Chester County, Pennsylvania

Chester County, colloquially referred to as Chesco, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, part of the southeastern portion of the state. As of the 2020 census, the population was 545,823. increasing by 7.1% from 498,886 in 2010. The county seat is West Chester. The most populous of the county's 73 municipalities, including cities, boroughs, and townships is Tredyffrin Township. The most populous boroughs are West Chester and Phoenixville. Coatesville is the only municipality in the county that is classified as a city. Chester County was one of the three original Pennsylvania counties created by William Penn in 1682. It was named for Chester, England. It is part of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metropolitan statistical area. Along with northern Delaware County and southern Montgomery County, eastern Chester County is home to many communities that comprise part of the Philadelphia Main Line western suburbs of Philadelphia. As of 2020, the county had the highest median household income level in Pennsylvania, and the 35th-highest in the nation. History Philadelphia, Bucks, and Chester were the three counties created by William Penn on August 24, 1682, in the colonial-era Province of Pennsylvania. At the time, Chester County's borders were Philadelphia County to the north, the ill-defined western edge of the colony, located approximately at the Susquehanna River to the west, the Delaware River to the east, and Delaware and Maryland to the south. Chester County replaced the Pennsylvania portion of New Netherland's upland in New York, which was officially eliminated when Pennsylvania was chartered on March 4, 1681, and ceased existing in June of that year. Much of the Welsh Tract was in eastern Chester County, and Welsh place names, given by early settlers, continue to predominate there. The fourth county in the state, Lancaster County, was formed from Chester County on May 10, 1729. On March 11, 1752, Berks County was formed from the northern section of Chester County and parts of Lancaster and Philadelphia counties. The southern border of Chester County is the Mason-Dixon Line, surveyed in 1765. An error in surveying resulted in the Wedge, extending south of the line. Chester County claimed the Wedge until 1921, when it was ceded to Delaware. The original Chester County seat was the City of Chester, a center of naval shipbuilding, at the eastern edge of the county. In an effort to accommodate the increased population of the western part of the county, the county seat was moved to a more central location in 1788; in order to mollify the eastern portion of the county, the village, known as Turk's Head, was renamed West Chester. In response to the new location of the county seat, the eastern portion of the county separated and formed the new Delaware County in 1789 with the City of Chester as its county seat. Much of the history of Chester County arises from its location between Philadelphia and the Susquehanna River. The first "road to the West," a reference to Lancaster County, passed through the central part of Chester County, following the Great Valley westward; with some realignments, it became the Lincoln Highway and later U.S. Route 30. This road is still named Lancaster Avenue in most of the Chester County towns it runs through. The first railroad, which became the Pennsylvania Railroad, followed much the same route, and the Reading Railroad progressed up the Schuylkill River to Reading. Industry tended to concentrate along the rail lines. Easy transportation allowed workers to commute to urban jobs, and the rise of the suburbs followed. To this day, the county's developed areas extend along major lines of transportation. During the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of Brandywine was fought in the southeastern part of the county. The Battle of the Clouds and the Battle of Paoli both took place in the northeastern part of the county, along with George Washington's encampment at Valley Forge. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 759 square miles (1,970 km2), of which 751 square miles (1,950 km2) is land and 8.7 square miles (23 km2) (1.1%) is water. The topography consists of rolling hills and valleys and it is part of the region known as the Piedmont. Watersheds that serve Chester County include the Octoraro, Brandywine, and Chester creeks, and the Schuylkill River. Many of the soils are fertile, rich loam as much as twenty-four inches thick; together with the temperate climate, this was long a major agricultural area. Because of its proximity to Philadelphia, Chester County has seen large waves of development over the past half-century due to suburbanization. Although development in Chester County has increased, agriculture is still a major part of the county's economy, and the number of horse farms is increasing in the county. Mushroom growing is a specialty in