Cochranville
Where is Cochranville?
Cochranville is a small, unincorporated community in western Chester County, Pennsylvania, situated at the intersection of Pennsylvania Routes 10 and 41. Route 10 runs north toward Parkesburg and southwest toward Oxford, while Route 41 travels northwest through Atglen and Gap and southeast toward Avondale.
Three Townships
The village itself is located in West Fallowfield Township, near its eastern boundary. However, the broader area commonly identified as Cochranville extends into parts of neighboring Highland and Londonderry Townships. This distinction is important when researching the area’s history, since people, businesses, churches, and schools associated with Cochranville may have been located in different townships.
Cochranville is a CDP
For census purposes, Cochranville is designated a census-designated place (CDP), a geographic area defined by the U.S. Census Bureau for collecting and reporting population statistics. Unlike an incorporated borough, Cochranville does not have its own municipal government. The Cochranville CDP encompasses approximately 1.12 square miles, in a triangle shape, entirely within West Fallowfield Township. Its population was 668 in the 2010 U.S. Census and 631 in 2020.
Cochranville Beyond the Village
Although the official Cochranville census-designated place covers only about 1.12 square miles, the area associated with Cochranville is considerably larger. The Cochranville post office serves ZIP Code 19330, which covers approximately 33.4 square miles and extends into portions of several surrounding townships.
Consequently, many residents who have a Cochranville mailing address do not live within the boundaries of the census-designated place. This distinction is particularly important when researching local history, as farms, homes, churches, and businesses identified with Cochranville may be several miles from the village center.
The ZIP Code boundary provides a useful modern approximation of the broader Cochranville community, although postal boundaries do not necessarily correspond to historical community boundaries.
The Cochranville ZIP Code area of 19330 had a population of 5,705 in 2020. By 2024, the population was estimated at approximately 6,000.
The area is largely rural, surrounded by farmland, gently rolling hills, and small villages characteristic of western Chester County. Historically, Cochranville developed as a crossroads community, serving the surrounding agricultural population. Its location at the intersection of two important roads helped connect it with nearby communities and regional markets.
How Did Cochranville Get Its Name?
Cochranville takes its name from the Cochran family, among the earliest European settlers in the area. But exactly which member of the family gave the village its name remains uncertain. Historical accounts point to two men: James Cochran, an early settler and tavern keeper, and his grandson Samuel Cochran, a prominent Pennsylvania politician.
Edward Pinkowski, in Chester County Place Names (1962), attributes the village’s name to James Cochran, who reportedly arrived in the Octoraro Valley in 1724 with a small group of Scotch-Irish settlers. According to Pinkowski, James subsequently established a roadside inn near a Shawnee settlement.
In 1724 James Cochran, after whom the village in West Fallowfield Township was named, came to the Octoraro Valley with a small band of Scotch-Irish settlers and in time opened a roadside inn next to the Shawnee Indian reservation. When the post office was established there, the name was spelled Cochransville, but the “s” was removed by the Post Office Department in 1884.
The Cochran family’s presence in the area by the 1720s is supported by contemporary records. Cornelius Rowan, who died in 1725, named his son-in-law James Cochran among the executors of his will. James had married Rowan’s daughter Ann, and the couple had seven children. James also operated a tavern in West Fallowfield Township. An advertisement published in The Pennsylvania Gazette on October 19, 1769, offered his property for sale following his death. The 180-acre plantation included a tavern that had been operating for more than fifteen years, situated at the junction of roads connecting Lancaster with Newport and Great Valley with Nottingham.
Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope offer a different explanation in their History of Chester County, Pennsylvania (1881). They attribute the village’s name to Samuel Cochran (1763–1829), a grandson of James Cochran.
Samuel Cochran was born in West Fallowfield township, Jan. 16, 1763. He resided at Cochranville, and gave the village its name. His emigrant ancestor and grandfather was James Cochran, who married Ann, a daughter of Cornelius Rowan, an early settler. James and Ann (Rowan) Cochran left seven children, noticed in the preceding sketch, among whom was Stephen, the father of the subject of this sketch. Stephen Cochran commanded a company in the Revolution, and was elected to the Assembly in 1777 and 1778.
Samuel Cochran was a drummer-boy in his father’s company when about sixteen years of age. He was a member of the House of Representatives in 1816 and 1817, and of the Senate of Pennsylvania from 1818 to 1820. He was also surveyor-general under the administration of Governor McKean, from 1800 to 1809, and under that of Governor Hiester, from 1821 to 1824. He was a prominent man in his day, prepossessing in his appearance, held in high esteem by his neighbors, and his advice was sought by them in their difficulties. He was for forty years a ruling elder in Fagg’s Manor Church. He died May 3, 1829.
Early records indicate that the town name was spelled with an s after the surname: Cochransville and that the s was dropped after June 23, 1884. The town established a post office on September 7, 1802. The Cochranville Inn appears in tavern records from 1831.
Cochranville 250th Anniversary Booklet
This booklet, published in 1975, provides a helpful overview of Cochranville’s early days, covering schools, the post office, early businesses, organizations, and churches. Read it here.
Cochranville Postcards
Street Scene Looking West
Read my Posts About Cochranville
Sources
- Edward Pinkowski, Chester County Place Names, 1962.
- Futhey and Cope
- Cochranville 250th Anniversary Booklet
- Pennsylvania Gazette
