Chester

History

The indigenous 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. The original indigenous name of Chester was Mecoponaca, which means "the stream along which large potatoes grow". The first European settlers in the area were members of the New Sweden colony. The settlement that became Chester was first called "Finlandia" (the Latin name for Finland) and then "Upland" after the Swedish province of Uppland. The New Sweden settlers built Fort Mecoponacka in 1641 to defend the settlement. In 1644, the present site of Chester was a tobacco plantation operated by the New Sweden colonists. By 1682, Upland was the most populous town of the new Province of Pennsylvania. On October 27, the ship Welcome arrived bearing William Penn on his first visit to the province. Penn renamed the settlement after the English city of Chester. Chester 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. Chester served as the county seat for Chester County from 1682 to 1788. In 1789, Delaware County was formed from the eastern part of Chester County, and Chester became the new county seat. 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 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. By the mid-1800s, many textile mills and factories were built along Chester Creek including the Upland Mills by John Price Crozer and the Powhattan Mills by David Reese Esrey and Hugh…

Geography

Chester borders on (clockwise from southwest to northeast) Trainer Borough, Upper Chichester Township, Chester Township, Upland Borough, Parkside Borough, Brookhaven Borough, Nether Providence Township, Ridley Township, and Eddystone Borough in Pennsylvania. Chester is bordered to the south by the Delaware River. The city has a total area of , of which is land and of which (19.42%) is water, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.}}

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Chester Community CS
  Elementary · Chester · 4,276 students · 18.3:1 ratio
• Upper Darby SHS
  High · Drexel Hill · 4,191 students · 18.9:1 ratio
• Ridley HS
  High · Folsom · 1,869 students · 14.5:1 ratio
• Garnet Valley HS
  High · Glen Mills · 1,546 students · 13.2:1 ratio
• Beverly Hills MS
  Middle · Upper Darby · 1,523 students · 15.9:1 ratio
• Springfield HS
  High · Springfield · 1,375 students · 16.8:1 ratio
• Academy Park HS
  High · Sharon Hill · 1,355 students · 18.6:1 ratio
• Drexel Hill MS
  Middle · Drexel Hill · 1,318 students · 15.5:1 ratio