the southern portion of the county. Chester County is the only county to border both Delaware and Maryland. Elevations (in feet): High point—1020 Welsh Mt., Honeybrook Twp. Other high points—960 Thomas Hill, Warwick Twp; 960 Barren Hill, West Caln Twp. Low point—66 Schuylkill River, Chester-Montgomery county line. Cities and boroughs: Coatesville 314; Downingtown 255; Kennett Square 300; Oxford 535; Parkesburg 542; Phoenixville 127; Spring City 114; West Chester 459. Adjacent counties Berks County (north) Montgomery County (northeast) Delaware County (east) New Castle County, Delaware (southeast) Cecil County, Maryland (south) Lancaster County (west) National protected area Valley Forge National Historical Park (part) State protected areas French Creek State Park Marsh Creek State Park White Clay Creek Preserve Major roads and highways Economy and environment Lanchester Landfill, located on the border of Chester and Lancaster Counties, captures methane which is sold for renewable natural gas credits, and piped to seven local businesses. This reduces the county's methane emissions, and provides an alternative to fracking for shale gas. In addition, several companies have their headquarters or a major presence in the county including Bentley Systems, EBS Healthcare, Main Line Health, Lavazza North America (formerly Mars Drinks), Depuy Synthes (part of Johnson & Johnson), Metabo, QVC, Hankin Group, Axalta Coating Systems, CTDI, Pactiv, Ricoh Americas, Blinding Edge Pictures, J.G. Wentworth, The Vanguard Group, and Victory Brewing Company among others. Demographics Racial and ethnic composition 2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 534,413 and a median age of 40.5 years. 22.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 17.2% were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 93.8 males age 18 and over. The racial makeup of the county was 77.3% White, 5.5% Black or African American, 0.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 6.6% Asian, <0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.5% from some other race, and 6.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 8.1% of the population. 80.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 19.3% lived in rural areas. There were 197,119 households in the county, of which 32.5% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 57.6% were married-couple households, 14.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 22.3% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 23.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. There were 208,240 housing units, of which 5.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 74.5% were owner-occupied and 25.5% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.9%. 2010 census As of the 2010 census, the county was 82.1% White Non-Hispanic, 6.1% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American or Alaskan Native, 3.9% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian, 1.8% were two or more races, and 2.4% were some other race. 6.5% of the population were Hispanic or Latino. 2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 433,501 people, 157,905 households, and 113,375 families residing in the county. The population density was 573 inhabitants per square mile (221/km2). There were 163,773 housing units at an average density of 217 units per square mile (84/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 89.21% White, 6.24% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 1.95% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.35% from other races, and 1.06% from two or more races. 3.72% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 18.0% were of Irish, 17.3% German, 13.1% Italian, 10.1% English and 5.6% American ancestry. 91.4% spoke English and 3.7% Spanish as their first language. There were 157,905 households, out of which 35.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 60.50% were married couples living together, 8.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.20% were non-families. 22.60% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.15. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.20% under the age of 18, 7.90% from 18 to 24, 30.40% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 11.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 96.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $65,295, and the median income for a family was $76,916 (these figures had risen to $80,818 and $97,894 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $51,223 versus $34,854 for females. The per capita income for the county was $31,627. About 3.10% of families and 5.