History Of Chadds Ford Township:

The Delaware County township which officially became Chadds Ford on December 11, 1996, has a 300-year history as "Birmingham Township."

The land was inhabited by the Lenni Lenape or Delaware Indian centuries before the Europeans arrived. The Indians' town sites were located along the waterways at major communication and trade junctions, with paths laid out between villages and tribes. These much traveled footpaths through the woods became the first roads.

Historically, one major but brief event, the Battle of Brandywine, affected the development of the Township and the course of the American Revolution. The Battle took place September 11, 1777. Although a defeat for Washington and his struggling American troops, it marked a turning point in the War. The grand strategy designed by the British General, Lord Howe, to weaken the patriot cause had failed. It was not a coincidence that there was battle action near Chads' Ford, for it was at the fording places in the Brandywine that the troops of both camps could cross en route to Philadelphia to take it or defend it. During the Battle, many local farmhouses were taken over by the English and American troops; in the aftermath, many of them were plundered.