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Montgomery County, Maryland

Encyclopedia : M : MO : MON : Montgomery County, Maryland

Montgomery County is a suburban county located in the U.S. state of Maryland north of Washington, D.C. The county, sometimes referred to informally as "MoCo," is the most populous jurisdiction in Maryland and one of the most affluent in the nation.

The county seat is Rockville, and the most populous community is Silver Spring.

This county is a part of the Washington portion of the Washington-Baltimore Metropolitan Area.

Contents

History

The Madison House in Brookeville was built around 1800 and originally owned by Caleb Bentley. The house provided refuge for President James Madison, on August 26, 1814, after the British burned Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812.
Enlarge
The Madison House in Brookeville was built around 1800 and originally owned by Caleb Bentley. The house provided refuge for President James Madison, on August 26, 1814, after the British burned Washington, D.C. during the War of 1812.
The area now known as Montgomery County was originally a part of Charles County. In 1696 parts of Charles and Baltimore Counties were split off to form the new Prince George's County. In turn, in 1748, a portion of Prince George's County produced Frederick County. Montgomery County was formed in 1776 by the splitting of Frederick County. The former Frederick County was subdivided into three; the central portion remained Frederick County, while the western was named Washington County in honor of General (later President) George Washington, and the eastern part was named Montgomery County in honor of another Revolutionary War general, Richard Montgomery. 


In 1791, portions of Montgomery and Prince George's County, Maryland, as well as parts of Virginia, were ceded to form the new District of Columbia. (The portions originally ceded by Virginia were returned by an act of U.S. Congress, approved July 9, 1846.) 


On July 1, 1997, Montgomery County annexed a portion of Prince George's County after residents of Takoma Park, which spanned both counties, voted to be entirely within the more affluent Montgomery County.


In October 2002, Montgomery County caught national headlines during the Beltway sniper attacks. There were five fatal shootings in 15 hours in Montgomery County. Of the fifteen shootings that took place, seven were located in Montgomery County.



Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,313 km² (507 mi²).  1,283 km² (496 mi²) of it is land and 30 km² (12 mi²) of it (2.29%) is water.



Adjacent counties



Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there were 873,341 people, 324,565 households, and 224,274 families residing in the county.  The population density was 680/km² (1,762/mi²).  There were 334,632 housing units at an average density of 261/km² (675/mi²).  The racial makeup of the county was 64.78% White, 15.14% African American, 0.29% Native American, 11.30% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 5.00% from other races, and 3.45% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.52% of the population.


There were 324,565 households out of which 35.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.20% were married couples living together, 10.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% were non-families. 24.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.19.


In the county the population was spread out with 25.40% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 32.30% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 11.20% who were 65 years of age or older.  The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 92.10 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.10 males.


The median income for a household in the county was $71,551, and the median income for a family was $84,035. Males had a median income of $54,005 versus $40,714 for females. The per capita income for the county was $35,684.  About 3.70% of families and 5.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.90% of those under age 18 and 5.90% of those age 65 or over.


There exists a sharp, easily noticeable division in terms of diversity between the eastern side of the county, centered around the Silver Spring and Olney areas, the western side of the county, centered around the Bethesda and Potomac areas, and the agricultural northern side of the county. The complaint that the western side of the county is given special favors at the expense of the eastern side, such as the Intercounty Connector highway project, has often been raised.


Since the 1970s, the county has had in place a Moderately Priced Dwelling Unit (MPDU) zoning plan that encourages developers to include affordable housing in any new residential developments that they construct in the county. The goal is to create socioeconomically mixed neighborhoods and schools so that the rich and poor are not isolated in separate parts of the county. Developers who comply with MPDU are rewarded with permission to increase the density of their developments, which allows them to build more housing and generate more revenue. Montgomery County was one of the first counties in the U.S. to adopt such a plan, but many other areas have since followed suit.



Law and government




Former Montgomery County Courthouse (1931-1982) in Rockville, Maryland.  The building now houses a state district court.

Enlarge

Former Montgomery County Courthouse (1931-1982) in Rockville, Maryland.  The building now houses a state district court.






Montgomery County was granted a charter form of government in 1948.



County Executives



Name
Party
Term


James P. Gleason
Republican
1970–1978


Charles W. Gilchrist
Democrat
1978–1986


Sidney Kramer
Democrat
1986–1990


Neal Potter
Democrat
1990–1994


Douglas M. Duncan
Democrat
1994—




Legislative body


The present form of government of Montgomery County dates to November 1948 when the voters changed the form of government from a County Commission/County Manager system, as provided in the original 1948 home rule Charter, to a County Executive/County Council form of government. The first seven-member County Council was elected in 1970. Originally all of the Councilmembers were elected at large (that is, by all of the voters). Five members were required to reside in their Councilmanic district. In November 1986, the voters amended the Charter to increase the number of Council seats in the 1990 election from seven to nine. Now five members are elected by the voters of their councilmanic district and four are elected at-large. Each voter may vote for five Councilmembers—four at-large and one from the district in which they reside.



Cities and towns

This county contains the following incorporated municipalities:



Though the three incorporated cities of Gaithersburg, Rockville, and Takoma Park lie within its boundaries, the most urbanized areas in the county include such unincorporated areas as Bethesda and Silver Spring. 


