In the 1700s and 1800s, Chester was a hub for business due to easy access to the Delaware River for the transport of raw materials and finished goods by ship. The borough of Chester was governed under the charter granted by Penn in 1701 until March 5, 1795, when it was incorporated by the Pennsylvania Assembly. In 1789, Delaware County was formed from the eastern part of Chester County, and Chester became the new county seat. In 1788, the Chester County seat was moved from Chester to West Chester. A portion of the British force occupied Chester as they chased the Continental Army fleeing to Philadelphia. The Continental Army fled back to Chester after defeat at the Battle of Brandywine. John Armstrong was ordered to take command of the militia stationed at Chester. In 1777, the Continental Army led by George Washington passed through Chester on the way to meet the British Army led by General Howe at the Battle of Brandywine. However, Colonel Miles led the troops to New York City in July 1776 when it became clear that the British Fleet was threatening New York rather than Philadelphia. In April 1776, nearly 1,000 men were stationed in Chester under Colonel Samuel Miles in preparation for the defense of Philadelphia. Throughout 17, there were significant forces stationed in Chester and nearby Marcus Hook. Ĭhester played only a small role in the American Revolutionary War. In 1724, the Chester Courthouse was built to support the legal needs of the county. Chester served as the county seat for Chester County from 1682 to 1788. Declaration of Independence Bird's eye view of Chester in 1885 Shuttered buildings on Avenue of the StatesĬhester County originally stretched from the Delaware River to the Susquehanna River from its founding in 1682 until 1729 when Lancaster County was formed from the western part. Paul's Church burial ground is the burial location of John Morton, one of 56 signators to the U.S. 18th century Chester Courthouse, built in 1724, is the oldest existing public building in the United States. Penn renamed the settlement after the English city of Chester. On October 27, the ship Welcome arrived bearing William Penn on his first visit to the province. īy 1682, Upland was the most populous town of the new Province of Pennsylvania. In 1644, the present site of Chester was a tobacco plantation operated by the New Sweden colonists. The New Sweden settlers built Fort Mecoponacka in 1641 to defend the settlement. The settlement that became Chester was first called "Finlandia" (the Latin name for Finland) and then "Upland" after the Swedish province of Uppland.
The first European settlers in the area were members of the New Sweden colony.
The original Indian name of Chester was Mecoponaca, which means "the stream along which large potatoes grow". The Indian tribe that owned the land where Chester now stands were the Okehockings, removed by order of William Penn in 1702 to other lands in Chester County. History Early history This marker commemorates the site where William Penn first landed in the Province of Pennsylvania, now Chester, in 1682
Since the mid-twentieth century, it has lost its manufacturing base, over half of its residents, and devolved into a post-industrial city struggling with pollution, poverty, and crime. Chester evolved over the centuries from a small town with wooden shipbuilding and textile factories into an industrial city producing steel ships for two World Wars and a myriad of consumer goods. It was the county seat for Chester County from 1682 to 1788 and of Delaware County from 1789 to 1851.
Incorporated in 1682, Chester is the oldest city in Pennsylvania and was the location of William Penn's first arrival in the Province of Pennsylvania. The population of Chester was 32,605 at the 2020 census. the Philadelphia metropolitan area) on the western bank of the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware. It is located in the Delaware Valley (i.e. Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States.