Why Chester is the best town in New Jersey, America, and probably the world

It’s that time of the semester again. That time when we get the chance to take a breath from prelims and late nights in the library and go home. Fall break is finally here! With this being the first real break where we can head home, it has a lot of us thinking what makes our special stomping grounds so special.

For me, my hometown is one that nobody knows about. I was born and raised in the dirty Jerz in a small(ish) town of 7,000 people. When anyone at school asks where I’m from, 9/10 people will have never heard of Chester, NJ, and the one that has heard of it either (a) lives there too, (b) has a friend who lives there, or (c) only recognizes the marker of a much larger, more popular town right next door. So why is it special you ask? Because it is.

We’ve got a community feel

The 5th Annual Bluegrass Festival

Odds are any weekend that you drive down Main Street you will either see a festival going on or there will be banners on either end of the street advertising one for an upcoming weekend. Farmer’s Market, Chili Fest, Bluegrass Festival, Craft Fair, Peach Festival, Harvest Festival, you name it, we’ve got it. Our town constantly encourages people to talk a stroll around main street or meet in the park and listen to music or watch a movie on a projector at the baseball field. So many of our weekends are packed with opportunities to get to know our neighbors and keep strengthening that community feel that makes us proud to be from Chester.

It’s one of the best places to visit in the fall

One of many hay rides at Alstede Farm

Honestly, this is probably one of the main reasons I’ve found for people actually knowing the name of my hometown. Other friends I’ve met at school who grew up in New Jersey have heard of Chester because their family loves coming to town in the fall. With our countless farms, including Alstede, Stony Hill, and Riamede, our apple picking, corn mazes, hay rides, and more draw in tons of tourists. You know how NYC population skyrockets during the day? Same thing happens with Chester during the fall (on a much smaller scale, of course). Chester natives and day trippers walk along main street and around the farms and any festivals on most weekends in the fall, and it’s a great place to be.

It has a small town vibe

Chester is one of those places that on any given trip to the local supermarket, you can guarantee you’ll run into at least four people who know your parents or who know you. Sure, we have 7,000 people in our town, but even if you don’t know their names, you more often than not will recognize a lot of the faces you see. With with rivalry between us and our neighboring town of Mendham, us Chester folk stick together and stay proud of our lovely little town. Also during the winter season, we have carolers that sing around town and in local restaurants and boutiques. How much more small town can you get?

The hiking

Hacklebarney Park, Chester, NJ

I don’t know about you, but I love hiking. Part of the reason Cornell was such a big draw for me was because, you know, “Ithaca is gorges.” But it goes without saying, Chester is the home to some amazing hiking paths, one of which runs through the entire county! Patriot’s Path, Hacklebarney Park, and Black River are some of my all-time favorite nature hot spots around town.

The history

Yes, while every town has their history, Chester’s history is particularly amazing in that a lot of it still stands today. Anyone who drives through our town can see that the buildings and town layout are steeped in history. Of course, like any town there are additions and renovations where some houses are more modern than others, but Main Street looks like a spitting image of itself from over 200 years ago. Not only is the town’s rich history preserved today, but Chester has some awesome activities around holidays that walk townies and visitors through history during ghost walks, historical tours, and more.

The shopping

This one, if you ask me, is the best of both worlds. Chester has a strip mall, the Streets of Chester, with about 15 commercial store, but more importantly we have Main Street full of local boutiques. Being only about 30 to 40 minutes from three different malls, having the Streets of Chester, and having a wide variety local stores gives us locals plenty of options for where to buy the latest seasons’ trends.

We’re trend-setters

Tim Moran, the owner of SpinnCandy

I don’t mean to toot my own horn, BUT Chester is home to the first ever cotton candy store in the nation. I mean, you don’t even have to really like cotton candy to think that’s cool. But for those of you who do love cotton candy, it’s your lucky day! No longer having to wait for the next carnival or fair that will have a cotton candy machine is a blessing in disguise, if you ask me.

Day trips to the Big Apple

OK, I’ll admit it – Chester is small and you can sometimes get tired of doing the same fun activities, but seeing as Chester is a whopping 45 minutes away from Manhattan, you can go to and from the city as you please. The best part about it is that you can go into the city, do your touristy act of the day, and come home to your cozy hometown.