Southern Maryland
Encyclopedia
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
in popular usage is composed of the state's southernmost counties on the "Western Shore
Western Shore
Maryland's Western Shore, not to be confused with Western Maryland, is an area of Maryland west of the Chesapeake Bay. The term does not identify an official region of Maryland but it is often used in contrast to "Eastern Shore"...
" of the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
. This region includes all of Calvert
Calvert County, Maryland
Calvert County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It occupies the Calvert Peninsula which is bordered on the east by the Chesapeake Bay and on the west by the Patuxent River. Calvert County is part of the Southern Maryland region. Calvert County's residents are among the highest...
, Charles
Charles County, Maryland
Charles County is a county in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Maryland.As of 2010, the population was 146,551. Its county seat is La Plata. This county was named for Charles Calvert , third Baron Baltimore....
and St. Mary's counties and sometimes the southern portions of Anne Arundel
Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Anne Arundel County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is named for Anne Arundell , a member of the ancient family of Arundells in Cornwall, England and the wife of Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore. Its county seat is Annapolis, which is also the capital of the state...
and Prince George's
Prince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
counties.
History
Southern Maryland was originally inhabited by Piscataway Indians. Captain John Smith explored the area in 1608 and 1609. In 1634 St. Mary's City, at southern Maryland's lower tip was the site of the first Roman Catholic English settlement in North AmericaNorth America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
(the site is now a living history museum). Tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
plantations flourished in southern Maryland during slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
.
With a slave economy during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, regional white sympathies were very pro-Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
(as evidenced in the official state song lyrics
Maryland, My Maryland
"Maryland, My Maryland" is the official state song of the U.S. state of Maryland. The song is set to the tune of "Lauriger Horatius" and the lyrics are from a nine-stanza poem written by James Ryder Randall...
). From the war's beginning, however, large numbers of Union occupying troops and patrolling river gunboats prevented the state's secession, although nighttime smuggling across the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
with Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
took place. John Wilkes Booth
John Wilkes Booth
John Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
was helped by local people in his escape through the area after killing President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
.
Southern Maryland was traditionally a rural
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
and agricultural region, linked by passenger and freight steamboat routes. These steamboat routes operated on the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
and major rivers until the 1930s before the building of highways and the Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge on U.S. Highway 301. Weekend excursion boats also carried Washingtonians to small amusement parks and amusement pavilions at numerous shore locations. From 1949 (1943 in some places) to 1968, the region was popular for its slot machine
Slot machine
A slot machine , informally fruit machine , the slots , poker machine or "pokies" or simply slot is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed...
gambling.
Population and economics
During recent times, the region experienced suburban development as the WashingtonWashington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
suburbs expanded southward. This expansion took place primarily in Prince George's County
Prince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
, and around Waldorf
Waldorf, Maryland
Waldorf, Maryland is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Charles County, Maryland, United States. It is south-southeast of Washington, D.C. The population of the census-designated area only was 67,752 at the 2010 census...
(a regional shopping hub) and St. Charles
St. Charles, Maryland
St. Charles is a census-designated place and planned community in Charles County, Maryland, United States. It is south-southeast of Washington, D.C., from northern Virginia and immediately south of Waldorf, which is the mailing address....
(a planned community in Charles County
Charles County, Maryland
Charles County is a county in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Maryland.As of 2010, the population was 146,551. Its county seat is La Plata. This county was named for Charles Calvert , third Baron Baltimore....
), Lexington Park
Lexington Park, Maryland
Lexington Park is a census-designated place in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States, and the principal community of the Lexington Park, Maryland Micropolitan Statistical Area...
(St. Mary's County) and Prince Frederick
Prince Frederick, Maryland
Prince Frederick is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States, not to be confused with the incorporated, and much larger, city of Frederick some to the northwest in Frederick County...
