More historic than 50% of U.S. towns · #744 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. What drives it
Most of Chester Township was built recently: 5% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1972. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1894 on, and the census since 1820.
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1887.The full story ↓
History grade
What drives Chester Township’s History grade
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Chester Township is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns, #744 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Its age holds the grade up; its National Register listings pull it down.
B−
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Chester Township’s overall grade.
Pennsylvania towns list about as much on the Register as the country (a typical Pennsylvania town has 2.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Chester Township’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Pennsylvania towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1682.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to B+. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±3.0 points).
Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Chester Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Chester Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1894Chester sheet · 1:62,500
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Chester Township.
People over time
Chester Township, census by census
Peaked at 66,039 in 1950; 32,605 people lived here in 2020.
20 censuses, 1820–2020.
U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Chester Township’s Wikipedia page.
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.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
In 1682, according to Wikidata. Chester Township’s post office opened in 1887, and the census of 1820 counted 657 people here.
How does Chester Township rank for history?
Chester Township is more historic than 50% of U.S. towns, #744 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Chester Township?
5% of Chester Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±3.0 points), against a typical 18% for a Pennsylvania town; the median home was built in 1972.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (11), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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