The Dutch House is believed to be the oldest surviving brick house in Delaware, dating from the late seventeenth century when New Castle was still a Dutch colonial outpost called Nieuw Amstel. The squat, steep-roofed building at 32 Third Street is a rare example of vernacular Dutch colonial construction in America — most buildings from this period have long since been demolished or rebuilt.
The interior is furnished with Dutch and early American domestic objects of the period: Delftware, period furniture, and household tools that illustrate how the original Dutch settlers lived before English rule transformed the colony. It is managed by the New Castle Historical Society alongside the adjacent Amstel House, and admission to both is typically combined. The building's survival owes much to the continuous care of local preservation organizations.