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.10% of those under age 18 and 5.50% of those age 65 or over. The region was originally occupied by the Lenni Lenape people, who greeted European settlers in the seventeenth century with amity and kindness. British settlers were mostly English, Scotch-Irish and Welsh in ethnicity. From the late 19th to early 20th century, the industrial areas of the region, such as Coatesville, attracted immigrants and job seekers from Germany and Ireland, Eastern Europe, Italy, and the American rural South, with both black and white migrants coming north. Later Hispanic immigrants have included Puerto Ricans and, most recently, Mexicans. Long a primarily rural area, Chester County is now the fastest-growing county in the Delaware Valley; it is one of the fastest growing in the entire Northeastern section of the United States. Religion In keeping with its colonial history, Chester County is home to a number of historic Quaker buildings, including Birmingham, Birmingham Orthodox, Bradford, Caln, Old Kennett, Parkersville, Schuylkill, Westtown, and Uwchlan meeting houses. Other historic religious buildings include St. Malachi Church, southeastern Pennsylvania's oldest active Catholic mission church, and the Episcopal St. Mary's, St. Paul's, and St. Peter's churches, and Washington Memorial Chapel. The First Presbyterian Church of West Chester, Coventryville United Methodist Church, which is part of the Coventryville Historic District, and Beth Israel Congregation of Chester County, a Conservative synagogue in Coatesville, a site of Eastern European immigration in the 20th century, are located in the county. Politics Voter registration As of November 18, 2024, there were 396,404 registered voters in Chester County. Election results Chester County has historically been reliably Republican at the county level. After voting Democratic in 1856 for Pennsylvania native James Buchanan, it only did so three more times in the next 160 years—in 1912, 1964, and 2008. In recent elections, however, the county has been trending Democratic, although not as overwhelmingly as its fellow Main Line counties of Montgomery and Delaware. It remains the most conservative of these three. In 2000, George W. Bush defeated Al Gore in the county by almost 10%, but in 2004, John Kerry cut Bush's margin of victory by over half, to just 4.5%. In 2008, Chester County voted for Barack Obama by 9%. In 2009, with a smaller turnout, Republican candidates swept all county-row offices, winning with an average margin of 20%. In 2012, the county voted for the Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, by a very small margin of 0.2%, or about 500 votes. In 2016, despite Pennsylvania voting for a Republican presidential candidate for the first time since 1988, Chester County voted more Democratic than in 2012, with Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump by over 25,000 votes or 9.4 percentage points; a 9.6 percentage point swing from 2012. It was the only county in the nation to flip to Clinton in a state that flipped to Trump. The only two statewide winners in 2016 to carry Chester County were U.S. Senator Pat Toomey (R) and Pennsylvania State Treasurer Joe Torsella (D). Republican candidates John Brown and John Rafferty carried Chester County, though both lost their races for Auditor General and Attorney General, respectively (Rafferty, a State Senator whose district includes northern Chester County, carried the county by a slim margin of 50 votes) Emphasizing its Democratic shift even further, Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump by 17.1 points in Chester County in the 2020 election; Trump's percentage of votes was the lowest for any Republican since 1912. Such a major shift in the county was a major factor in Biden's success in flipping Pennsylvania back into the Democratic column. Although Trump regained some ground when he won Pennsylvania in 2024, he still lost the county by 14 points to Kamala Harris, despite matching his 2016 performance there. On November 8, 2017, Democrats made historic inroads in Chester County by winning their first county row office seats in history, picking up four row office seats. On November 5, 2019, Democrats swept the county row office seat elections and took a majority on the Board of Commissioners, both firsts in the county's history. In both the 2021 and 2023 elections, Democrats followed up with another sweep of the county row offices, along with retaining their majority on the Board of Commissioners. Government County Commissioners Chester County is administered by a three-person Board of Commissioners who serve four-year terms. Elections take place in the odd-numbered years that precede U.S. presidential elections, with the next election scheduled for 2027. The commissioners have selective policy-making authority to provide certain local services and facilities on a county-wide basis. Accordingly, the commissioners are responsible for the management of the fiscal and administrative functions of the county. Currently, the Democrats hold a majority on the board, with Commissioners Josh Maxwell and Marian Moskowitz holding two of the three seats. County