West Chester, Pennsylvania

Encyclopedia : W : WE : WES : West Chester, Pennsylvania

Town center of West Chester.

The Borough of West Chester is the county seat of Chester County, Pennsylvania[Geographic references#6GR6].

The West Chester University of Pennsylvania is located here.

In 1900, 9,524 people lived here; in 1910, 11,767; in 1920, 11,717; and in 1940, 13,289 lived here. In 2000, the US census recorded 17,861 residents.

Notable Residents

• Birthplace of civil rights activist Bayard Rustin
• Decorated war veteran and later anti-war activist Smedley Butler
• Murdered hostage Nick Berg
• American artist Horace Pippin
• Classical composer Samuel Barber was born in West Chester in 1910.
• Humor columnist Dave Barry got his start in journalism reporting for the borough's The Daily Local News.
• Thomas U. Walter, the architect of the United States Capitol dome, designed seven buildings, including the Courthouse, a church, and the old prison (now gone), in West Chester.
• Skateboarder and Jackass co-founder Bam Margera and several other CKY Crew members. The town and various local businesses have been featured in Jackass, Viva La Bam, Haggard and the CKY videos.
• Birthplace of Jewish reggae musician Matisyahu.
• Birthplace of actor Matthew McGrory (AKA "Bigfoot"), named as having the largest feet in the world (size 29 1/2) by the Guinness Book of World Records in 1992. McGrory acted in such films as Bubble Boy, Men in Black II, House of 1000 Corpses and Big Fish. He was also a member of the "Wack Pack" on the Howard Stern Show.
• Atlanta Falcons QB Matt Schaub attended West Chester East High School.
• Noted musical acts Edgewise, Dare to Defy, Plow United, CKY and Long Shot Hero
• Birthplace of professional golfer Jim Furyk

Transportation

West Chester is home to the West Chester Transportation Center, which serves as a parking garage and a bus terminal.

The main road to West Chester is West Chester Pike (PA Route 3), which begins in Upper Darby, Delaware County just outside of Philadelphia.

Corporate Headquarters

• QVC
• Electronics Boutique
• Commodore Business Machines (CBM), the operational headquarters of Commodore International (now defunct)
• VWR International (Lab and Scientific supplies distributor)

West Chester and television

• Many of the skits on the MTV television series Jackass, and later were filmed in and around the borough, primarily ones featuring Bam Margera and the CKY Crew. The spinoff show Viva La Bam was filmed almost entirely in the area, as was the movie Haggard and the CKY videos. Margera has become something of a one-man publicity machine for West Chester, a status that allowed him to get the city's permission to close off some of West Chester's main streets to film portions of Haggard. Many local businesses such as Fairman's skateshop, Mad Platter records, Duffers pub and even West Chester University have benefitted from exposure in such projects.
• QVC broadcasts originate from studios in West Chester.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 4.8 km² (1.8 mi²), all land.

Demographics

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As of the census^{[Geographic references#2GR2]} of 2000, there were 17,861 people, 6,265 households, and 2,662 families residing in the borough. The population density was 3,747.9/km² (9,703.3/mi²). There were 6,541 housing units at an average density of 1,372.6/km² (3,553.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the borough was 75.44% White, 17.08% African American, 8.94% Hispanic or Latino, 3.64% from other races, 1.46% Asian, 0.31% Native American, 0.07% Pacific Islander, and 2.00% from two or more races.

There were 6,265 households out of which 19.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 26.8% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 57.5% were non-families. 35.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the borough the population was spread out with 13.4% under the age of 18, 37.7% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 13.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 25 years. For every 100 females there were 88.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.

The median income for a household in the borough was $37,803, and the median income for a family was $51,018. Males had a median income of $35,540 versus $30,819 for females. The per capita income for the borough was $19,073. About 9.8% of families and 21.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.5% of those under age 18 and 9.2% of those age 65 or over.

Schools

West Chester is home to the West Chester Area School District, the public school system for the area. Also, West Chester University is located in West Chester.

External links

• [Borough website]
• [Friends of Marshall Square Park]
• [ILoveWestChester.com]
• [West Chester Borough Democrats]
• [West Chester Daily Local News]
• [Great resource for visitors to West Chester.]
• [West Chester MySpace page.]
• [Edgmont Country Club]
• [West Chester Area School District]

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