(Calvert County
Calvert County, Maryland
Calvert County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It occupies the Calvert Peninsula which is bordered on the east by the Chesapeake Bay and on the west by the Patuxent River. Calvert County is part of the Southern Maryland region. Calvert County's residents are among the highest...
). This expansion of the Washington DC metropolitan area has caused much of southern Maryland's formerly predominant southern culture to fade giving way to a rapidly growing northeastern culture that is found throughout much of the Northeast Megalopolis
Northeast megalopolis
The Northeast megalopolis or Boston–Washington megalopolis is the heavily urbanized area of the United States stretching from the the northern suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts to the southern suburbs of Washington, D.C. On a map, the region appears almost as a perfectly straight line. As of 2000,...
. However, as noted, land-use maps show that the area is still primarily low-density.
Many southern Marylanders work at Andrews Air Force Base
Andrews Air Force Base
Joint Base Andrews is a United States military facility located in Prince George's County, Maryland. The facility is under the jurisdiction of the United States Air Force 11th Wing, Air Force District of Washington ....
, the U.S. Census Bureau or at Patuxent River Naval Air Station and its related industries. Other smaller industries include a nuclear power plant
Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant
The Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant located on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay near Lusby, Calvert County, Maryland.-Overview:...
and a liquified natural gas terminal
Dominion Cove Point LNG, LP
The Cove Point LNG Terminal is located near Lusby, Maryland, United States, on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay, which receives imported liquefied natural gas and also stores gas. The LNG arrives on specially designed ships called LNG carriers....
(both in Lusby), a Naval ordinance
Indian Head Naval Surface Weapons Center
Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head Division is a United States naval military installation located in Charles County, Maryland....
test ground (at Indian Head
Indian Head, Maryland
Indian Head is a town in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 3,422 at the 2000 census. It has been the site of a naval base specializing in gun and rocket propellants since 1890. Production of nitrocellulose and smokeless powder began at the Indian Head Powder Factory in 1900...
), an electric power plant
Chalk Point Generating Station
The Chalk Point Generating Station is a 2,647-MWe electricity-generating plant owned by GenOn which is located near the tiny incorporated town of Eagle Harbor, Maryland, United States, on the Patuxent River.-Individual Units:...
(at Aquasco) and an oil terminal (at Piney Point). The beautiful towns of Solomons Island and Chesapeake Beach
Chesapeake Beach, Maryland
Chesapeake Beach is a town in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. Its major attractions include a Railway Museum & Trail, the Chesapeake Beach Water Park, marinas, piers, charter boat fishing, and a Veterans Memorial Park...
are favorite weekend tourist resorts. Maryland International Raceway and Budds Creek Raceway near Chaptico attract many auto and motocross racing enthusiasts.
While the steamboats are long gone, more than three quarters of the land area is still rural, a mixture of forest and farmland.
The growing of tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
, once a dominant crop, has declined greatly because of state government farm buyouts during the 1990s.
St. Mary's County is home to Amish
Amish
The Amish , sometimes referred to as Amish Mennonites, are a group of Christian church fellowships that form a subgroup of the Mennonite churches...
and Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
communities. In addition, two competing groups (only formally organized in recent years) claim to be the Piscataway Native American tribe
Piscataway Indian Nation
The Piscataway Indian Nation and Tayac Territory is an unrecognized Native American tribe in Maryland that is related to the historic Piscataway tribe. At the time of European encounter, the Piscataway was one of the most populous and powerful Native polities of the Chesapeake Bay region, with a...
, a tribe that lived along the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay in southern Maryland (see We-Sorts
We-Sorts
We-Sorts is a name for a group of Native Americans in Maryland who are from the Piscataway tribe. Piscataways have always claimed to be Native American people. The Piscataway were powerful at the time of European encounter...
