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Photo: Smallbones, Public domain via Wikimedia Commons
The largest museum dedicated to exploring the past of this southeastern region, the collections contained within the Chester County Historical Society museum are vast and illuminating. A large holding of 18th and 19th century decorative arts pieces compliments the more traditional holdings of documents and antique items. Make sure to visit the Introductory Gallery, where the lives of early county residents are shared, as well as the galleries that hold rotating themed exhibits. The downtown museum is a highlight of West Chester, with many great shops and restaurants within walking distance.
Chester County History Center (CCHC), formerly the Chester County Historical Society, is a nonprofit historical society, founded in 1893, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the history of Chester County, Pennsylvania, and the surrounding area. The History Center is located at 225 North High Street in downtown West Chester.
The 1,705-acre Marsh Creek State Park contains a 535-acre lake offering wind surfing, boating, sailing, fishing, and waterfowl watching. Other park activities include camping, hiking, swimming, picnicking, and horseback riding.
This 18-hole championship golf course features tree-lined fairways and firm, fast greens protected by deep bunkers and heavy roughs. A bar and grill in a well-appointed clubhouse is on the property.
Covering 7,475 acres of land in rural Pennsylvania, French Creek State Park offers the space and facilities for outdoor recreational activities of every type. Over 35 miles of hiking trails criss-cross the park, as well as eight miles of horse trails and 6,000 acres of land for hunters. There are campgrounds, yurts, boats for rent, fishing lakes, a summer swimming pool and more to enjoy. The park sits about 12 miles southeast of Reading and around 35 miles northwest of Philadelphia a little off of Highway 422.
Tyler Arboretum presents 650 acres of beautiful and exotic plants elegantly arranged in a natural setting. Open to the public for hiking and picnicking, highlights of the arboretum include the Meadow Maze with a four-ring labyrinth of grasses, Pink Hill's layout of serpentine stone and wildflowers, and a huge array of ornamentals ranging from flowering cherry to crabapple trees. The grounds lie about 15 miles east of downtown Philadelphia, beneath Ridley Creek State Park.
Explore the dream and reality of helicopter flight at the American Helicopter Museum, where some three dozen examples of helicopters antique and modern are held on display. The first rotary wing American craft to ever fly took off 41 miles away from the museum, in the town of Bryn Athyn. See a Bell 47B, the first helicopter to be commercially certified in the country, and the Bell AH-1F Cobra, used by the army in the 1960s, and odd devices like the Princeton GEM X-2 Air Scooter. The museum is at Brandywine Airport close to West Goshen Community Park, and most of the helicopters displayed are located inside, making this a great museum to visit no matter the time of year.