S.A.!
August: Down The Shore
Summer dresses and luggage are
readied for the Bringhursts’ trip to
Cape May Point.
Historic Garden
The Historic Garden at Rockwood that surrounds the Mansion was installed over 150 years ago. It reflects Joseph Shipley's vision of gardens that he had visitied in England. A new philosophy of garden design emerged in England in the mid 19th century. Dissatisfied with the formal tidy gardens of Europe, landscape designers of this era vowed to "seek and follow nature" and give romance and pleasure to the gardens they created. The entire property became a "landscape garden" unified in a subtle, naturalistic design. This style inspired Joseph Shipley to create the gardens at Rockwood.
Garden Tours are by reservation only.
Trail maps and self-guided Historic Landscape Garden tour brochures are available at the mansion Wednesday - Sunday 10am - 4pm.
Call 302.761.4340 for more information about garden tours.
Group & School Tours
To inquire about bus, school, historic garden tours please call 302-761-4340.
Ghost Tours
Rockwood offers private and group ghost tours throughout the year. Upcoming tours will appear in our events section. If you would like to inquire about a private tour or would like more information please call Philip Nord at 761-4340.