University of Delaware students held an emergency campus meeting Monday after several juniors discovered that Wilmington, Delaware's largest city, actually exists and is only a 20-minute drive from campus.
"I thought it was like a myth," admitted junior Sarah Chen, who has lived in Delaware for three years. "Like Bigfoot, or affordable student housing. I assumed 'Wilmington' was just what we called the vague area between Newark and Philadelphia."
The revelation came when a group of students accidentally took the wrong exit on I-95 and ended up in downtown Wilmington, where they discovered restaurants, museums, and "like, actual buildings that weren't built in the 1970s."
A campus-wide survey revealed disturbing gaps in geographical knowledge:
• 87% of students believe Wilmington is "somewhere near Philadelphia, probably"
• 23% think it's "maybe in Pennsylvania?"
• 41% were "pretty sure Delaware only has Newark and some farms"
• 12% had "never really thought about it"
"To be fair, the university doesn't exactly emphasize Wilmington's existence," explained senior Michael Torres. "They're like, 'UD is your world now. Main Street has everything you need. Don't venture beyond the Deer Park.'"
Wilmington residents expressed a mix of amusement and mild offense. "We're literally the state capital—wait, no, that's Dover," said downtown office worker Jennifer Martinez. "We're the largest city though! We exist! We have a baseball team! Please acknowledge us!"
In response to the discovery, UD Student Government passed a resolution to "occasionally acknowledge Wilmington's existence," with plans for an annual field trip to the Riverfront "if students aren't too busy."
"We're considering adding 'Wilmington is Real and Close By' to freshman orientation," said Student Body President David Kim. "Though we don't want to overwhelm them. They're already dealing with Newark's one-way streets."
As of press time, students were planning their first organized trip to Wilmington, tentatively scheduled for 2027 "if anyone can find reliable parking information."