Southwestern Delaware County has more in common with bucolic Chester County than with the more urbanized regions to the east. In large measure this is due to the protection afforded by the Brandywine Battlefield Historic Site and by the active role of the Brandywine Conservancy in acquiring and restoring significant properties with an eye to keeping the rural character of the region. General George Washington's headquarters have been reconstructed and the Marquis de Lafayette's headquarters in the Gideon Gilpin house (c. 1745) are restored. The battlefield with its historical associations was one of the attractions that drew illustrator Howard Pyle to the region for his summer school. In letters to his family, artist N. C. Wyeth described Pyle leading his students on a tour of the battlefield on July 4, 1903. “We covered all the ground that had seen action during the ‘Battle of Brandywine,’ seeing all its historical points and relics. Arriving home to Mr. P., he then gave us a vivid description of the battle and all the minute details and anecdotes.” The battlefield is operated as a state park.