1. Delaware became the first state to ratify the U.S. Constitution on July 19, 1787. Its delegation to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia voted unanimously in favor of the document, paving the way for its eventual adoption by the 13 original states.

2. The Battle of Brandywine, one of the largest engagements of the American Revolution, began on July 19, 1777. British forces under General William Howe outflanked the Continental Army under General George Washington, leading to a defeat for the Americans and allowing the British to capture Philadelphia.

3. On July 19, 1865, a vigilante mob in Wilmington, Delaware, attacked and lynched African American leader Samuel Burris. Burris, a conductor on the Underground Railroad, had been caught helping enslaved people escape to freedom and was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor. The mob overpowered the sheriff and dragged Burris from jail, hanging him from a tree.

4. The DuPont company was founded on July 19, 1802, by Éleuthère Irénée du Pont in Wilmington, Delaware. Originally a gunpowder manufacturer, the company grew to become one of the largest chemical producers in the world.

5. On July 19, 1843, the first issue of The Delaware Gazette and State Journal was published in Wilmington, Delaware. The newspaper, which later became The News Journal, is the largest daily newspaper in the state and has a long history of covering local and national events.