The weather may have been gloomy, but the mood was high at the celebration of the 75^th anniversary of Chester County Day, the longest running house tour in the country.

Rain gear in tow, many area residents decided to defy Mother Nature and enjoy to the fullest, the annual ritual of stepping back in time by visiting grand homes steeped in the history of the county.

Among the visitors were Carol and Dennis Collins, residents of Gwynedd Valley, longtime attendees going back 47 years. “It’s something we always do,” Carol said. “We really enjoy it.”

Started in 1936, this Chester County tradition and a popular fund-raiser for the Chester County Hospital is held annually on the first Saturday of October. Throughout the past 75 years, barring the WWII period, the tour has led visitors through the fascinating houses, gardens, and historic landmarks of Chester County.

In honor of the first ever tour held, this year’s event focused on West Chester, the same Borough that was first toured in 1936. The tour began after spectators gathered to watch the traditional fox hunt which traditionally kicks off the Chester County Day festivities.

The event included the chance to visit 31 publics and private properties, which ranged from a 1926 stucco residence with its distinctive clay tile roof and a 1992 addition to a 1750 home restored in the 1920s for novelist Joseph Hergesheimer, the host to some buoyant parties that not even F. Scott Fitzgerald and Dorothy Parker could resist.

Despite the looming threat of Hurricane Joaquin at the beginning of the week, Louise Milewski, co-chair of this year’s Chester County Day with Karen Weber, said that the total number of visitors at many of the residences mirrored last year’s figures, while the audience gathered for the foxhunt definitely increased from last year.

“It was absolutely a success,” Milewski said. “We were very pleasantly surprised by the number of people who turned out. I didn’t expect to see any lines. I really admire the fortitude of people who stood in the rain waiting to get into some of the homes.”

She added that since Chester County Day’s inception, the tour has generated more than $4 million to support the hospital and its programs, showing the true importance of the tour.