Neighborhoods
Chester is a census-designated place in Chesterfield County. It is a bedroom community spread out along Virginia State Highway 10. There are approximately 9,000 residential homes in Chester. Median age is approximately 21 years. Median interior living space is approximately 1,900 sq. ft. [Chesterfield County Planning Department, 2010 Community Indicators Report, www.chesterfield.gov, accessed August, 2012]
Chester as described in 1940 [1]
Chester, a sprawling residential village, was laid out in 20 lots of equal size. It was once an important shipping point and market center on the Petersburg Railroad.
On May 10, 1864, the Union army destroyed the railroad tracks near Chester in their efforts to cut off supplies from Richmond. The Salem Baptist Church a simple frame building, houses a congregation constituted in 1802. In his History of the Middle District Association, Semple says that Salem started with 117 members and adds, 'It is worthy of remark that generally the Baptist cause prospered most extensively where it met with the most severe opposition.' In recounting the tribulations of Baptist ministers in Chesterfield County, he said, "Some were whipped by individuals, several fined. They kept up their persecutions after other counties had laid it aside."
Nearby Towns: Chesterfield Court House •