). Fishing, boating and crabbing are popular activities in this region; large marinas are found in the Solomons Island and North Beach
North Beach, Maryland
North Beach is a town in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,880 at the 2000 census. The town is contiguous with the larger town of Chesapeake Beach which has a new boardwalk, a new resort spa hotel, a recreational water park, and new housing...
areas. However, the population of fish and other marine life is threatened by pollution and environmental factors. Ancient marine fossils are abundant at Calvert Cliffs.
Geography
The region's northern boundary passes through Prince George's CountyPrince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
and Anne Arundel County, east of Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. Its eastern boundary is the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
and its southern and western boundary is the Potomac River
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...
, Maryland's boundary with Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
.
Food and cuisine
Perhaps the most notable food dish originating from Southern Maryland is stuffed hamStuffed ham
Stuffed ham is a variety of ham in which cabbage, kale, onions, spices and seasonings are chopped and mixed, then stuffed into deep slits slashed in a whole, corned ham. Stuffed ham is believed to have originated in Southern Maryland, specifically in St. Mary's County, and remains popular in that...
, which is cabbage, kale, onions, spices and seasonings that are chopped and mixed, then stuffed
into deep slits slashed in a whole, corned ham.
Seafood
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
is popular amongst Southern Marylanders, given the region's location along the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
and its tributaries. Both steamed crabs and crab cake
Crab cake
A crab cake is an American dish composed of crab meat and various other ingredients, such as bread crumbs, milk, mayonnaise, eggs, yellow onions, and seasonings. Occasionally other ingredients such as red or green peppers or pink radishes are added, at which point the cake is then sautéed, baked,...
s are considered Southern Maryland delicacies due to the large amount of harvesting of blue crabs from the bay. Also popular are oyster
Oyster
The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of distinct groups of bivalve molluscs which live in marine or brackish habitats. The valves are highly calcified....
s, which were once fished from the bay in great numbers, and served either fried, raw or stuffed. Rockfish
Striped bass
The striped bass is the state fish of Maryland, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and the state saltwater fish of New York, Virginia, and New Hampshire...
is considered one of the most prized fish dishes in Southern Maryland.
Towns and communities
Towns and places in Southern Maryland include:Anne Arundel County:
- DealeDeale, MarylandDeale is a census-designated place in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,796 at the 2000 census. It has a scenic view of Chesapeake Bay and is popular with boaters...
- Shady SideShady Side, MarylandShady Side is a census-designated place in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. The population was 5,559 at the 2000 census.-History:Capt. Salem Avery House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The Lula G...
Calvert County:
- Chesapeake BeachChesapeake Beach, MarylandChesapeake Beach is a town in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. Its major attractions include a Railway Museum & Trail, the Chesapeake Beach Water Park, marinas, piers, charter boat fishing, and a Veterans Memorial Park...
- DunkirkDunkirk, MarylandDunkirk is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,363 at the 2000 census. The area is very fast-growing, with many large estate homes. Considered one the wealthiest places to live inside the Washington, DC metropolitan area, with home prices...
- HuntingtownHuntingtown, MarylandHuntingtown is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,436 at the 2000 census. The community is growing, with many large estate homes in small developments off of Maryland Route 2/4. It has a public high school called Huntingtown High. The...
- Lusby, MarylandLusby, MarylandLusby is a place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was officially 1,666 at the 2000 census, although residents of the Chesapeake Ranch Estates-Drum Point community also use the Lusby zip code designation, making Lusby in fact a much larger community...
- North BeachNorth Beach, MarylandNorth Beach is a town in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,880 at the 2000 census. The town is contiguous with the larger town of Chesapeake Beach which has a new boardwalk, a new resort spa hotel, a recreational water park, and new housing...
- Prince FrederickPrince Frederick, MarylandPrince Frederick is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States, not to be confused with the incorporated, and much larger, city of Frederick some to the northwest in Frederick County...
(county seat) - Port RepublicPort Republic, MarylandPort Republic is a small, rural community located inCalvert County, Maryland. It is approximately5 miles south of Prince Frederick, Maryland, the countyseat of Calvert County...
