1638Military
New Sweden on the Delaware 1638–1655 (The Middle Atlantic Press, Wilmington.
1641Military
The New Sweden settlers built Fort Mecoponacka in 1641 to defend the settlement.
1644Economy
In 1644, the present site of Chester was a tobacco plantation operated by the New Sweden colonists.
1682Government
Incorporated in 1682, Chester is the oldest city in Pennsylvania and was the location of William Penn's first arrival in the Province of Pennsylvania.
1701Civil Rights
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.
1702History
== History ==
=== Early 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 ...
1724Architecture
In 1724, the Chester Courthouse was built to support the legal needs of the county.
1776History
Throughout 1776 and 1777, there were significant forces stationed in Chester and nearby Marcus Hook.
1777Military
In 1777, the Continental Army led by George Washington passed through Chester on the way to meet the British Army led by General Howe at the Battle of Brandywine.
1788History
In 1788, the Chester County seat was moved from Chester to West Chester.
1789Military
In 1789, Delaware County was formed from the eastern part of Chester County, and Chester became the new county seat.
1812Military
During the War of 1812, a group of volunteers from Chester called the Mifflin Guards was raised and led by Samuel Anderson.
1821Military
Founded as The Bullock School for Boys in 1821, the school was established in Wilmington, Delaware.
1846Government
It became The Alsop School for Boys from 1846 to 1853, and then Hyatt's Select School for Boys from 1853 to 1859.
1851Military
In 1851, the Delaware County seat was moved from Chester to the borough of Media.
1858Military
Military instruction was introduced in 1858, and in 1859, the school changed its name to Delaware Military Academy.
1859Architecture
In 1859, a new church was built on Third Street.
1862Military
It moved to Chester in 1862 and became Pennsylvania Military Academy.
1866Government
On February 14, 1866, Chester was incorporated as a city and the first mayor elected was John Larkin, Jr.
1871Military
In 1871, the Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works was opened by John Roach through the purchase of the Reaney, Son & Archbold shipyard.
1872Government
Congressman
Third Presbyterian Church - A Presbyterian church founded in 1872.
1877Culture
Martin, John Hill (1877).
1880Architecture
Roach built the Combination Steel and Iron Company in 1880 to supply steel rails and other products for businesses beyond the Roach shipyard.
1883Education
Paul's Church and Old Burial Ground
Subaru Park
Third Presbyterian Church
Widener University
William Penn Landing Site
== See also ==
USS Chester, 2 ships
== References ==
C...
1884History
Ashmead, Henry Graham (1884).
1885Architecture
He lost control of the company after his shipbuilding enterprise entered receivership in 1885.
1892Military
It was known as Pennsylvania Military College after 1892 and adopted the Widener name in 1972.
1900History
In 1900, the current St.
1904History
With the exception of 1904–1905, the Republican political machine controlled Chester politics for over a century.
1907History
McClure took over from his father, William McClure, in 1907 and was the political boss for the machine until his death in 1965.
1910Government
Sleeper's College was a vocational school founded in 1910 for "office and commercial training".
1912Education
It was the location of the first summer bible school in 1912.
1914History
By 1914, Chester had more saloons than police officers; approximately 1 saloon per every 987 residents.
1917Architecture
was opened in 1917 to build ships for the United States until its closure in 1990.
1918Government
The Wharf at Rivertown, a $60 million renovation of the Chester Waterside Station of the Philadelphia Electric Company, originally built in 1918, provides recreational and offic...
1923History
The shipyard closed permanently in 1923.
1927Architecture
In 1927, the Ford Motor Company opened the Chester Assembly factory on the site of the previous Roach and Merchant shipyard and built cars there until its closure in 1961.
1933Crime
In 1933, McClure was found guilty in federal court and sentenced to 18 months in prison for vice and rum-running, but his conviction was overturned on appeal.
1941History
In 1941, McClure was indicted for conspiracy to gain a $250,000 profit from the sale of the Chester Water Works to a private buyer.
1948Architecture
attended Calvary Baptist when he was a student at Crozer Theological Seminary from 1948 to 1951
Chester Friends Meetinghouse - The first Quaker meetinghouse was built in 1693 an...
1950History
Chester's precipitous drop in jobs in the late 20th and early 21st centuries caused the city's population to diminish from over 66,000 in 1950 to under 34,000 in 2010.
1963Civil Rights
In 1963 and 1964, the Chester school protests fought to end the de facto segregation that resulted in the racial categorization of Chester public schools, even after the landmar...
1964Civil Rights
In April 1964, a series of almost nightly protests brought chaos to Chester.
1965History
Swann, Leonard Alexander (1965).
1968Government
Nacrelli, the mayor of Chester from 1968 to 1979, was convicted of racketeering and income tax evasion for accepting $22,000 in bribes from an illegal gambling operation with ti...
1974Military
Prior to the bridge's opening in 1974, US 322 would cross the Delaware River on the Chester-Bridgeport Ferry, via Flower Street, causing major backups because of limited space o...
1978Disaster
In 1978, an intense fire broke out at Wade Dump, a rubber recycling facility and illegal industrial chemical dumping site.
1981History
In 1981, the location was declared a Superfund cleanup site and remediation occurred throughout the 1980s.
1985Architecture
It was extended north in the 1970s, with the section around Philadelphia International Airport being completed in 1985.
1988History
1988)
Sigmond, Carl E.
1989History
In 1989, the site was deemed safe and removed from the Superfund national priorities list.
1992Government
The first non-machine mayor was elected in 1992: Barbara Bohannan-Sheppard; however, in 1995, she lost her re-election bid and was replaced by Republican Aaron Wilson, Jr.
1993Government
It is run by the Saint Katharine Drexel Roman Catholic Church which was established in 1993 by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia with the consolidation of all Roman Catholic paris...
1995Government
Pennsylvania declared Chester a financially distressed municipality in 1995, and a fiscal emergency was declared in 2020.
1998Government
Chester Community Charter School is a charter school established in 1998 that serves over 4,000 students in grades K-8.
2003History
The Lamokin Street station was run as a flagstop station until it was closed and demolished in 2003 due to low usage.
2004Architecture
In 2004, the site was converted to a parking lot for Commodore Barry Bridge Park.
2006Architecture
Harrah's Casino and Racetrack began harness racing in September 2006 and opened its racino in January 2007.
2007Architecture
The ramps were built between 2007 and 2010 and were opened in 2011.
2008Military
The racino opened on January 22, 2008, and features a specially constructed bridge that enables the midpoint of races, contested at one mile, to take place over the Delaware River.
2010Architecture
Subaru Park, home of the Major League Soccer Philadelphia Union franchise, opened in 2010.
2011Education
The school was originally called the Chester Upland School for the Arts (CUSA) and operated until 2011 when significant staff reduction occurred due to state funding cuts.
2012Government
In 2012, a charter school application was accepted and the school operated in Aston until September 2017 when a $30 million campus was built on Highland Ave.
2016History
Retrieved February 10, 2016.
2017Civil Rights
A $16.6 million project to repair eight I-95 bridges will begin March 2017 and is expected to be finished in November 2018.
2018History
Retrieved July 13, 2018.
2020Government
Despite the recent investments into the community, Governor Tom Wolf declared a fiscal emergency for Chester in 2020 and the city declared bankruptcy in 2022.
2021Government
The current mayor of the City of Chester is Stefan Roots, who won the Democratic nomination in May 2021, over incumbent Mayor Thaddeus Kirkland.
2022History
In 2022, Chester became the 31st city in the United States to declare bankruptcy.
2023Government
In May 2023, Roots defeated Kirkland in the Chester Democratic mayoral primary election.