Kennett Square

Kennett Square is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is known as the Mushroom Capital of the World because mushroom farming in the region produces over 500 million pounds of mushrooms a year, totaling half of the United States mushroom crop. The last official US census, which occurred in 2020, recorded a population of 5,943 in Kennett Square. The borough has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²), all of it land other than two small lakes. It was also known as an important part of the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escaping to the North for freedom. Its founder is credited with introducing mushroom growing to the area around 1885. The town is the subject and setting of the novel The Story of Kennett, written by 19th-century American author Bayard Taylor, who lived nearby at Cedarcroft. The Borough is governed by the Council-Manager-Manager, which is made up of seven members. The local high school is Kennett High School, which was founded in 1885 and is located in the heart of the town's mushroom-growing area. It has an annual Mushroom Festival, where the town shuts down to have a parade, tour mushroom farms, and buy and sell food and other goods. It also is home to the corporate headquarters of Genesis HealthCare, which administers elderly care facilities. In the 2010 census, the borough was 42.8% non-Hispanic White, 7.2% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.8%. Asian, and 3.3% were two or more races.

History

Kennett Square is the primary city name, but also Kennett Sq are acceptable city names or spellings. Kennett Square was originally inhabited by the Lenape Native Americans. General Sir William Howe marched through Kennett to the Battle of Brandywine during the American Revolution. In 1853, a group asked for Kennett Square to be incorporated, and by 1855 it held elections. It was also known as an important part of the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escaping to the North for freedom. It is the subject and setting of the novel The Story of Kennett, written by 19th-century American author Bayard Taylor, who lived nearby at Cedarcroft. The town was named Kennet Square, with the name "Kennet", England, and "Square" coming from the original land grant from William Penn of one square mile. The name Kennet means "square" in English, and Square is the name of the town's first post office, which was opened in 1841. The first mayor of Kennet was William Penn, who died in 1855. The current mayor is William W. Smith, who took office in 1885. The mayor is credited with introducing mushroom growing to the area. He grew carnations, a popular local commodity around 1885, and wanted to make use of the wasted space under the elevated beds. He imported spawn from Europe and started experimenting with mushroom cultivation. The founder of the current town, William Smith, was born in Kennet, England, in 1843. He was the son of William W. Penn, an Englishman who moved to the U.S. from England in the 17th century.

Geography

Kennett Square is located at 39°5039N 75°4238W (39.844104, 75.710654).According to the United States Census Bureau, the borough has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.8 km²) All of the borough is land other than two small lakes. The borough is part of the New Jersey Bay Area, which is also part of New Jersey and New York. It has a population of 1,788. The town's population was 1,856 at the 2010 Census. The city's population is 1,938. It is located in the borough of Kennett Square, which also includes the towns of Doylestown, Drexel, and Millersport. The population of the Borough of Kennet Square is 1.872. It also has a small portion of the town of Millersfield, New Jersey. The Borough of Drexler has a little more than 1,000 people. It was the site of the U.S. Civil Rights Movement. It's also known as the birthplace of the first African-American president, John F. Kennedy, and the first black president, George H.W. Bush, both of whom were assassinated in office. The first black mayor of Kennedy Square was George W. Bush. The current mayor is John J. Hoch, who was elected to office in 1968 and served from 1969 to 1974. The last mayor was Robert J. Rector, who served from 1974 to 1978.

Demographics

As of the census of 2010, there were 6,072 people, 1,868 households, and 1,242 families residing in the borough. The racial makeup of the borough was 73.58% White, 10.26% African American, 0.09% Native American, 1.63% Asian, 12.48% from other races, and 2.95% from two or more races. 48.8% of the population were of Hispanic or Latino ancestry. The median income for a household in the Borough was $46,523, and the median income. for a family was $54,948. The per capita income for the borough is $22,292. About 7.5% of families and 9.0% of those under the age of 18 were below the poverty line, including 11.9% ofThose under age 18 and 10.4% ofthose age 65 or over. The borough is located on the New Jersey Turnpike, which connects to New Jersey and New Jersey via a tunnel system. The tunnel system was built in the early 1900s. It is the only tunnel system of its kind in the United States. It was completed in the late 1800s and was the first tunnel to be built in New Jersey. It has a total length of 2.5 miles (3.5 km) and has a tunnel capacity of 1.6 miles (2.7 km). The tunnel is the longest tunnel in the U.S. and the second longest in the world.