- St. LeonardSt. Leonard, MarylandSt. Leonard is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was officially 536 at the 2000 census, although residents of the Calvert Beach-Long Beach, Maryland community also use the St. Leonard zip code designation, making it in fact a much larger community...
- SolomonsSolomons, MarylandSolomons is a community and census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,536 at the 2000 census...
Charles County:
- Bryans RoadBryans Road, MarylandBryans Road is a census-designated place in Charles County, Maryland, United States. Bryans Road was named after Oliver Norris Bryan, a 19th century farmer and scientist who owned and operated Locust Grove Farm near Marshall Hall, Maryland. The area consisted mostly of tobacco farms until the...
- Indian HeadIndian Head, MarylandIndian Head is a town in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 3,422 at the 2000 census. It has been the site of a naval base specializing in gun and rocket propellants since 1890. Production of nitrocellulose and smokeless powder began at the Indian Head Powder Factory in 1900...
- HughesvilleHughesville, MarylandHughesville is a census-designated place in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,537 at the 2000 census. Truman's Place was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.-Geography:...
- La PlataLa Plata, MarylandLa Plata is a town in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 6,551 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Charles County.-History:...
(county seat) - NanjemoyNanjemoy, MarylandNanjemoy is a settlement along Maryland Route 6 in southwestern Charles County, Maryland, United States, and the surrounding large rural area more or less bounded by Nanjemoy Creek to the east and north, and the Potomac River to the south and west. It and the creek draw their names from a Native...
- Potomac Heights
- St. CharlesSt. Charles, MarylandSt. Charles is a census-designated place and planned community in Charles County, Maryland, United States. It is south-southeast of Washington, D.C., from northern Virginia and immediately south of Waldorf, which is the mailing address....
- WaldorfWaldorf, MarylandWaldorf, Maryland is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Charles County, Maryland, United States. It is south-southeast of Washington, D.C. The population of the census-designated area only was 67,752 at the 2010 census...
Numerous other rural communities have very short Wikipedia articles. Those communities are listed in the articles on Charles County, St. Mary's County, and Calvert County.
Prince George's County:
- AccokeekAccokeek, MarylandAccokeek is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, located about 8.5 miles southwest of Washington, D.C. The population was 7,349 at the 2000 census. It is home to Piscataway Park....
- BrandywineBrandywine, MarylandBrandywine is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, although the postal delivery area includes part of Charles County as well near Malcolm....
- ClintonClinton, MarylandClinton is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Clinton was formerly known as Surrattsville until after the time of the American Civil War. The population of Clinton was 26,064 at the 2000 census. However, as of 2007, there is an...
- Eagle HarborEagle Harbor, MarylandEagle Harbor is a very tiny incorporated town in the far extreme southeast corner of Prince George's County, Maryland, United States and near the rural community of Aquasco. The population was 55 at the 2000 census...
- Upper MarlboroUpper Marlboro, MarylandUpper Marlboro is a town in and the county seat of Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The live-in population of the town core proper was only 648 at the 2000 census, although Greater Upper Marlboro is many times larger....
(county seat)
St. Mary's County:
- CaliforniaCalifornia, MarylandCalifornia is a census-designated place and community in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 9,307 at the 2000 census. California continues to grow with the spread of population out from the older adjacent community of Lexington Park and the growth in both...
- Charlotte HallCharlotte Hall, MarylandCharlotte Hall is a census-designated place in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,214 at the 2000 census. The Maryland Veterans Home for disabled veterans, including a U.S. Veterans Affairs clinic, is located on the site of the former Charlotte Hall Military Academy...
- HollywoodHollywood, MarylandHollywood is an unincorporated community located within St. Mary's County, Maryland. It was named in 1867, when a storeowner at Thompson's General Store near the Uniontown section of Hollywood required a name for the post office inside the store...
