![]() ![]() In addition to supplying domestic needs, the water powered grist, corn, clover, and saw mills. Broad Run, one of the Valley Creek's major tributaries, drains the southwest corner, and they converge in East Bradford. West Whiteland lies within the Brandywine drainage basin and is drained primarily by Valley Creek, which meanders in an east-west course across the Township. The importance of this early industry cannot be over-emphasized in fact, it may be argued someday that it was the limestone, and not the opportunity for agriculture, that induced settlement in the Great Valley.īy the mid-19th century, the water resources of the Great Valley were nearly legendary: "fountains of cold and pure water so numerous that almost every farm has its springhouse near the door." The combination of abundant limestone and timber contributed to the early success of a limeburning industry, the product of which was essential in mortar.and used as a soil supplement. Evidence of earlier extractions of local stone presents itself in the walls of the Township's predominantly stone houses. These resources were mined and quarried extensively in the 18th and 19th centuries limestone continues to be extracted from one active quarry. To the north of the Township are quartz and quartz schist formations and, to the south, Wissahickon Schist. Marble deposits ranged in hue from nearly pure white to dark blue and black. ![]() The wide limestone deposit is largely dolomite, with isolated pockets of iron ore and marble. With its underlying band of limestone, the Great Valley was found suitable for more than farming. The Barrens are found in the Township's southwest corner. West Whiteland also had its Barrens which was (according to 18th and 19th century connotations) hilly, scrubby, and partially open land. It was common for a prosperous farmer to, have 100 acres or more of farmland in the Valley and a woodlot of 10 or 20 acres on the slopes. While the Valley floor was ideal for house and farm, the hills to the north-and south provided the timber essential for building and (until the acceptance of fossil fuels) energy for home and industry. The Valley is particularly wide and level in West Whiteland and, with its limestone-enriched soil, is well-suited for agriculture. The Great Valley which cuts through the center of the Township, extends north and west for approximately 25 miles and contains most of the County's major towns, among them At glen, Parksburg, Coatesville and Downingtown. The location and topography of the Township contributed to its prosperous and diversified rural agricultural economy which persisted into the mid-20th century.
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