Chester County, Pennsylvania
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Chester County, Pennsylvania | |
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| Map | |
 Location in the state of Pennsylvania |
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| Statistics | |
| Formed | November, 1682 |
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| Seat | West Chester |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
1,968 km² (760 mi²) 1,958 km² (756 mi²) 10 km² (4 mi²), 0.51% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
433,501 221/km² |
| Website: www.chesco.org | |
Chester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2000, the population was 433,501. The county seat is West Chester.
Chester County was one of the three original counties of Pennsylvania created by William Penn in 1682. It was named for Cheshire, England.
It is part of the Delaware Valley area.
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[edit] History
Chester, Philadelphia, and Bucks Counties were the three original Pennsylvania counties created by William Penn in 1682. At that time Chester County's borders were Philadelphia County to the north, the Susquehanna River to the west, the Delaware River to the east, and Delaware and Maryland to the south.
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 northerm section of Chester County, as well as parts of Lancaster and Philadelphia Counties.
The original Chester County seat was the naval shipbuilding city of Chester. However, it became part of Delaware County when it was formed from the eastern portion of the Chester County on September 26, 1789. This took the county seat out of Chester County, so West Chester became the new county seat that year, and has remained so to the present.
The former Valley Forge Army Hospital, constructed during World War II, was one of the largest military hospitals in the United States.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,968 km² (760 mi²). 1,958 km² (756 mi²) of it is land and 10 km² (4 mi²) of it (0.51%) is water.
[edit] Adjacent counties
- Berks County (north)
- Montgomery County (northeast)
- Delaware County (east)
- New Castle County, Delaware (southeast)
- Cecil County, Maryland (south)
- Lancaster County (west)
[edit] Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 433,501 people, 157,905 households, and 113,375 families residing in the county. The population density was 221/km² (573/mi²). There were 163,773 housing units at an average density of 84/km² (217/mi²). 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.
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.
[edit] Politics
| Year | GOP | Dems |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 52.0% 120,306 | 47.5% 109,708 |
| 2000 | 53.4% 100,080 | 43.7% 82,047 |
| 1996 | 48.7% 77,029 | 41.0% 64,783 |
| 1992 | 43.7% 74,002 | 35.2% 59,643 |
| 1988 | 67.0% 93,522 | 32.1% 44,853 |
| 1984 | 70.1% 92,221 | 29.6% 38,870 |
| 1980 | 60.9% 73,046 | 28.6% 34,307 |
| 1976 | 60.4% 67,686 | 38.1% 42,712 |
| 1972 | 68.4% 72,726 | 29.3% 31,118 |
| 1968 | 57.2% 56,073 | 33.3% 32,606 |
| 1964 | 45.5% 40,280 | 54.1% 47,940 |
| 1960 | 63.6% 53,059 | 36.2% 30,167 |
As of November 2006, there are 300,789 registered voters in Chester County [1].
- Major Parties
- Democratic: 93,378 (31.04%)
- Republican: 156,375 (51.99%)
- Third Parties
- Constitution: 187 (0.06%)
- Green: 804 (0.27%)
- Libertarian: 1,702 (0.57%)
- Other: 48,343 (16.07%)
Recent estimations see Chester County trending Democratic. The reasons behind this are due to extensive migration of peoples from more liberal areas, such as Philadelphia, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
[edit] Government
Chester County is administered by a three-person Board of Commissioners, who are elected for four-year terms (which coincide with Presidential election years). 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.
[edit] Commissioners
- Carol Aichele
- Patrick O’Donnell
- Donald A. Mancici
[edit] Other Elected Officials
- Teena Peters, Clerk of Courts
- Valentino R. DiGiorgio, III, Controller
- Robert O. Satriale, Coroner
- Joe Carroll, District Attorney
- Martha E. Smith, Jury Commissioner
- Mimi Sack, Jury Commissioner
- Bryan Walters, Prothonotary
- Terence Farrell, Recorder of Deeds
- Paula Gowen, Register of Wills
- Carolyn Bunny Welsh, Sheriff
- Alan Randzin, Treasurer
[edit] United States Congressional Districts
[edit] Pennsylvania State House of Representatives
- 16th District, Arthur Hershey
- 26th District, Tim F. Hennessey
- 155th District, Curt Schroder
- 156th District, Elinor Z. Taylor
- 157th District, Carole Rubley
- 158th District, Chris Ross
- 160th District, Stephen Barrar
- 167th District, Robert Flick
- 168th District, Tom H. Killian
[edit] Pennsylvania State Senate
- 9th District, Dominic Pileggi
- 19th District, Andrew Dinniman
- 26th District, Edwin B. Erickson
- 36th District, Noah W. Wenger
- 44th District, John C. Rafferty
- 48th District, David Brightbill
[edit] Municipalities
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:
[edit] Cities
[edit] Boroughs
[edit] Townships
[edit] Census Designated Places
Census-designated places are geographical areas 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, such as villages, may be listed here as well.
[edit] Education
[edit] Colleges and universities
- Cheyney University of Pennsylvania (partially in Delaware County)
- Delaware County Community College (Exton and Downingtown Campuses)
- Immaculata University
- Lincoln University
- Penn State Great Valley
- Valley Forge Christian College
- West Chester University of Pennsylvania
[edit] Public School Districts
- Avon Grove School District
- Coatesville Area School District
- Downingtown Area School District
- Great Valley School District
- Kennett Consolidated School District
- Octorara School District
- Owen J. Roberts School District
- Oxford Area School District
- Phoenixville Area School District
- Spring-Ford Area School District
- Tredyffrin-Easttown School District
- Twin Valley School District
- Unionville-Chadds Ford School District
- West Chester Area School District
[edit] Independent schools
- Bishop Shanahan High School (Archdiocese of Philadelphia)
- Center for Arts and Tehnology (Administered by Chester County Intermediate Unit)
- Malvern Preparatory School
- Villa Maria Academy
- West Fallowfield Christian School
- Westtown School
- Windsor Christian Academy
- Windsor Christian Preschool
- Upland Country Day School (UCDS) - Pre-K through 9th Grade
