Thornbury Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania
Encyclopedia
Township (Pennsylvania)
A township in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, a state of the United States of America, is one of four types of municipalities in the state . Townships were established based on convenient geographical boundaries and vary in size from six to forty square miles...
in Chester County
Chester County, Pennsylvania
-State parks:*French Creek State Park*Marsh Creek State Park*White Clay Creek Preserve-Demographics:As of the 2010 census, the county was 85.5% White, 6.1% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American or Alaskan Native, 3.9% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian, 1.8% were two or more races, and 2.4% were...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 3,017 at the 2010 census. It is adjacent to, and was once joined with Thornbury Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Thornbury Township, Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Thornbury Township is a township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 7,093 at the 2000 census. It is adjacent to, and was once joined with, Thornbury Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.-Geography:...
.
History
Thornbury Township was organized in 1687 with the appointment of Hugh Durborrow as constable and received its name from ThornburyThornbury, South Gloucestershire
Thornbury is a market town in South Gloucestershire, England, approximately 12 miles north of the city of Bristol, with a population of 12,342 at the 2001 UK census. The town hosts South Gloucestershire Council headquarters and is twinned with Bockenem in Germany. Thornbury is a Britain in Bloom...
, in Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, England. At the time not more than five or six families lived within the limits of the township. George Peirce, one of the earliest and most influential inhabitants of the township, had a wife who was a native of Thornbury, in England, and the township was purportedly named to compliment her. Thornbury, Birmingham and Westtown
Westtown Township, Pennsylvania
Westtown Township is a township in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 10,827 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.23%, is water.-Demographics:As of the census of 2000,...
townships are the only townships within the present limits of Chester County which were organized before 1704.
The township was divided when Delaware County
Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Delaware County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of 2010, the population was 558,979, making it Pennsylvania's fifth most populous county, behind Philadelphia, Allegheny, Montgomery, and Bucks counties....
was separated from Chester County
Chester County, Pennsylvania
-State parks:*French Creek State Park*Marsh Creek State Park*White Clay Creek Preserve-Demographics:As of the 2010 census, the county was 85.5% White, 6.1% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American or Alaskan Native, 3.9% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian, 1.8% were two or more races, and 2.4% were...
in 1798. As a result, there is a Thornbury Township in each county. Landowners were allowed to choose which county they wished to be in, causing the line between the two townships, and the two counties, to be very irregular.
The Battle of Brandywine
Battle of Brandywine
The Battle of Brandywine, also known as the Battle of the Brandywine or the Battle of Brandywine Creek, was fought between the American army of Major General George Washington and the British-Hessian army of General Sir William Howe on September 11, 1777. The British defeated the Americans and...
, part of the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
took place partially in the town. It was one of Thornbury's citizens, Squire Thomas Cheyney, who informed George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, commander of the Continental Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...
, of the approach of the British troops.
Points of interest
Entries in the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
- Melrose Cottage (President's House) on the grounds of Cheyney University of PennsylvaniaCheyney University of PennsylvaniaCheyney University of Pennsylvania is a public, co-educational historically black university that is a part of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Cheyney University has a campus that is located in the Cheyney community within Thornbury Township, Chester County and Thornbury...
- Thornbury Lodge (also known as the William J. Barnard Residence)
- Taylor Frazer Ruins
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the township has a total area of 3.9 square miles (10.1 km²), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 2,678 people, 1,023 households, and 734 families residing in the township. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 684.8 people per square mile (264.4/km²). There were 1,095 housing units at an average density of 280.0/sq mi (108.1/km²). The racial makeup of the township was 91.90% White, 2.58% African American, 4.56% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.22% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.78% of the population.
There were 1,023 households out of which 33.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.6% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 4.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.2% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.60 and the average family size was 3.10.
In the township the population was spread out with 26.0% under the age of 18, 5.4% from 18 to 24, 34.8% from 25 to 44, 26.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 95.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.6 males.
The median income for a household in the township was $84,225, and the median income for a family was $112,291. Males had a median income of $70,602 versus $42,371 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the township was $47,505. None of the families and 1.6% of the population were living below the poverty line, including no under eighteens and 2.0% of those over 64.