Aspen Hill, Maryland
Encyclopedia
Aspen Hill is a census-designated place
and an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland
. It got its name from aspen
tree
s that once were found near the first post office in the area. The post office was located in a general store on what was then known as the Washington-Brookeville
Pike (now the intersection of Connecticut
and Georgia Avenue
s) and opened around 1864.
Aspen Hill was one of the locations in which a fatal shooting took place in October 2002 as part of the Beltway sniper attacks
.
does not even use the name Aspen Hill (except as a station name in the Silver Spring Post Office), preferring to divide it between Rockville
, Silver Spring
, and Wheaton
.
Some addresses are referenced as Wheaton (20906), notably in the Aspen Hill Shopping Center, while immediately across Aspen Hill Road at the Northgate Plaza Shopping Center, the addresses are in Silver Spring (20906). Immediately to the west across Connecticut Avenue, addresses are given as being in Rockville (20853). As a result, statistics such as crime statistics which are reasonably considered as belonging to Aspen Hill are buried in the statistics of three different areas. Aspen Hill straddles a corner where three statistical areas meet in what locals consider the commercial heart of Aspen Hill.
The United States Census Bureau
, defines Aspen Hill as a Census-Designated Place
located at 39°6' North, 77°5' West. In the 2000 Census Bureau Gazetteer, Aspen Hill was located at 39°5′19"N 77°4′49"W (39.088525, -77.080267).
The United States Geological Survey
definition of Aspen Hill is centered at 39°4′46"N 77°4′24"W, somewhat different from either of the Census Bureau's definitions.
Other organizations, such as the Aspen Hill Civic Association, Inc., have their own definitions. The organizational membership bounds of the Civic Association
do not include any areas to the east of Georgia Avenue. Other local resources such as the Montgomery Gazette and the Washington Post use a more broad definition. Generally speaking, if it is not a part of Manor Country Club or Leisure World, and is south of Norbeck Road and north of Veirs Mill Road, east of Rock Creek and west of Bel Pre Creek or Matthew Henson
State Park or Matthew Henson Greenway, the local media consider it to be Aspen Hill.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the community has a total area of 10.5 square miles (27.2 km²), of which, 10.5 square miles (27.2 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (0.57%) is water.
of 2000, there were 50,228 people, 18,187 households, and 13,076 families residing in the community. The population density
was 4,799.2 people per square mile (1,852.3/km²). There were 18,565 housing units at an average density of 1,773.9 per square mile (684.6/km²). The racial makeup of the area was 55.60% White, 20.98% Black or African American
, 0.33% Native American, 11.51% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 7.48% from other races
, and 4.04% from two or more races. 15.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 18,187 households out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.7% were married couples
living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.18.
In the area the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 31.8% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.
The median income for a household in the area was $63,340, and the median income for a family was $73,736 (these figures had risen to $75,014 and $81,474 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $44,341 versus $36,739 for females. The per capita income
for the area was $27,905. About 4.6% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
and an unincorporated area in Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
. It got its name from aspen
Aspen
Populus section Populus, of the Populus genus, includes the aspen trees and the white poplar Populus alba. The five typical aspens are all native to cold regions with cool summers, in the north of the Northern Hemisphere, extending south at high altitudes in the mountains. The White Poplar, by...
tree
Tree
A tree is a perennial woody plant. It is most often defined as a woody plant that has many secondary branches supported clear of the ground on a single main stem or trunk with clear apical dominance. A minimum height specification at maturity is cited by some authors, varying from 3 m to...
s that once were found near the first post office in the area. The post office was located in a general store on what was then known as the Washington-Brookeville
Brookeville, Maryland
Brookeville is a town located twenty miles north of Washington, D.C. and two miles north of Olney in northeastern Montgomery County, Maryland. Brookeville was settled by Quakers late in the 18th century, and was formally incorporated as a town in 1808...
Pike (now the intersection of Connecticut
Connecticut Avenue (Washington, D.C.)
Connecticut Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., and suburban Montgomery County, Maryland. It is one of the diagonal avenues radiating from the White House, and the segment south of Florida Avenue was one of the original streets in Pierre Charles...
and Georgia Avenue
Georgia Avenue
Georgia Avenue is a major north-south artery in Northwest Washington, D.C. and Montgomery County, Maryland. Within the District of Columbia and a short distance in Silver Spring, Maryland, Georgia Avenue is also U.S. Route 29...
s) and opened around 1864.
