Quarantine Station
Lewes * Maritime History Trail
In 1880, the fear that foreigners were bringing epidemic diseases to the United States led the federal government to create the National Quarantine System. Around the country, from stations like the one that was here, doctors were dispatched to board arriving ships to examine the passengers, sending the sick ashore for treatment or observation.
All that's left of the Delaware Breakwater Quarantine Station today are a few ruins. But from 1884 to 1916 it was a busy community where thousands of immigrants, medical personnel, and staff were housed. The station included separate men's and women's hospitals and a ward for contagious cases. There were also staff quarters, a disinfecting house, a boathouse, a flag house for signaling ships, a stable, two tanks for drinking water, a commissary, a blacksmith shop, a crematorium, and a cemetery.
There is no official count of people examined and treated by the station, but estimates exceed 200,000.
Marker can be reached from Coastal Highway (U.S. 9), on the right.
Courtesy hmdb.org