- LeonardtownLeonardtown, MarylandLeonardtown is a town in and the county seat of St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,896 at the 2000 census. Leonardtown is perhaps most famous for the national oyster-shucking championship that occurs annually at the St...
(county seat) - Lexington ParkLexington Park, MarylandLexington Park is a census-designated place in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States, and the principal community of the Lexington Park, Maryland Micropolitan Statistical Area...
- MechanicsvilleMechanicsville, MarylandFor the Census Designated area in Montgomery County formerly known as Mechanicsville see Olney, MarylandMechanicsville is an unincorporated community in St. Mary's County, Maryland. It is adjacent to the community of Charlotte Hall, which is known for its agriculture, Amish population, large...
- St. Mary's CitySt. Mary's City, MarylandSt. Mary's City, in St. Mary's County, Maryland, is a small unincorporated community near the southernmost end of the state on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. It is located on the eastern shore of the St. Mary's River, a tributary of the Potomac. St. Mary's City is the fourth oldest...
Sports
| Club | League | Venue | Established | Championships |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southern Maryland Blue Crabs Southern Maryland Blue Crabs The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs is an American professional baseball team based in Waldorf, Maryland. They are a member of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, an independent baseball league which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. From the 2008 season... |
ALPB Atlantic League of Professional Baseball The Atlantic League of Professional Baseball is a professional, independent baseball organization located primarily in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, especially the greater metropolitan areas of the Northeast megalopolis. It operates in cities not served by Major or Minor League... , Baseball |
Regency Furniture Stadium Regency Furniture Stadium Regency Furniture Stadium is a 4,200-seat baseball park in Waldorf, Maryland that hosted its first regular season baseball game on May 2, 2008, as the tenants of the facility, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs defeated the Lancaster Barnstormers, 3-2. For the 2010 baseball season, the collegiate... |
2008 | 0 |
Notable Southern Marylanders
- Rep. Steny HoyerSteny HoyerSteny Hamilton Hoyer is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1981. The district includes a large swath of rural and suburban territory southeast of Washington, D.C.. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
(D), Majority Leader of the United States House of RepresentativesParty leaders of the United States House of RepresentativesParty leaders of the United States House of Representatives are elected by their respective parties in a closed-door caucus by secret ballot and are also known as floor leaders. The U.S. House of Representatives does not officially use the term "Minority Leader", although the media frequently does...
, represents southern Maryland as the representative for Maryland's 5th congressional districtMaryland's 5th congressional districtMaryland's 5th congressional district comprises all of Charles, St. Mary's, and Calvert Counties, as well as portions of Prince George's and Anne Arundel Counties. The district is currently represented by Democrat Steny Hoyer, the House Minority Whip....
. He lives in MechanicsvilleMechanicsville, MarylandFor the Census Designated area in Montgomery County formerly known as Mechanicsville see Olney, MarylandMechanicsville is an unincorporated community in St. Mary's County, Maryland. It is adjacent to the community of Charlotte Hall, which is known for its agriculture, Amish population, large...
. - Two former first ladiesFirst Lady of the United StatesFirst Lady of the United States is the title of the hostess of the White House. Because this position is traditionally filled by the wife of the president of the United States, the title is most often applied to the wife of a sitting president. The current first lady is Michelle Obama.-Current:The...
hail from southern Maryland: Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams, wife of John Quincy AdamsJohn Quincy AdamsJohn Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...
, and Margaret Mackall Smith Taylor, wife of Zachary TaylorZachary TaylorZachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
. - Maryland Senate President Mike Miller currently lives there.
