Chester County, Pennsylvania
Chester County, colloquially referred to as Chesco, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the Delaware Valley region, located in the southeastern part 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. The county is part of the Philadelphia metropolitan area.
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
, 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, of which is land and 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 :
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
- Montgomery County
- Delaware County
- New Castle County, Delaware
- Cecil County, Maryland
- Lancaster County
National protected area
- Valley Forge National Historical Park
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, Depuy Synthes, 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
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%.
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | % 2000 | % 2010 | ||
| White alone | 377,925 | 409,561 | 405,476 | 87.17% | 82.09% | 75.87% |
| Black or African American alone | 26,395 | 29,388 | 28,391 | 6.08% | 5.89% | 5.31% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone | 479 | 535 | 532 | 0.11% | 0.10% | 0.09% |
| Asian alone | 8,400 | 19,216 | 35,143 | 1.93% | 3.85% | 6.57% |
| Pacific Islander alone | 108 | 117 | 119 | 0.02% | 0.02% | 0.02% |
| Other race alone | 448 | 600 | 2,249 | 0.10% | 0.12% | 0.42% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial | 3,620 | 6,966 | 18,961 | 0.83% | 1.39% | 3.54% |
| Hispanic or Latino | 16,126 | 32,503 | 43,542 | 3.71% | 6.51% | 8.14% |
| Total | 433,501 | 498,886 | 534,413 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
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. There were 163,773 housing units at an average density of. 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. 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.