Berwyn, Pennsylvania

Berwyn, Pennsylvania
Census-designated place
Berwyn station
Location of Berwyn in Chester County and of Chester County in Pennsylvania
Coordinates: 40°2′44″N75°26′22″W / 40.04556°N 75.43944°W / 40.04556; -75.43944
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
County	Chester
Township	Easttown, Tredyffrin
Government
Area [1]
• Total	1.86 sq mi (4.83 km2)
• Land	1.86 sq mi (4.82 km2)
• Water	0.00 sq mi (0.01 km2)
Elevation	520 ft (160 m)
Population  (2020) [2]
• Total	3,775
• Density	2,028.48/sq mi (783.28/km2)
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP Code	19312
Area codes	610 and 484
FIPS code	42-05904
GNIS feature ID	1169323

Berwyn is a census-designated place (CDP) in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. Berwyn is located in Tredyffrin and Easttown townships. The area is part of the Philadelphia Main Line suburbs.

History

In 1877, the town received its current name, Berwyn, which a Welsh settler proposed after the Berwyn range overlooking the River Dee in Denbighshire, Wales. Prior to 1877, the village was named Cocheltown, Reeseville, Glassley, and Gaysville.

The Berwyn School Fight was a 1930s campaign against school segregation. In 1932, local school districts tried to segregate elementary schools by race. Black families sued to stop the segregationists and boycotted the segregated schools until the school districts finally conceded defeat in 1934. Occurring 20 years before Brown v. Board of Education (1954) declared school segregation to be unconstitutional nationwide, the Berwyn School Fight was a landmark early victory for the civil rights movement. ^{[3] [4]}

Geography

A Berwyn residential neighborhood in 2009

Berwyn is located at 40°2′44″N75°26′22″W / 40.04556°N 75.43944°W / 40.04556; -75.43944 . ^[5] According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Berwyn has a total area of 1.9 square miles (4.8 km²), all land. ^[6]

Berwyn is bordered by Devon to the east, Paoli to the west, Newtown Square to the south, and the Chesterbrook section of Wayne to the north.

Two stops along SEPTA's Paoli-Thorndale Line are located in Berwyn: Berwyn station and Daylesford station, both on the northern side of Pennsylvania Route 30.

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
2020	3,775		—
U.S. Decennial Census [7] [2]

The population of Zip Code 19312, which includes all of Berwyn and small areas Willistown and Newtown townships, was 11,745 at the 2020 census. The population density was 1,228 people per square mile. 85% of units were single-family homes and 79% of households were headed by a married couple. ^[8]

According to the 2022 American Community Survey's five-year population estimates, Berwyn was 81% non-Hispanic White, 1% Black or African American, 0% Native American and 13% Asian. 4% of residents reported two or more races and <1% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. 17.2% of residents were foreign-born, of whom 58% were born in Asia, 35% were born in Europe and 5% were born in Latin America. 4.4% of residents are U.S. veterans.

The median income for a household was $181,471, with 47% of households earning more than $200,000 per year. The median income for a family was $229,688. Among families with children, the median income was greater than $250,000.

77% of residents over the age of 25 hold a bachelor's degree.

According to Zillow, as of June 2024, the average home value in Berwyn's zip code, 19312, was $906,890. For a single family home, the average value was $919,803.

In 2023, Niche.com ranked Berwyn as the 12th-best place to raise a family in the U.S.

Culture

Berwyn is home of the Footlighters Theater, a non-profit theater that has provided entertainment for over 80 years. Footlighters Theater is the oldest community theatre on the Philadelphia Main Line. ^[9]

Points of interest include the Easttown Public Library, the Upper Main Line YMCA, Teegarden Park and Glen Brook Farm. The Easttown Public Library was founded in 1905 and is a member of the Chester County Library System which consists of the 18 public libraries in the county. The Upper Main Line YMCA was founded in 1962 and sits on the former 124-acre summer estate owned by investment banker J. Gardner Cassatt, the brother of famed painter Mary Cassatt and railroad magnate Alexander Cassatt.

Economy

Ametek, Hardinge, Inc., Trinseo, Triumph Group, and TE Connectivity have operational headquarters based in Berwyn.

Education

Further information: Tredyffrin/Easttown School District

Conestoga High School in Berwyn in March 2006

The public school system is Tredyffrin/Easttown School District. ^[10] Schools serving portions of the Berwyn CDP are Beaumont and Devon elementary schools in Easttown Township and Hillside Elementary School in Tredyffrin Township. ^[11]

The district operates two middle schools, Tredyffrin/Easttown and Valley Forge, both in Tredyffrin Township. Conestoga High School, located in Tredyffrin, and Tredyffrin-Easttown Middle School are located in the township.^{[ citation needed ]}

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia operates area Catholic parish schools. In 2012, the Catholic grade school in Berwyn, St. Monica, closed. ^[12]

Parks

Frank Johnson Memorial Park, in the Berwyn CDP, is operated by the township government. It has a pavilion with toilets, basketball courts, an open field, a "tot lot", and volleyball courts. ^{[10] [13]}

Crabby Creek Park in Berwyn is operated by the township government. It is a 48 acre park, located off Walnut Lane at Bodine Road which serves as passive open space and a stream corridor buffer for Crabby Creek. ^[14]

Notable people

• Harold Barron, Olympic sprinter silver medalist
• Jake Cohen, American-Israeli professional basketball player for Maccabi Tel Aviv and the Israeli national basketball team
• David Eisenhower and Julie Nixon Eisenhower ^[15]
• Rachelle Ferrell, six-octave range recording artist
• Brad Ingelsby, screenwriter and film producer
• Drew O'Keefe, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ^[16]
• Barbara Robinson, author

References

1. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
2. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved October 12, 2022.
3. Thorne, Roger D. (Winter 2005). "Segregation on the Upper Main Line: The "School Fight" of 1932–34". History Quarterly. 42 (1). Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society: 3–20. Archived from the original on May 31, 2024.
4. Canton, David (2008). "A Dress Rehearsal for the Modern Civil Rights Movement: Raymond Pace Alexander and the Berwyn, Pennsylvania, School Desegregation Case, 1932-1935". Pennsylvania History: A Journal of Mid-Atlantic Studies . 75 (2): 260–284. ISSN   0031-4528.
5. US Geological Survey 7.5 minute topographic map series
6. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Berwyn CDP, Pennsylvania". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved August 10, 2012.
7. "Census profile: Berwyn, PA" . Retrieved January 2, 2023.
8. "Explore Census Data". data.census.gov. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
9. "Footlighters' Theater History" Foolighters' Theater, retrieved February 27, 2012.
10. "2010 Census – Census Block Map: Berwyn CDP, PA." U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on October 9, 2018.
11. "TESDmap2015.pdf." Tredyffrin/Easttown School District. Retrieved on October 9, 2018.
12. "2012 Catholic grade school consolidations/closings". Catholicphilly.com. July 15, 2012. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
13. "Johnson Park." Easttown Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania. Retrieved on October 9, 2018. "The park is located at 122 Bridge Avenue in Berwyn."
14. "Township Parks and Open Space | Tredyffrin Township". www.tredyffrin.org. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
15. "Where Are They Now? Julie and David Eisenhower", AARP Bulletin, December 22, 2010. p. 1.
16. "D. O'Keefe, 73, former prosecutor". Philadelphia Inquirer . June 19, 1989. p. 42. – Clipping from Newspapers.com