- Co-discover of the North PoleNorth PoleThe North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
, Matthew HensonMatthew HensonMatthew 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,...
and Captain Raphael SemmesRaphael SemmesFor other uses, see Semmes .Raphael Semmes was an officer in the United States Navy from 1826 - 1860 and the Confederate States Navy from 1860 - 1865. During the American Civil War he was captain of the famous commerce raider CSS Alabama, taking a record sixty-nine prizes...
of the CSS AlabamaCSS AlabamaCSS Alabama was a screw sloop-of-war built for the Confederate States Navy at Birkenhead, United Kingdom, in 1862 by John Laird Sons and Company. Alabama served as a commerce raider, attacking Union merchant and naval ships over the course of her two-year career, during which she never anchored in...
were born near Nanjemoy, Charles County. Prominent revolutionary warAmerican Revolutionary WarThe American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
statesmen John HansonJohn HansonJohn Hanson was a merchant and public official from Maryland during the era of the American Revolution. After serving in a variety of roles for the Patriot cause in Maryland, in 1779 Hanson was elected as a delegate to the Continental Congress...
, Thomas StoneThomas StoneThomas Stone was an American planter who signed the United States Declaration of Independence as a delegate for Maryland. He later worked on the committee that formed the Articles of Confederation in 1777...
, and General SmallwoodWilliam SmallwoodWilliam Smallwood was an American planter, soldier and politician from Charles County, Maryland. He served in the American Revolutionary War, rising to the rank of major general...
were from Charles County. Dr. Samuel MuddSamuel MuddSamuel Alexander Mudd I, M.D. was an American physician who was convicted and imprisoned for aiding and conspiring with John Wilkes Booth in the 1865 assassination of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln. He was pardoned by President Andrew Johnson and released from prison in 1869...
, convicted of conspiracy to murder in the Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
assassinationAssassinationTo carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
, was also a native of Charles County. - Best-selling Spy thriller novelist Tom ClancyTom ClancyThomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
lives in Calvert County in a home on Chesapeake BayChesapeake BayThe Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
. - Television journalists Ted KoppelTed KoppelEdward James "Ted" Koppel is an English-born American broadcast journalist, best known as the anchor for Nightline from the program's inception in 1980 until his retirement in late 2005. After leaving Nightline, Koppel worked as managing editor for the Discovery Channel before resigning in 2008...
, Judy WoodruffJudy WoodruffJudy Woodruff is an American television news anchor and journalist.Woodruff is a Board Member at the IWMF .-Broadcast journalism career:...
, Al HuntAl HuntAlbert R. Hunt Jr. is the executive Washington editor for Bloomberg News, a subsidiary of Bloomberg L.P. Hunt hosts the Sunday morning talk show Political Capital on Bloomberg Television, which airs on Friday night.-Personal life:...
, newspapermen Ben Bradlee and Sally QuinnSally QuinnSally Sterling Quinn is an American author and journalist, who writes about religion for a blog at The Washington Post.-Personal:...
, and weatherman Doug HillDoug HillDoug Hill is the Chief Meteorologist for ABC 7 News/WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C. He is the meteorologist for ABC 7 News at 5, 6, and 11. He has been awarded the "Seal of Approval" from the American Meteorological Society. Hill has also been honored with a Washington Emmy Award for broadcast...
all have houses in St. Mary's County. - Theoretical ecologistTheoretical ecologyTheoretical ecology is the scientific discipline devoted to the study of ecological systems using theoretical methods such as simple conceptual models, mathematical models, computational simulations, and advanced data analysis...
Dr. Robert UlanowiczRobert UlanowiczRobert Edward Ulanowicz is an American theoretical ecologist and philosopher who is best known for his search for a unified theory of ecology. He was born September 17, 1943 in Baltimore, Maryland....
lived in Calvert County prior to his retirement in 2008 with Chesapeake Biological LaboratoryChesapeake Biological LaboratoryThe Chesapeake Biological Laboratory is a marine science laboratory on the Chesapeake Bay in Solomons, Maryland, and it is the oldest state-supported marine laboratory on the East Coast of the U.S. It was founded in 1925 in a small waterman's shack by Dr. Reginald V. Truitt and is part of...
in SolomonsSolomons, MarylandSolomons is a community and census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,536 at the 2000 census...
