Chester, Pennsylvania
On October 27, the ship Welcome arrived bearing William Penn on his first visit to the province. He renamed the settlement after the English city of Chester. The indigenous tribe that owned the land where Chester now stands were the Okehockings. They were 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 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. By 1682, Upland was the most populous town of the new Province of Pennsylvania.
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. For the first 15 years of operation, it was the largest and most productive shipyard in the United States. More tonnage of ships were built at the Roach shipyard than its next two competitors combined. Roach built other businesses to supply materials for his shipbuilding including the Chester Rolling Mill in 1873 to supply metal hull plates and beams. He also established the Chester Pipe and Tube Company in 1877 for the manufacture of iron pipes and boiler tubes. The Standard Steel Casting Company followed in 1883 to supply steel ingots. Roach lost control of the company after his shipbuilding enterprise entered receivership in 1885. During World War II, the Sun Shipyard became the largest single shipyard in the world. The wartime labor force for industries along the waterfront soared to 100,000. Sun Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. was opened in 1917 to build ships for the United States until its closure in 1990.
In April 1964, a series of almost nightly protests brought chaos to Chester. Mayor James Gorbey issued "The Police Position to Preserve the Public Peace", a 10-point statement promising an immediate return to law and order. The city deputized firemen and trash collectors to help handle demonstrators. The State of Pennsylvania deployed 50 state troopers to assist the 77-member Chester police force. The demonstrations were marked by violence and police brutality with Chester being dubbed the "Birmingham of the North" by civil rights activist James Farmer. Over 600 people were arrested over a two-month period of civil rights rallies, marches, pickets, boycotts, and sit-ins. National civil rights leaders such as Gloria Richardson, Malcolm X and Dick Gregory came to Chester in support of the demonstrations. Pennsylvania Governor William Scranton became involved in the negotiations and convinced the protestors to obey a court-ordered moratorium on demonstrations by agreeing to hold hearings on the de facto segregation of public schools in Chester. The racial unrest and civil rights protests were led by George Raymond of the NAACP and Stanley Branche of CFFN.
In 1978, an intense fire broke out at Wade Dump, a rubber recycling facility and illegal industrial chemical dumping site. It burned out of control for several days. The burning chemicals caused multi-colored smoke and noxious fumes which injured 43 firemen and caused long-term health problems for the first responders to the fire. In 1981, the location was declared a Superfund cleanup site and remediation occurred throughout the 1980s. In 1989, the site was deemed safe and removed from the Superfund national priorities list. By the 1980s, Chester was a city bereft of industry. Many bottom-rung projects were initiated in Chester, including the Westinghouse trash incinerator, a sewage treatment plant, and a prison. Chester residents and politicians began pushing back against the placement of projects that increased concerns about pollution, noise, and trucks, such as a contaminated soil remediation facility, the trash incinerator, the DELCORA sewage waste treatment center and the Abbonizio recycling center.
Chester's Republican Party political machine was one of the nation's oldest and most corrupt. John J. McClure took over from his father, William McClure, in 1907 and was the political boss for the machine until his death in 1965. 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. 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. McClure and four Chester City Council members were acquitted but also ordered by the court to return the money to the city of Chester. With the exception of 1904, 1905, the Republican political machine controlled Chester politics for over a century. The first non-machine mayor was elected in 1992: Barbara Bohannan-Sheppard. In the 1990s, the Pennsylvania Crime Commission reported that Chester's government had been dominated by "a triad of criminals, corrupt politicians and rogue law-enforcement officers" since the 1960s.
Pennsylvania declared Chester a financially distressed municipality in 1995, and a fiscal emergency was declared in 2020. In 2022, Chester became the 31st city in the United States to declare bankruptcy. Harrah's Casino and Racetrack began harness racing in September 2006 and opened its racino in January 2007. Subaru Park, home of the Major League Soccer Philadelphia Union franchise, opened in 2010. Recent programs to foster investment into Chester include the Pennsylvania Keystone Opportunity Zone (KOZ) program, which incentivizes companies with state and local tax breaks to invest in KOZ-designated areas. 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 office space for businesses. 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. It was the 31st municipality to declare bankruptcy since the U.S. Congress offered the program in the 1930s.
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Common questions
When did William Penn arrive in Chester and what was the original name of the settlement?
William Penn arrived on the 27th of October 1682, when his ship Welcome reached the province. The indigenous tribe that owned the land were the Okehockings, and the original name of the settlement was Mecoponaca.
Who founded the Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works in 1871?
John Roach opened the Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works in 1871 through the purchase of the Reaney, Son & Archbold shipyard. For the first 15 years of operation, it became the largest and most productive shipyard in the United States.
What happened during the civil rights protests in Chester in April 1964?
A series of almost nightly protests brought chaos to Chester starting in April 1964, leading to over 600 arrests within a two-month period. Civil rights leaders such as Gloria Richardson, Malcolm X, and Dick Gregory came to support the demonstrations led by George Raymond and Stanley Branche.
Why is Wade Dump significant to the history of Chester pollution?
An intense fire broke out at Wade Dump in 1978, burning for several days and causing multi-colored smoke that injured 43 firemen. The location was declared a Superfund cleanup site in 1981 before being deemed safe and removed from the national priorities list in 1989.
When did John J. McClure control the Republican political machine in Chester?
John J. McClure took over the Republican political machine in 1907 and served as its boss until his death in 1965. With the exception of 1904 and 1905, this machine controlled Chester politics for over a century until Barbara Bohannan-Sheppard became the first non-machine mayor in 1992.
In what year did Chester declare bankruptcy and become financially distressed?
Pennsylvania declared Chester a financially distressed municipality in 1995, and a fiscal emergency was declared in 2020. Chester became the 31st city in the United States to declare bankruptcy in 2022.