During the Revolution, the War of 1812 and the Civil War, the dual responsibility of raising children and producing crops was thrust upon women. Each of these wars had a devastating effect upon the local economy because much of the food produced in the region was diverted to the armies. At other times there were huge crop losses due to invasions of locusts or to unfavorable weather conditions. The British embargo at the time of the War of 1812 and the Panic of 1837 also affected the area economy adversely. Many years passed before the original settlers were able to purchase their farms from the Pennsylvania Province.
Some records indicate that great grandchildren of the original settlers made the final payments.
The first county agricultural society was formed in 1826, more that 40 years after the organization of the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture. At about this time Chester County farmers started to experiment with crop and animal production techniques and a number of patents were issued for mechanical devices marking the first evidence of the Industrial Revolution in the county. By 1880 Chester County was an important part of the breadbasket serving the northeastern states. There were 264 gristmills in the county. Today there are the remains of only about 16 gristmills because grain production ultimately moved to the Mid-west.