Aspen Hill was one of the locations in which a fatal shooting took place in October 2002 as part of the Beltway sniper attacks
Beltway sniper attacks
The Washington sniper attacks took place during three weeks in October 2002 in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Ten people were killed and three others critically injured in various locations throughout the Washington Metropolitan Area and along Interstate 95 in Virginia...
.
Geography
As an unincorporated area, Aspen Hill's boundaries are not officially defined. The United States Postal ServiceUnited States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
does not even use the name Aspen Hill (except as a station name in the Silver Spring Post Office), preferring to divide it between Rockville
Rockville, Maryland
Rockville is the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a major incorporated city in the central part of Montgomery County and forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2010 U.S...
, Silver Spring
Silver Spring, Maryland
Silver Spring is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 71,452 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown.The urbanized, oldest, and...
, and Wheaton
Wheaton, Maryland
Wheaton is an unincorporated, urbanized area in Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, north of Washington, D.C., northwest of Silver Spring. Wheaton takes its name from Frank Wheaton , a career officer in the United States Army and volunteer from Rhode Island in the Union Army who rose to the rank of...
.
Some addresses are referenced as Wheaton (20906), notably in the Aspen Hill Shopping Center, while immediately across Aspen Hill Road at the Northgate Plaza Shopping Center, the addresses are in Silver Spring (20906). Immediately to the west across Connecticut Avenue, addresses are given as being in Rockville (20853). As a result, statistics such as crime statistics which are reasonably considered as belonging to Aspen Hill are buried in the statistics of three different areas. Aspen Hill straddles a corner where three statistical areas meet in what locals consider the commercial heart of Aspen Hill.
The United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, defines Aspen Hill as a Census-Designated Place
Census-designated place
A census-designated place is a concentration of population identified by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes. CDPs are delineated for each decennial census as the statistical counterparts of incorporated places such as cities, towns and villages...
located at 39°6' North, 77°5' West. In the 2000 Census Bureau Gazetteer, Aspen Hill was located at 39°5′19"N 77°4′49"W (39.088525, -77.080267).
The United States Geological Survey
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
definition of Aspen Hill is centered at 39°4′46"N 77°4′24"W, somewhat different from either of the Census Bureau's definitions.
Other organizations, such as the Aspen Hill Civic Association, Inc., have their own definitions. The organizational membership bounds of the Civic Association
Civic Association
The Hong Kong Civic Association is a political group founded in 1954 in Hong Kong by Dr. Hilton Cheong-Leen. In 1975 it claimed a membership of 10,000....
do not include any areas to the east of Georgia Avenue. Other local resources such as the Montgomery Gazette and the Washington Post use a more broad definition. Generally speaking, if it is not a part of Manor Country Club or Leisure World, and is south of Norbeck Road and north of Veirs Mill Road, east of Rock Creek and west of Bel Pre Creek or Matthew Henson
Matthew Henson
Matthew Alexander Henson was an African American explorer and associate of Robert Peary during various expeditions, the most famous being a 1909 expedition which it was discovered that he was the the first person to reach the Geographic North Pole.-Life:Henson was born on a farm in Nanjemoy,...
State Park or Matthew Henson Greenway, the local media consider it to be Aspen Hill.
According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the community has a total area of 10.5 square miles (27.2 km²), of which, 10.5 square miles (27.2 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²) of it (0.57%) is water.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 50,228 people, 18,187 households, and 13,076 families residing in the community. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 4,799.2 people per square mile (1,852.3/km²). There were 18,565 housing units at an average density of 1,773.9 per square mile (684.6/km²). The racial makeup of the area was 55.60% White, 20.98% Black or African American
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, 0.33% Native American, 11.51% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 7.48% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 4.04% from two or more races. 15.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 18,187 households out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.7% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.1% were non-families. 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.18.
In the area the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 31.8% from 25 to 44, 24.0% from 45 to 64, and 12.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.7 males.
The median income for a household in the area was $63,340, and the median income for a family was $73,736 (these figures had risen to $75,014 and $81,474 respectively as of a 2007 estimate). Males had a median income of $44,341 versus $36,739 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the area was $27,905. About 4.6% of families and 6.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.0% of those under age 18 and 6.4% of those age 65 or over.