Occupying a middle ground between incorporated and unincorporated areas are Special Tax Districts, quasi-municipal unincorporated areas created by legislation passed by the Maryland General Assembly.[link] They lack home rule authority and must petition the General Assembly for changes affecting the authority of the district. The four incorporated villages of Montgomery County and the town of Chevy Chase View were originally established as Special Tax Districts. Three Special Tax Districts remain in the county:

  1. Drummond, Village of (1916)
  2. Friendship Heights and "The Hills" (1914)
  3. Oakmont (1918)

Unincorporated areas are also considered as towns by many people and listed in many collections of towns, but they lack local government. Various organizations, such as the United States Census Bureau, the United States Postal Service, and local chambers of commerce, define the communities they wish to recognize differently, and since they are not incorporated, their boundaries have no official status outside the organizations in question. The Census Bureau recognizes the following census-designated places in the county:



  1. Ashton-Sandy Spring (a combination of the communities of Ashton and Sandy Spring recognized as a unit by the Census Bureau)
  2. Aspen Hill
  3. Bethesda
  4. Brookmont
  5. Burtonsville
  6. Cabin John
  7. Calverton (This CDP is shared between Montgomery and Prince George's Counties.)
  8. Chevy Chase (Note that this is also the name of an incorporated town!)
  9. Clarksburg
  10. Cloverly
  11. Colesville
  12. Damascus
  13. Darnestown
  14. Fairland
  15. Forest Glen
  16. Friendship Village (This CDP includes the Village of Friendship Heights.)
  17. Germantown
  18. Hillandale (This CDP is shared between Montgomery and Prince George's Counties.)
  19. Kemp Mill
  20. Montgomery Village
  21. North Bethesda
  22. North Kensington
  23. North Potomac
  24. Olney
  25. Potomac
  26. Redland
  27. Rossmoor
  28. Silver Spring
  29. South Kensington
  30. Travilah
  31. Wheaton-Glenmont (a combination of the communities of Wheaton and Glenmont recognized as a unit by the Census Bureau)
  32. White Oak

Other unincorporated places:



  1. Beallsville
  2. Boyds
  3. Derwood
  4. Dickerson


Transportation


Roads

Montgomery County is approximately bisected north-south by Interstate 270, a connector linking Interstate 70 with Washington. I-270 divides in North Bethesda with its primary roadway connecting to the eastbound Capital Beltway (Interstate 495), and a spur connecting to southbound I-495 as it approaches northern Virginia.  Another spur highway, Interstate 370, connects Interstate 270 with the Shady Grove Metro station.


A longstanding, fiercely contested plan exists to construct an east-west freeway, the Intercounty Connector ("ICC"). The ICC would extend Interstate 370 to connect I-270 with Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 in Laurel, Prince George's County. 


Roughly paralleling 270 is Maryland State Highway 355, a surface street known for most of its length as Rockville Pike and in its southern reaches as Wisconsin Avenue. Other major routes include Maryland State Highway 190, River Road; Maryland State Highway 97 (Georgia Avenue)  and Maryland State Highway 28, known as Darnestown Road and Montgomery Avenue. U.S. Highway 29 parallels the eastern border of the county starting as Georgia Avenue, turns onto Colesville Road in Silver Spring, and thence as Columbia Pike through Burtonsville to Howard County.



Bus

Montgomery County operates its own bus public transit system, known as Ride On. Major routes are also covered by WMATA's Metrobus service.



Rail

Montgomery County is served by three passenger rail systems.


Amtrak, the U.S. national passenger rail system, operates its Capitol Limited to Rockville, between Washington Union Station and Chicago Union Station.


The Brunswick line of the MARC commuter rail system makes stops at Silver Spring, Kensington, Garrett Park, Rockville, Washington Grove, Gaithersburg, Metropolitan Grove, Germantown, Boyds, Barnesville, and Dickerson, where the line splits into its Frederick and Martinsburg branches.


Both suburban arms of the Red Line of the Washington Metro serve Montgomery County. It follows the CSX right of way to the west, roughly paralleling Route 355 from Friendship Heights to Shady Grove. The eastern side roughly parallels Georgia Avenue, from Silver Spring to Glenmont.



Air

The Montgomery County Airpark (FAA GAI, ICAO KGAI), a general aviation facility in Gaithersburg, is the only airport in the county. Commercial air service is provided at the nearby Reagan National, Dulles, and BWI Airports.



Education

Schools are operated by the Montgomery County Public Schools.



Liquor control


Montgomery County maintains a monopoly on the sale of alcoholic beverages, much like several U.S. states; it is thus referred to as an alcoholic beverage control county.



External links









State of Maryland

Cities |
Government |
History |
U.S. Senators and Representatives


 State capital:




Annapolis 


 Regions:



 
Western | Southern | Eastern Shore | Baltimore-Washington Metro Area | Chesapeake | Delaware Valley


 Notable Cities:



 Baltimore, Maryland>Baltimore | Bowie | College Park | Cumberland | Frederick | Gaithersburg | Greenbelt | Hagerstown  |  Hyattsville  | Laurel | Rockville | Salisbury | Takoma Park | Westminster


 Counties:




Allegany | Anne Arundel | Baltimore City | Baltimore County | Calvert | Caroline | Carroll | Cecil | Charles | Dorchester | Frederick | Garrett | Harford | Howard | Kent | Montgomery | Prince George's | Queen Anne's | St. Mary's | Somerset | Talbot | Washington | Wicomico | Worcester




















 





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