Woodland Ferry

The Woodland Ferry, historically known as Cannon's Ferry, is a cable ferry located in western Sussex County, Delaware, spanning the Nanticoke River at Woodland, Delaware, west of the city of Seaford. The ferry is operated year-round by the Delaware Department of Transportation. It is closed on national holidays of Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year's Day, and also as required by weather.HistoryThe ferry is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, ferries in continuous operation in the United States. In addition to its longevity, the ferry is of historical importance as one of the locations where slave runner Patty Cannon embarked with kidnapped refugee slaves and free blacks. She shipped them to Georgia where the free blacks were sold into slavery and refugee slaves returned to servitude.The Ferry was established in the 1740s by James Cannon, and operated by his son Jacob after his death. After Jacob's death in 1793, his widow petitioned the Delaware General Assembly for exclusive rights to operate a ferry service across the river. The ferry was privately operated by the Cannon family until the mid-19th century, when the General Assembly authorized the county to operate a free ferry at the location of "Cannon's Ferry".