Government

The borough is governed by the Council-Manager form of government. There are seven Council Members and a mayor who are elected by the citizens. The Borough Manager is an employee of the Borough, hired by the council. The present Borough manager is Kyle Coleman. The borough has a population of 2,000. The council has a turnover rate of 0.7%. The council's turnover rate is 0.8%. The Borough's turnover rates are 0.9%. The Council's turnover percentage is 0%. The borough's population is 2,200. The Council’s turnover rate has been 0.6%. the Borough's population has been 1,200 for the last five years. The mayor is a member of the Council, who is also the Borough Manager. The Mayor is a citizen of the borough, who was elected to the Council by the residents of the town. The president of the council is a former mayor of the same town who was also elected by citizens of the city. The current mayor is an ex-convict who served in the Army and the Army National Guard during the Second World War. The Borough has a budget of $1,000,000 and has a unemployment rate of 1.2 per cent. It has an average population of 1,100.5 per cent, and a population growth rate of 2.3 per cent over the past three years. It has a mayor and a council of seven members, who are all members of the local community.

Events

The Kennett Mushroom Festival is held annually in early September. Annual parades are held on Memorial Day, Halloween, and before the Christmas holidays. In mid-May, the famous Kennett Run occurs that ends at the pavilion. The local art galleries, studios, and independent artists participate in First Friday Art Strolls each month, presented by Historic Kennett Square. There is an outdoor farmers market at the Genesis Walkway on State St. every Friday afternoon. The Kennett Brewfest is held each Fall, featuring unlimited tastings of select brewers pouring different, rare, limited, or seasonal beers. The annual Cinco de Mayo is organized by Casa Guanuco, and other local companies, and is held on the last day of Cinque de Mayo each year. It is the largest of its kind in the U.S., with over 100,000 people expected to attend. The festival is held every year on the anniversary of the founding of the city of Kennett, where it is named after the town's first post office, which was established in 1783. The city also has its own version of the festival, called the Kennett Festival, which takes place every year in the same place as the original Kennett festival, but in a different location. The event is free and open to the public, and there is no admission fee for this year's festival. It has been featured on Food TV, among other channels, as one of the most watched events in the world.

Education

Kennett Square schools are all part of the Kennett Consolidated School District. This grouping of districts was the first consolidation of schools in the history of Pennsylvania. Students enrolled in kindergarten attend the Mary D. Lang Kindergarten Center. Grades 1 through 5 attend either Greenwood Elementary, Bancroft Elementary or New Garden Elementary. For grades 6 through 8, all students attend Kennett Middle School. Forgrades 9 through 12, students then attend Kennet High School. Some homes, north of the US Route 1 by-pass, just north of Kennett Square but not in the Kennet Square borough limits, are assigned to the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District, the only one in the district. In 2012, St. Patrick, a Catholic grade school located on Meredith Street in the borough, closed. It was located on Pennsylvania State Route 82, about 2 miles from the borough limits. It is the only Catholic school in the area. The borough also has a public high school, Unionville High School, which is located on Unionville Road (Pennsylvania state Route 82), approximately 2 miles north of Kennett Borough  Limits. It closed in 2012, and is now located on Pennsylvania State Route 1, about 3 miles from Kennet Branch 2, about 1 mile from the borough limits. The school was closed in 2013. It has been replaced by Kennett High School and a new middle school, which opened in 2014.

Points of interest

Anson B Nixon Park and East Penn Railroad are points of interest in the town. The town also has a YMCA, a high school, and a vet center. The city is also home to the Pennsylvania Vet Center and the Longwood Gardens Gardens. The community also has its own high school and a community center.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Kennett Square, Chester County, Pennsylvania = 27.7. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 16. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 10. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Kennett Square = 4 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 5,943 individuals with a median age of 36.9 age the population grows by 0.04% in Kennett Square, Chester County, Pennsylvania population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 5,573.71 residents per square mile of area (2,151.38/km²). There are average 2.81 people per household in the 1,837 households with an average household income of $55,484 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 6.40% of the available work force and has dropped -4.83% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 23.94%. The number of physicians in Kennett Square per 100,000 population = 279.3.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Kennett Square = 44.1 inches and the annual snowfall = 21.7 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 97. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 199. 84 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 21 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 45, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Kennett Square, Chester County, Pennsylvania which are owned by the occupant = 54.74%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 53 years with median home cost = $198,500 and home appreciation of -2.87%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $15.02 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $6,566 per student. There are 15.6 students for each teacher in the school, 826 students for each Librarian and 344 students for each Counselor. 4.37% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 13.03% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 7.21% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).