, where he was a member of the faculty. - Roger B. TaneyRoger B. TaneyRoger Brooke Taney was the fifth Chief Justice of the United States, holding that office from 1836 until his death in 1864. He was the first Roman Catholic to hold that office or sit on the Supreme Court of the United States. He was also the eleventh United States Attorney General. He is most...
, the Chief Justice of the United StatesChief Justice of the United StatesThe Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...
who presided over the Dred Scott decisionDred Scott v. SandfordDred Scott v. Sandford, , also known as the Dred Scott Decision, was a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that people of African descent brought into the United States and held as slaves were not protected by the Constitution and could never be U.S...
, was born in Calvert County near Prince FrederickPrince Frederick, MarylandPrince Frederick is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States, not to be confused with the incorporated, and much larger, city of Frederick some to the northwest in Frederick County...
. - Former Comptroller of MarylandComptroller of MarylandThe Comptroller of Maryland, United States, currently Peter Franchot, is the state's chief financial officer and is also elected by the people for a four year term. The comptroller is not term-limited. The office was established by the Maryland Constitution of 1851 due to concern about the...
Louis L. GoldsteinLouis L. GoldsteinLouis Lazarus Goldstein served as Comptroller, or chief financial officer, of Maryland from 1959 to 1998. He was born to a storekeeper in the small town of Prince Frederick, Maryland, and also died there. As a legislator in the Maryland General Assembly, he was known for his 11th-hour strong...
lived in Calvert CountyComptroller of MarylandThe Comptroller of Maryland, United States, currently Peter Franchot, is the state's chief financial officer and is also elected by the people for a four year term. The comptroller is not term-limited. The office was established by the Maryland Constitution of 1851 due to concern about the...
. A portion of Route 2-4Maryland Route 4Maryland Route 4 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from MD 5 in Leonardtown north to Southern Avenue at the Washington, D.C. border, past which the highway continues as Pennsylvania Avenue...
in Calvert County was renamed in his honor after his death. - Arthur StorerArthur StorerArthur Storer was America's first colonial astronomer. He came to Calvert County, Maryland, from Lincolnshire, England. He was among the first observers to sight and record data about a magnificent comet that passed over Patuxent skies in 1682. Storer's work shows up in a number of Newton's...
, first astronomerAstronomerAn astronomer is a scientist who studies celestial bodies such as planets, stars and galaxies.Historically, astronomy was more concerned with the classification and description of phenomena in the sky, while astrophysics attempted to explain these phenomena and the differences between them using...
in the American colonies and the original namesake for Halley's Comet, lived the latter part of his life in Calvert County. A planetariumPlanetariumA planetarium is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation...
in Prince FrederickPrince Frederick, MarylandPrince Frederick is a census-designated place in Calvert County, Maryland, United States, not to be confused with the incorporated, and much larger, city of Frederick some to the northwest in Frederick County...
bears his name. - Thomas Johnson, the first elected governor of MarylandGovernor of MarylandThe Governor of Maryland heads the executive branch of the government of Maryland, and he is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The Governor is the highest-ranking official in the state, and he has a broad range of appointive powers in both the State and local governments,...
and Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United StatesAssociate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United StatesAssociate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States...
. The Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge connecting Calvert and St. Mary's counties was named in his honor. - Television and film screenwriter and producer Alfred GoughAlfred GoughAlfred Gough III is an American screenwriter and producer.-Early life and career:Born in Leonardtown, Maryland, Gough graduated from St. Mary's Ryken High School and The Catholic University of America...
hails from LeonardtownLeonardtown, MarylandLeonardtown is a town in and the county seat of St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,896 at the 2000 census. Leonardtown is perhaps most famous for the national oyster-shucking championship that occurs annually at the St...
in St. Mary's County. - Former Maryland State Senator and Patuxent RiverPatuxent RiverThe Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeast passing through Baltimore, and the Patuxent River between...
advocate Bernie FowlerBernie FowlerClyde Bernard Fowler , is a former Maryland State Senator and County Commissioner from Calvert County, Maryland...
lives in Calvert County. Every year, in Broomes IslandBroomes Island, MarylandBroomes Island, Maryland is a small waterfront community in Calvert County, Maryland, USA, on the Patuxent River. It is located approximately 10 miles south of Prince Frederick, Maryland....
