| Chadds Ford Township, Pennsylvania | |
| Settlement Type: | Township |
| Image Blank Emblem: | Logo of Chadds Ford Township, Pennsylvania.svg |
| Blank Emblem Type: | Logo |
| Mapsize: | 260px |
| Image Map1: | Pennsylvania in United States (US48).svg |
| Map Caption1: | Location of Chadds Ford Township in Pennsylvania |
| Coordinates: | 39.8747°N -75.5542°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Pennsylvania |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Delaware |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 22.59 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 8.72 |
| Area Land Km2: | 22.43 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 8.66 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.16 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.06 |
| Elevation Ft: | 315 |
| Population As Of: | 2010 |
| Population Total: | 3640 |
| Pop Est As Of: | 2016 |
| Pop Est Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Est: | 3734 |
| Population Density Km2: | 166.48 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 431.18 |
| Timezone1: | EST |
| Utc Offset1: | -5 |
| Timezone1 Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset1 Dst: | -4 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code |
| Postal Code: | 19317 |
| Area Code: | 610 and 484 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 42-045-12442 |
| Blank Name Sec2: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info Sec2: | 42-045-12442 |
| Blank1 Name Sec2: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info Sec2: | 1216378 |
| Blank2 Name Sec2: | Wikimedia Commons |
Chadds Ford Township is an affluent township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located about southwest of Philadelphia.
Prior to 1996, Chadds Ford Township was known as Birmingham Township; the name was changed to allow the township to correspond to both its census-designated place and to distinguish itself from the adjacent Birmingham Township in Chester County.[3] As of the 2010 census, Chadds Ford Township had a population of 3,640,[4] up from 3,170 at the 2000 census.
Chadds Ford was home to N. C. Wyeth, his son Andrew Wyeth, his daughter Ann Wyeth McCoy, and his grandson Jamie Wyeth. Brandywine Battlefield, the site of the Battle of Brandywine during the American Revolutionary War, is located in the township, along with Brandywine River Museum, which houses much of the Wyeth collection.
The township's original name was Birmingham, which was given to it by William Brinton in remembrance of the town of the same name in England.[5]
Frances Chadsey, or Chads, improperly spelled Chadd, emigrated from Wiltshire, England in 1689 and lived in Chichester Township until 1696 when his name first appeared in the Birmingham Township tax records.
On September 11, 1777, the house owned by George Gilpin was occupied by General Howe of the British Army during the Battle of Brandywine.[6] The local significance of the battle is such that a 1940 guidebook noted that "a local barber displays a large sign: 'This is where Washington and Lafayette had a close shave.'"[7]
The Chad House, Chadds Ford Historic District, Gilpin Homestead, and William Painter Farm are all listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The township is the westernmost in Delaware County and is bordered to the west by Chester County, to the south by the state of Delaware, and to the east by Concord Township. The southern border is part of the Twelve-Mile Circle border between Delaware and Pennsylvania. Brandywine Creek forms the western boundary of both the township and of Delaware County.
The village of Chadds Ford is in the northwestern part of the township, and a small piece of Dilworthtown is in the northern corner of the township.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 22.6sqkm, of which 22.4sqkm is land and 0.2sqkm, or 0.70%, is water.[4]
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally cool to cold winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Chadds Ford Township is in a transitional zone betweenf the humid subtropical and humid continental climatic zones. Of these two climate zones, Chadds Ford has much more in common with the humid continental climate.[8] The hardiness zone is 7a except near the Brandywine Creek where it is 7b. Average monthly temperatures in the village center of Chadds Ford range from 31.5 °F in January to 75.9 °F in July.
As of 2010 census, the racial makeup of the township was 89.4% White, 1.4% African American, 0.0% Native American, 7.6% Asian, 0.5% from other races, and 1.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.9% of the population http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_PL_GCTPL2.ST13&prodType=table.
Chadds Ford Township is located in the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District and public school students attend the district's schools.[9] High school students attend Unionville High School in Kennett Square.
Rachel Kohl Library serves Chadds Ford Township.[10]
As of 2020, there were of public roads in Chadds Ford Township, of which were maintained by Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and were maintained by the township.[11]
U.S. Route 1 (Baltimore Pike) runs through the northern part of the township and intersects U.S. Routes 202 and 322 at Painters Crossroads on the township's eastern border. US 1 leads southwest toward Maryland, while US 202 leads south to Wilmington, Delaware, and US 322 leads east to Chester. US 202 and 322 together lead north to West Chester.