The Brandywine Valley National Scenic Byway winds through the historic and picturesque landscapes of northern Delaware and southeastern Pennsylvania along Routes 52 and 100, as well as other roads in PA. Spanning approximately 37.3 miles, the route begins in downtown Wilmington, Delaware, and stretches northward to the Pennsylvania border and beyond, offering travelers a rich fusion of cultural heritage, natural beauty, and architectural charm.
Located in a corner of the mid-Atlantic, at the juncture of Delaware and Pennsylvania, the Brandywine Valley National Scenic Byway reveals an area where the unique bounty of the climate, the land, and the waters has long nourished nature and man. During a visit in the 1860s, Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote, “The grazing pastures were so green … the houses were so comfortable, the barns so ample, the fences so well kept, that I did not wonder, when I was told that this region was called the England of Pennsylvania.”
Today its 350 square miles seem little changed from that era; its rolling hills, manicured estates, and the sparkling Brandywine River offer visitors a seductive trip through history. Here George Washington faced the British at the September 11, 1777, Battle of the Brandywine, the largest troop engagement of the Revolutionary War. These days, one can paddle down the river, past the banks where Washington placed his troops, and visit the house in which he prepared for the battle. The perfectly preserved estates and mills that became the symbols of America’s rise to a global industrial power still exist and provide the settings for the world-class cultural attractions of horticultural gardens, industrial achievement, American furnishings, country estates, and American artists. The landscape inspired Howard Pyle’s Brandywine School, an artist colony in Wilmington and Chadds Ford. Pyle’s most famous student, N. C. Wyeth (1882- 1945), was one of America’s foremost illustrators in the 20th century. His renowned images of swashbuckling pirates, armor-clad knights, and hard-riding cowboys fired the imaginations of readers for generations and can be seen at the Brandywine River Museum. All this landscape is protected by nearly 65,000 acres of conserved open spaces in the valley.
The Brandywine Valley National Scenic Byway is historically significant for five reasons. First, physical evidence of the settlement and development patterns still exists throughout the Byway region. Second, the Byway passes through the landscape where the Battle of Brandywine was fought in 1777. Third, the Byway is associated with the Underground Railroad. Fourth, much of the Byway has provided the subject for works of art by many artists, including those of the Brandywine School of Art, Andrew Wyeth and other members of the Wyeth family, as well as many vibrant local artists today, and fifth, within the Byway is an enclave of country estates that represent the apex of the agricultural development of the area and an important era in the social history of the region.
Since the early days of European settlement, the Brandywine Valley has become a particularly strategic crossroads of commerce, of agriculture, of artistic creativity and of political thought. It is here where one can discover many of the significant events that have shaped history from before the founding of the Nation until the present time.
Upcoming activities in September:
Chadds Ford:
9-7 Free First Sunday at Brandywine River Museum
https://www.brandywine.org/museum/events/free-first-sunday-brandywine-1
9-11 Remembrance Day Events – Brandywine Battlefield Park Associates
https://www.brandywinebattlefield.org/calendar-of-events/
9-13&14 Battle At Chadds Ford: https://chaddsfordhistory.org/events-programs/battle-at-chadds-ford/
9-20 Bike the Brandywine Bike The Brandywine | Brandywine Conservancy and Museum of Art
https://www.brandywine.org/press-room/press-releases/bike-brandywine-returns-saturday-september-20-2025
East Bradford:
9-6 Paradise Farm Camps 150th Anniversary Celebration https://www.paradisefarmcamps.org/150th-anniversary-celebration/
9-10 Trails and Tales https://www.brandywine.org/conservancy/events/trails-tales-shaws-bridge-park
Pennsbury:
LATE SUMMER NATIVE MEADOW WILDFLOWERS
Saturday, September 6 • 9–11:30am • Rain date: Sat. Sept. 13
Register by September 2
https://pennsburylandtrust.org/events.asp
Pocopson:
9-13 Founders Day https://pocopson.org/event/founders-day/
9-21 – Barnard Station Locust Grove Schoolhouse Open House https://pocopson.org/event/barnard-station-locust-grove-schoolhouse-open-house/2025-09-21/
Kennett Township (Borough):
9-4 40th Anniversary Mushroom Parade: https://kennettcollaborative.org/event/mushroom-parade/
9-6&7 Mushroom Festival (40th one): https://mushroomfestival.org/
For more information click:
https://nsbfoundation.com/nb/brandywine-valley-scenic-byway-pa/
https://nsbfoundation.com/nb/brandywine-valley-national-scenic-byway-de/