Fowler will hold a "wade-in" with other public officials to help determine the clarity levels of the Patuxent. - Singer Christina MilianChristina MilianChristine Flores , better known by her stage name Christina Milian , is an American singer-songwriter, actress, dancer, and model....
once lived in WaldorfWaldorf, MarylandWaldorf, Maryland is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Charles County, Maryland, United States. It is south-southeast of Washington, D.C. The population of the census-designated area only was 67,752 at the 2010 census...
. - JoelJoel MaddenJoel Rueben Madden is an American singer, record producer, actor, DJ, and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, best known as the lead vocalist for the pop punk band Good Charlotte.-Early life:...
and Benji MaddenBenji MaddenBenji Madden is an American guitarist and backup vocalist for the band Good Charlotte, which he co-founded with his identical twin brother, Joel Madden.-Early life:...
from the band Good CharlotteGood CharlotteGood Charlotte is an American rock band from Waldorf, Maryland that formed in 1996. Since 1998, the band's constant members have been lead vocalist Joel Madden, lead guitarist and back-up vocalist Benji Madden, bass guitarist Paul Thomas and rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Billy Martin...
grew up in Waldorf. - Turkey TayacTurkey TayacTurkey Tayac, legally Philip Sheridan Proctor , Piscataway Indian leader and herbal doctor; he was notable in Native American activism for tribal and cultural revival in the twentieth century...
, Piscataway tribal leader and herbal medicine man - Robert StethemRobert StethemRobert Dean Stethem was a United States Navy Seabee diver who was killed by Hezbollah militants during the hijacking of the commercial airliner he was aboard: TWA Flight 847...
, murder victim during hijacking of TWA Flight 847TWA Flight 847TWA Flight 847 was an international Trans World Airlines flight which was hijacked by Lebanese Shia extremists, later identified as members of Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad, on Friday morning, June 14, 1985, after originally taking off from Cairo. The flight was en route from Athens to Rome and then...
was from Pinefield, the northern section of Waldorf - Senator and astronaut John GlennJohn GlennJohn Herschel Glenn, Jr. is a former United States Marine Corps pilot, astronaut, and United States senator who was the first American to orbit the Earth and the third American in space. Glenn was a Marine Corps fighter pilot before joining NASA's Mercury program as a member of NASA's original...
trained at Patuxent River Naval Air StationNaval Air Station Patuxent River"Pax River" redirects here. For the river, see Patuxent River.Naval Air Station Patuxent River , also known as NAS Pax River, is a United States Naval Air Station located in St. Mary's County, Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay near the mouth of the Patuxent River. It is home to the U.S...
many years ago, as did Alan ShepardAlan ShepardAlan Bartlett Shepard, Jr. was an American naval aviator, test pilot, flag officer, and NASA astronaut who in 1961 became the second person, and the first American, in space. This Mercury flight was designed to enter space, but not to achieve orbit...
and other future astronauts.
Colleges
Colleges in Southern Maryland include:- The College of Southern MarylandCollege of Southern MarylandThe College of Southern Maryland in La Plata, Maryland, is a public, regional community college, serving Southern Maryland Charles County, St. Mary's County, and Calvert County.-History:...
, a community college with campuses in Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's counties - St. Mary's College of MarylandSt. Mary's College of MarylandSt. Mary's College of Maryland, established in 1840, is a public, secular liberal arts college located in St. Mary's City, Maryland. It is a member of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges and designated as a Public Honors College . St. Mary's College is a small college, with about 2,000...