law requires the minority party to be represented with one seat, which is held by Eric Roe of the Republican Party. As of December 30, 2023: County row officers As of October 20, 2024: United States House of Representatives As of January 3, 2023: United States Senate As of January 3, 2025: State House of Representatives As of January 3, 2025: State Senate As of January 3, 2025: Education Colleges and universities Cheyney University of Pennsylvania (partially in Delaware County) Delaware County Community College (locations in Downingtown and West Grove) Immaculata University Lansdale School of Business (location in Phoenixville) Lincoln University Penn State Great Valley School of Graduate Professional Studies University of Valley Forge West Chester University Public school districts School districts include: Charter schools Achievement House Charter School grades 9–12, Exton Avon Grove Charter School grades K-12, West Grove Chester County Family Academy Charter School grades K-2, West Chester Collegium Charter School grades K-12, Exton Pennsylvania Leadership Charter School K-12, West Chester Renaissance Academy Charter School grades K-12, Phoenixville Sankofa Academy Charter School grades 5–8, West Chester 21st Century Cyber Charter School grades 6–12. Downingtown. Independent schools Bishop Shanahan High School (Archdiocese of Philadelphia) Center for Arts and Technology (Administered by Chester County Intermediate Unit) Chesterbrook Academy Preschool (West Chester, Pennsylvania) Chesterbrook Academy Elementary School (West Chester, Pennsylvania) Church Farm School (now called CFS the School at Church Farm) Delaware Valley Friends School Devon Preparatory School Fairville Friends School (Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania) Goshen Friends School (West Chester, Pennsylvania) Kimberton Waldorf School (Kimberton, Pennsylvania) London Grove Friends Kindergarten (Kennett Square, Pennsylvania) Malvern Preparatory School Montgomery School The Concept School - 6th through 12th Grade Upattinas School and Resource Center (Glenmoore, Pennsylvania) Upland Country Day School (UCDS) - Pre-K through 9th Grade Villa Maria Academy (Malvern, Pennsylvania) Villa Maria Academy Lower School (Immaculata, Pennsylvania) West-Mont Christian Academy West Chester Friends School West Fallowfield Christian School Westtown School Windsor Christian Academy - K through 6th Grade Windsor Christian Preschool Regina Luminis Academy Libraries The Chester County Library System in southeastern Pennsylvania was organized in 1965. It is a federated system composed of a District Center Library in Exton and sixteen member libraries. The system provides materials and information for life, work and pleasure. Communities Under Pennsylvania law, there are four types of incorporated municipalities: cities, boroughs, townships, and, in at most two cases, towns. The post office uses community names and boundaries that usually do not correspond to the townships, and usually only have the same names as the municipalities for the cities and boroughs. The names used by the post office are generally used by residents to describe where they live. The following cities, boroughs and townships are located in Chester County: City Coatesville Boroughs Townships Census-designated places Census-designated places are unincorporated communities designated by the U.S. Census Bureau for the purposes of compiling demographic data. They are not actual jurisdictions under Pennsylvania law. Other unincorporated communities Historic community Barnestown Population ranking The population ranking of the following table is based on the 2020 census of Chester County. † county seat Climate Chester County has four distinct seasons and has a hot-summer humid continental climate (Dfa) except for some far southern lowlands and areas along the Schuylkill River which have a humid subtropical climate (Cfa). The hardiness zone 7a except for 7b near the Brandywine Creek in Birmingham Township. [1] Public health Opioid crisis In both 2018 and 2019, deaths from drug overdoses in Chester County declined. Of the 104 drug overdoses recorded by the coroner, an estimated 77 percent involved the presence of fentanyl. One of the reasons for the decline in overdose deaths was "the saturation across the county of Narcan, the anti-opioid nasal spray that can revive someone suffering an overdose." In 2019, any resident of Chester County could obtain a free Narcan dose at community training events across the county. Notable people See also Duffy's Cut National Register of Historic Places listings in Chester County, Pennsylvania References Further reading External links Chester County Home Page Chester County Government Meeting Minutes and local news at TownWatcher Chester County Press Newspapers & Magazines Collection of Chester County Quaker property records and other manuscripts from Friends Historical Library of Swarthmore College