Editing Coatesville, Pennsylvania (section)

===19th century===
Before Coatesville became a city, the only one in Chester County, it was called Bridge-Town, after the two bridges crossing the Brandywine River.  A village named "Midway", named after its station owned by the [[Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad]] midway between Philadelphia and Lancaster, was formed in 1834<ref name="web"/> on the western bank of the Brandywine. The village of Midway and the village of Bridge-Town merged in 1867 to become the borough of Coatesville.<ref>{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Coatesville|volume=6|page=603}}</ref> Coatesville citizens voted to become a city in 1915.

Coatesville exploited the natural energy of the Brandywine River. Jesse Kersey, Moses Coates' son-in-law, partnered with the ironmaster [[Isaac Pennock]] and purchased over {{convert|110|acre|km2}} of Moses Coates' farm along both sides of the Brandywine River in 1810. They formed the [[Brandywine Iron Works and Nail Factory]], the forerunner of [[Lukens Steel Company|Lukens Steel]]. Charles Lukens, MD, married Isaac Pennock's daughter Rebecca in 1813. Following her husband's death in 1825, [[Rebecca Lukens]] took over the operations of the mill, purchasing it from her mother. She directed operations through a period of turmoil and market panic, developing it into a prosperous mill. Rebecca Lukens was one of the first women to operate a major corporation in the United States.<ref>[http://www.steelmuseum.org/rebecca.htm "Rebecca Lukens"] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130415204722/http://www.steelmuseum.org/rebecca.htm |date=2013-04-15 }}, National Steel Heritage Museum</ref>