The Great Valley is a west-to-east

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...

through the center of

Chester County, Pennsylvania Chester County (Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Tscheschter Kaundi''), colloquially known as Chesco, is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the Delaware Valley region of the state. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53 ...

, United States. It is also sometimes referred to as Chester Valley,''E.g.'', Erwin Raisz, ''Landforms of the United States'', 6th rev. ed. 1957. and both names are in use throughout the region. The valley stretches from the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It f ...

in Montgomery County in the east, southwesterly through Chester and Lancaster counties. The valley is most distinct in central Chester County, although traces of it can be followed almost the entire distance between the

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent ...

and Susquehanna rivers. Valley Creek flows along the base of eastern Great Valley, towards the Schuylkill River. A second creek, also named Valley Creek, flows westward from Frazer into the

East Branch Brandywine Creek The East Branch Brandywine CreekMouth: 39 55'21"N, 75 38'58"W, elevation: 174 ft.; Source: 40 07'09"N,75 53'15"W, is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 t ...

. Beaver Creek flows eastward along the northern side of the valley from around Thorndale into the East Branch Brandywine Creek. Multiple branches of both the Brandywine and Octoraro creeks cross the valley.

Communities

Significant communities in the Great Valley include, from east to west,

King of Prussia The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...

Valley Forge Valley Forge functioned as the third of eight winter encampments for the Continental Army's main body, commanded by General George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. In September 1777, Congress fled Philadelphia to escape the ...

, Chesterbrook, Paoli, Malvern, Exton, Downingtown, Thorndale, Coatesville, Parkesburg, and Atglen.

Transportation

The Great Valley forms a natural route to the west from the Philadelphia area. Both the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's we ...

and U.S. Route 202 follow the eastern portion of the valley. U.S. Route 30 enters the valley around Malvern and serves as the main thoroughfare in the valley as far west as Coatesville, where

Pennsylvania Route 372 Pennsylvania Route 372 (PA 372) is an east–west highway in York County, PA, York, Lancaster County, PA, Lancaster, and Chester County, PA, Chester counties in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. Its western terminus is at Pennsylvania Route 74, ...

becomes the main road along the valley to its western end. The Great Valley is also served by Amtrak's Keystone Service and SEPTA's Paoli/Thorndale Line rail service for much of its length. This Great Valley is near and parallel to, but distinct from, the

Great Appalachian Valley The Great Appalachian Valley, also called The Great Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. It is a gigantic trough—a chain of valley lowlands—and the central feature of the Appalachian M ...

References

External links

* {{Pennsylvania Landforms of Chester County, Pennsylvania Landforms of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Landforms of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Valleys of Pennsylvania