From sites of the Underground Railroad to great moments of women’s suffrage and incredible remnants of Indigenous culture, the overlooked history of Chester County is deeply fascinating. A Civil War–era weapons manufacturer helped tilt the scales in favor of the Union cause with its innovative cannon. Chester County was once the home to a spring water bottling plant, shipping the crisp taste of local waters around the nation. During the height of the 1919 pandemic, the Paxon and Comfort Casket Factory in West Grove was open twenty-fours a day to meet demand. The Oxford Caramel Company produced six tons of candy a week and was beloved around the world for more than forty years. Author Mark DeWitt Lanyon presents lost history from bygone eras of Chester County.

Mark DeWitt Lanyon’s career in behavioral health was launched when he was studying for his Master of Human Services degree at Lincoln University (LU ’98). During his career, Mark supervised and/or directed behavioral health programs in settings such as the prison system, probation and parole system, hospitals and inpatient and outpatient behavioral health treatment programs. Since retiring, Mark has been able to focus on research about Chester County. His research resulted in his book Abolition and the Underground Railroad in Chester County, Pennsylvania. His latest book, Lost Chester County, Pennsylvania, explores the forgotten history of Chester County.