West Chester is the seat of justice of Chester county. It is in Goshen township, twenty-three miles from Philadelphia, and five south of the Great Valley. It is a pleasant village, containing a population of about three thousand, who are noted for their intelligence and general refinement. It was a mere hamlet when the armies passed by after the battle on the Brandywine, * a few miles distant; and there are now not many mementoes of the event in existence. Eye-witnesses have gone down into the grave, and the old dwellings have given place to more modern structures, except the Turk's Head tavern, and one or two other buildings. At Guss's Inn, where I tarried for the night, I met Mr. Joseph Townsend, a nephew of the late Joseph Townsend, of Baltimore, who wrote an account of the battle of Brandywine from his own personal recollections, and which was published in 1846, with an accurate survey of the scene of action, by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Mr. Townsend, who is familiar with every locality connected with the battle, kindly offered to go over the ground with me the next morning. I breakfasted by candle-light, and, at seven o'clock, we were on our way to [[December 1, 1848]] Jefferis's Ford, on the Brandywine, two and a half miles from West Chester. Thick clouds covered the heavens, and a biting northeast wind, bearing a few tiny snowflakes and pellets of soft hail, evinced the presence of winter. The old ford, where the division of the British army under Howe and Cornwallis crossed the Brandywine, was eight * The Brandywine Creek rises near the boundary of Lancaster and Chester counties, Pennsylvania, and flows through Delaware. After uniting with Christiana Creek, it enters the Delaware River, forming the harbor of Wilmington. It is navigable as high as Brandywine village. ** This is copied from Day's Historical Collections of Pennsylvania. The house is of stone, and ranked among the first country mansions of the period. It is about a mile and a half south of the Paoli tavern. [[[Jefferis's Ford.--Sconnel Town, Osborne's Hill, and Birmingham Meeting-house.]]] {374}or ten rods above the bridge which now spans the stream. On the high ground upon the opposite shore, the old stone house of Emmon Jefferis is yet standing. [Illustration: 8384] In it the merchants of Wilmington, alarmed for the safety of their goods, stored a large quantity of wine and other liquors, believing that the line of march of the British army would be through their own town, and not as high up the stream as at this place. For reasons which we shall presently consider, Cornwallis and his division crossed the Brandywine at this ford, and, discovering the Madeira wine in Jefferson's house, made themselves merry at the expense of the rebel merchants." [Illustration: 9384] Howe took Jefferis with him as a guide to conduct him toward Birmingham meeting-house.