Corinne
"More than a century and a half after William Penn founded Philadelphia, Pennock Marshall departed from conventional lines when he planned a settlement in the heart of what is now Pocopson Township, five miles from West Chester, that would resemble Penn's "greene country towne." He laid out three streets in a stand of locust trees and named the settlement Locust Grove. But the planned village never expanded more than two dozen families. In 1889, when the settlers asked for a post office, the postal department would not accept the name the village bore because it had such post offices as Locust Grove in Fulton County, Locust Valley in Lehigh County, Locust Dale in Schuylkill County, and Locust Gap in Northumberland County. The settlers were in need of another name. Robert W. Caldwell suggested the name Maple Grove on his application for a post office, but it was not accepted. In the meantime, a member of is family went to see a play in Philadelphia. The name of the heroine was Corinne. On his return to Locust Grove, the 28-year-old-playgoer, Henry W. Caldwell, presented the name at a meeting of citizens. It was approved and Robert W. Caldwell wrote Corinne on the application that was returned to him and sent it back to Washington. When the Corinne post office was established February 21, 1889, he was its first and only postmaster. The Caldwell family had much to do with keeping the name Corinne alive long after the post office was closed July 31, 1915." [1]
- Edward Pinkowski, Chester County Place Names, Philadelphia, Sunshine Press, 1962
Nearby Neighborhoods
Street Names
Corrine Road
