Berwyn, Pennsylvania

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.

Geography

Berwyn is located at . According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Berwyn has a total area of 4.8 km2, all land.

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

The population of Zip Code 19312, which includes all of Berwyn and small areas of 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.

According to the 2023 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

The median income for a household was $199,107. The median income for a family was greater than $250,000. The average family income was $300,406.

76% of residents over the age of 25 hold a bachelor's degree.

According to Zillow, as of June 2025, the average home value in Berwyn's zip code, 19312, was $941,102. For a single family home, the average value was $951,444.

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.

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

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

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.

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

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.

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.

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
• 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
• Barbara Robinson, author

References

References

1. "ArcGIS REST Services Directory". United States Census Bureau.
2. Thorne, Roger D.. (Winter 2005). "Segregation on the Upper Main Line: The "School Fight" of 1932–34". Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society.
3. 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 (journal).
4. US Geological Survey 7.5 minute topographic map series
5. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Berwyn CDP, Pennsylvania". [[United States Census Bureau]].
6. "Census profile: Berwyn, PA".
7. "Census Population API". United States Census Bureau.
8. "Explore Census Data".
9. [http://www.footlighterstheater.com/history/ "Footlighters' Theater History"] Foolighters' Theater, retrieved February 27, 2012.
10. "[https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/dc10map/GUBlock/st42_pa/place/p4205904_berwyn/DC10BLK_P4205904_001.pdf 2010 Census – Census Block Map: Berwyn CDP, PA]." [[U.S. Census Bureau]]. Retrieved on October 9, 2018.
11. "[https://www.tesd.net/cms/lib/PA01001259/Centricity/Domain/1414/TESDmap2015.pdf TESDmap2015.pdf]." [[Tredyffrin/Easttown School District]]. Retrieved on October 9, 2018.
12. (2012-07-15). "2012 Catholic grade school consolidations/closings". Catholicphilly.com.
13. "[http://www.easttown.org/352/Johnson-Park 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".
15. [http://www.aarp.org/politics-society/history/info-12-2010/where_are_they_now_julie_and_david_eisenhower.html "Where Are They Now? Julie and David Eisenhower"], ''AARP Bulletin'', December 22, 2010. p. 1.
16. (1989-06-19). "D. O'Keefe, 73, former prosecutor". [[Philadelphia Inquirer]].