History of the Borough of West Chester (1881); Chester County, PA

Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Sandra Ferguson <ferg@ntelos.net>.

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from THE HISTORY OF CHESTER COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA, by Futhey and Cope (1881);
 
West Chester is  the county town and seat of justice of Chester Co, Pa.  The 
exact location of the borough, or rather of the court-house, was ascertained in 
1843 by E.W. Beans, then principal of the public school in West Chester, and 
Walter Hibbard, surveyor and conveyance.
    It is situated on the water-shed or dividing ridge between the Brandywine 
and Chester Creek, 2 miles from the former stream, near one of the sources of 
the latter, 5 miles s of the great Limestone or Chester Valley, 23 miles west of 
the original city of Philadelphia, about 16 miles north of Wilmington, Del and 
about 456 feet above tide.
     On the 28th March, 1799, the town of West Chester was erected into a 
borough by an act of the Legislature.  This elevation required burgesses an 
assistants to manage the municipal affairs.  At the census of 1790, West Chester 
was but 4 years old - and was only counted as a portion of Goshen twp .  
    The original plan of the village or town proper of West Chester consisted of 
4 contiguous squares, with 2 principal streets crossing in the center, and yet, 
simple as it was, with that utter disregard  of symmetry and lack of good taste 
which characterized the projectors of the plan and early buildings, neither of 
the streets crossed at right angles and consequently none of the so-called 
squares was rectangular.  An oblique policy, strongly redolent of barbarism, 
seemed to prevail among the primitive Cestrians, and it's sinister influence was 
long perceptible.  In 1829, several additional streets were opened and new 
squares formed.  People then began to perceive the advantage of setting private 
dwellings back from the street, of having side-yards, and of planting ornamental 
shade-trees and shrubbery.  Until this improvement was introduced and those 
trees planted which now render the streets of West Chester so umbrageous and 
pleasant, our pedestrians found nothing to intercept the glare of the summer 
sun, save here and there, at long intervals, a straggling relic of a decaying 
Lombardy poplar.
    In the year 1799 the apprehension of fire induced the formation of the first 
West Chester Fire Co, which is still kept up in good condition, with 2 other 
efficient companies; the "Good Will", organized in 1833 and the "Fame", 
organized in 1838.