The Chester County History Resources

	Department of History 500 Main Hall West Chester, Pennsylvania 19383	(610)436-2201 http://www.wcupa.edu/

CHESTER COUNTY

West Chester Borough

West Chester University is located on the southern edge of West Chester, Pennsylvania, a 200-year-old town characterized by its strong sense of history, award-winning schools, tree-lined residential streets, and diversity of fine restaurants. The University lies approximately 35 miles west of Philadelphia and is within two hours of New York, Baltimore, the New Jersey seashore, and the Pocono Mountains. Within walking distance of campus, the History Center of the Chester County Historical Society and the Chester County Archives together house one of the state's oldest and richest collections of artifacts and documents.

Chester County

Listed as one of the nation's twenty five "hot spots" in the Wall Street Journal, Chester County has a rich mix of natural beauty, historic sites, outstanding schools, and a booming economy. Agriculture remains the county's top industry. Today, Chester County is also one of the nation's fastest growing counties and among the top fifteen percent in per capita wealth. It boasts a dynamic corporate economy, and is home to the Vanguard Group, one of the nation's largest mutual-fund companies; QVC Network, the shop-at-home television retailer; and the "Medical Mile," a corridor of more than thirty biotech and pharmaceutical firms close at hand to Philadelphia's five medical schools.

History and Attractions

Brimming with history, the region boasts an extraordinary collection of museums, parks, and other attractions. In the county's Brandywine Valley are the Brandywine River Museum with its unparalleled collection of works by Howard Pyle and the Wyeths, the Revolutionary War Brandywine Battlefield, and Longwood Gardens, one of the world's finest horticultural parks. In nearby Delaware, the Winterthur Museum houses the world's largest collection of American decorative arts. On the county's northern edge is Valley Forge National Historic Park and the King of Prussia corporate and commercial center with the nation's largest complex of retail stores.In the county's western reaches are the Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site, a restored 18th-entury ironmaking community, and some of the state's richest farmland.

Links

Brandywine River Museum

Chester County Historical Society

Chester County Tourist Bureau

Chester County Workforce & Economic Directory

Longwood Gardens

Valley Forge National Historic Park

Department Home Page