Jonas Morton probably started the Darby Creek Ferry in 1759 and petitioned the county for permission to keep a tavern at the ferry. The tavern served travelers with food, drink, and shelter when bad weather or heavy ice delayed crossing, and it also functioned for local residents as a bar, clubhouse, newsroom, and entertainment hall. The ferry was probably a simple rope ferry powered by the water current, with a rope stretched across the stream and the boat fastened so it could slide along it while crossing. By shortening the line at one end, the ferryman angled the ferry so the current pushed it across the creek, and by shortening the line at the opposite end, he changed the angle to send it back, while the rope kept it from drifting downstream. Although no passenger lists survive, records show cattle dealers moved livestock across Darby on the way to market, island residents likely crossed to conduct business on the mainland, and worshipers traveling to Swedish Lutheran services on Tinicum Island may also have used it. The site's broader history spans periods identified as Indians before 1638, New Sweden from 1638 to 1655, Dutch dominion from 1655 to 1664, English rule from 1664 to 1681, the Pennsylvania colony from 1681 to 1784, Americans from 1784 to 1870, suburban development from 1870 to 1935, building restoration from 1935 to 1937, and a historic park from 1937 to the present.