Wallace Township
Wallace Township was formed through a division of West Nantmeal Township in 1852. The Township—as defined by its current boundaries—includes nearly the same territory as the early eighteenth century Springton Manor, minus a small portion of land that was granted to Uwchlan Township in 1853. Township boundaries were slightly revised in 1860, when the lines abutting East and West Nantmeal Township were changed and a second adjustment between Uwchlan Township and Wallace Township was finalized.
Archaeological and historical research indicates that Wallace Township's earliest eighteenth century inhabitants included remnants of the Brandywine and Okehocking bands of the Lenape Indians, who dwelt in the area from approximately 1720 to 1740. A Brandywine Indian burial site, excavated in 1952 and again in 1982, is currently owned and maintained by Wallace Township.
The first official Wallace Township survey, completed in 1729, canvassed the 8,313 acre Springton Manor. Springton Manor, one of seven Chester County manors established as part of an agreement between Charles II and William Penn, was originally located in the Downingtown area. According to nineteenth century Chester County historians, J. Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope, the first European settlers to occupy the early Springton Manor tracts were almost entirely of Scottish descent and "attracted to the area by the pure water, absence of marshes, and elevation of between five and six hundred feet above tide-water." Ultimately Penn's manorial system failed; by the time the Revolutionary War broke out, most Springton Manor settlers had been able to secure patents to their own tracts of land.
Despite the fact that a committee of Springton Manor residents met with Philadelphia Govenor Thomas in 1744 and complained that they were being asked to pay too much for land that was "in poor condition" for crop production, agriculture represented either a primary or secondary source of income for most eighteenth century Wallace Township residents. Local harvest included corn, Irish potatoes, fruit crops (including apples, peaches, several varieties of berries, and grapes), wheat, and oats. Area farmers also tended livestock, including cattle, cows, pigs, and horses.
The East Branch of the Brandywine and its tributaries, coupled with the area's extensive stands of hardwood forests, attracted forge and mill workers to Wallace Township. The Village of Glenmoore and the hamlet of Cornog developed as eighteenth and nineteenth century industrial centers because of their ability to support mill activity through ready water supply.
In the south-central part of the Township, Robert McConaghey, an important early settler, began operating a forge in 1766. Springton Forge, located adjacent to what is now the County-owned Springton Manor Farm, was operated by a succession of owners for more than one hundred years; the Forge turned out superior-grade iron during the Revolutionary War and produced f
Archaeological and historical research indicates that Wallace Township's earliest eighteenth century inhabitants included remnants of the Brandywine and Okehocking bands of the Lenape Indians, who dwelt in the area from approximately 1720 to 1740. A Brandywine Indian burial site, excavated in 1952 and again in 1982, is currently owned and maintained by Wallace Township.
The first official Wallace Township survey, completed in 1729, canvassed the 8,313 acre Springton Manor. Springton Manor, one of seven Chester County manors established as part of an agreement between Charles II and William Penn, was originally located in the Downingtown area. According to nineteenth century Chester County historians, J. Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope, the first European settlers to occupy the early Springton Manor tracts were almost entirely of Scottish descent and "attracted to the area by the pure water, absence of marshes, and elevation of between five and six hundred feet above tide-water." Ultimately Penn's manorial system failed; by the time the Revolutionary War broke out, most Springton Manor settlers had been able to secure patents to their own tracts of land.
Despite the fact that a committee of Springton Manor residents met with Philadelphia Govenor Thomas in 1744 and complained that they were being asked to pay too much for land that was "in poor condition" for crop production, agriculture represented either a primary or secondary source of income for most eighteenth century Wallace Township residents. Local harvest included corn, Irish potatoes, fruit crops (including apples, peaches, several varieties of berries, and grapes), wheat, and oats. Area farmers also tended livestock, including cattle, cows, pigs, and horses.
The East Branch of the Brandywine and its tributaries, coupled with the area's extensive stands of hardwood forests, attracted forge and mill workers to Wallace Township. The Village of Glenmoore and the hamlet of Cornog developed as eighteenth and nineteenth century industrial centers because of their ability to support mill activity through ready water supply.
In the south-central part of the Township, Robert McConaghey, an important early settler, began operating a forge in 1766. Springton Forge, located adjacent to what is now the County-owned Springton Manor Farm, was operated by a succession of owners for more than one hundred years; the Forge turned out superior-grade iron during the Revolutionary War and produced f
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