While these docking points along the creek grappled with one another to gain influence over the area’s commerce, Philadelphia merchant Samuel Ball recognized the significant role the intersection of the Maryland Road and the King’s Highway played in commercial activity in the area. Speculating that a settlement at this intersection would benefit from the waning prosperity of the Duck Creek Village port and the new facilities at Green’s Landing, as well as the commercial activity found at the junction of two major roadways, he purchased fifteen acres surrounding the crossroads in 1768. Ball named his settlement Duck Creek Crossroads, to distinguish it from nearby Duck Creek Village and within several years, the community reaped the financial benefits of trade and commerce, as evidenced by the establishment of several dwellings and stores on and near the crossroads. Today, this vital intersection is known as Smyrna’s "Four Corners."

     By the nineteenth century, Duck Creek Crossroads figured prominently in grain trading. Merchants, such as Smyrna resident John Cummins, established a number of granaries at Green’s Landing. The grains held and processed at Green’s Landing were shipped to mills on the Brandywine in northern Delaware, and from there, to ports along the East Coast and Europe. Duck Creek Crossroads’ role in the grain business may have triggered the Delaware State legislature to rename the village to Smyrna in 1806, possibly after the well-known grain center and port of Smyrna, Turkey. Officially incorporated in 1817, Smyrna’s gridded street plan was surveyed that same year.

     In 1855, the Delaware Railroad Company located its rail line two miles west of Smyrna at Clayton (first known as Smyrna Station). Initially, local businessmen and merchants feared that the railroad would compete with the area’s well-established shipping business, but by 1861 they realized the need for a link to Delaware’s thriving railroad line and a spur line connecting Smyrna to Clayton was established. The town’s growth during this period is marked by the rich and vibrant architectural trends of the Victorian Era. Although Smyrna continued to flourish through the end of the nineteenth century, during the twentieth century industry and commerce became increasingly concentrated in Wilmington, Delaware’s largest city.

     Smyrna’s connectivity, via water, road, and rail, to other markets provided an ideal setting for commercial activity during the nineteenth century. These factors coupled with events, such as the Industrial Revolution and a region-wide agrarian reform, gave rise to a class of businessmen and merchants, tradesmen and laborers who molded and shaped Smyrna. These men and women contributed to Smyrna’s tangible history by building and inhabiting the town’s earliest structures. This collection of dwellings, stores, churches, civic, and social buildings reflects a significant period of the town’s history and provides a valuable key to interpreting and understanding Smyrna’s past.

This prominent Gothic Revival style church on West Commerce is further set apart from the block by its serpentine limestone exterior. The stone was most likely quarried in southeastern Pennsylvania and shipped to Smyrna. The 1884 church exhibits many Gothic Revival elements, particularly lancet-shaped windows and door heads.

St. Peter’s stands as an example of how a building evolves to meet the needs of its current occupants. Constructed in 1827, the church underwent an extensive remodeling project in 1857 that included the addition of a vestibule and two transepts. The eastern end of the building was extended twenty-seven feet during this period. The sanctuary was enlarged in 1885 and a new altar and timber roof were added in 1902. The property gained a Sunday school building in 1872 and a church office in 1958.

According to local tradition, the Barracks housed soldiers during the War of 1812 and was the draft headquarters for the Union during the Civil War. The building exhibits several different style elements, such as a belt course (which reflects an early nineteenth century decorative treatment) and bracketed eaves (which suggests a late nineteenth century remodeling). One of the original "Irishtown" worker’s dwellings is located behind the museum. Saved from demolition in the 1950s, the Irishtown dwelling was originally located near North Main Street and Glenwood Avenue.

Constructed around 1820, the Academy appears today as a twin house. The Academy derives its name from the girl’s school it housed during the nineteenth century. The structure has always been divided: one side serving as the school, while the other as a home for the school’s teacher.

Built as the Morning Star Lodge No. 6 IOOF, the Odd Fellows Hall displays Greek Revival detailing. The building features a pedimented end-gable facade, punctuated by a series of regularly-spaced pilasters. The Hall housed the Smyrna Library Association (formed 1858) on its first floor until it moved to the Town Hall (Opera House) in 1870.

Originally a two story dwelling with wing, the house located at 204 West Mt. Vernon Street was constructed in 1790 for Colonel Charles Pope, who served in the Revolutionary War. John Mustard, co-owner of the Peterson-Mustard Tannery, purchased the home in 1837. In 1850 a large remodeling project took place, the result of which is the house today. The tannery was located approximately one block north of the house.

The McLane-Spearman-Gootee House underwent three distinct building phases since its first incarnation over 200 years ago. Upon returning to Smyrna after the American Revolution, Allen McLane and his family took up residence in this three-bay Georgian, replete with a Flemish bond brick pattern and belt course facade. By 1791, Simon Spearman purchased the house and added the two story wing to the west sometime in the early nineteenth century. In 1871, Dr. B. S. Gootee purchased the house and added the mansard roof with dormers.

The two brick Greek Revival buildings (one single and one duplex) located at the corner of South and Main Streets were designed by local architect Van Gaskin. Several notable Smyrna citizens resided in these dwellings including John Bassett Moore, an internationally-known judge.

The pastor of Smyrna’s Protestant Episcopal Church, Alexander Cummins chose the Gothic Revival style when constructing his home in 1875. The pointed arch and lancet are recurring themes in this highly decorative style and can be found throughout the home’s exterior. Intricately detailed vergeboards accent the dwelling’s gables, window surrounds, and porch supports.

One of the most-prominent figures in Smyrna’s history, John Cummins made his fortune as a grain dealer, selling his products via ship to ports along the Eastern Seaboard. John and Susan Cummins originally made their home in the one story with attic building located to the south, that now appears as a wing of the larger structure. As Cummins’ prominence and wealth grew, his needs for a larger dwelling were met by the construction of the Mansion in the early nineteenth century. Federal in style, the two-story dwelling exhibits a Flemish bond, five-bay facade, interior end chimneys, and a fanlight above the entry door. The much smaller, earlier Cummins dwelling to the south of the mansion was attached to the main structure sometime after 1940.

The William Temple House represents a fusion of two distinct building styles: Federal and Italianate. The two and one half story, side-gabled Federal portion of the home was expanded circa 1845 to include a three-bay, three-story Italianate structure. Although much of the exterior now includes Italianate detailing, such as the heavy brackets found under the eaves, the structural composition of the two different periods remains evident.

Constructed during the first quarter of the nineteenth century, the Delaware House began as a two-story, five bay dwelling. The building was renovated in 1837 and then again in 1856 to accommodate visiting businessmen and merchants. Known as the Steamboat Hotel and then as the Delaware House, the hostelry lodged visitors until 1944, when the hotel was converted into a nursing home.