Southern Maryland

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Southern Maryland counties. According to the state of Maryland, the region includes all of Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary's counties and the southern portions of Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties.[1]

Southern Maryland is a geographical, cultural and historic region in Maryland composed of the state's southernmost counties on the Western Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. According to the state of Maryland, the region includes all of Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary's counties and the southern portions of Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties.[1]

Southern Maryland is considered by historians to be the birthplace of religious freedom in North America.[2]

History

Native Americans and first contact with the British

Southern Maryland was originally inhabited by the indigenous Piscataway people. Captain John Smith explored the area in 1608 and 1609.[3]

The early Maryland colony

The colony originally focused on tobacco farming and was very successful although disease was a problem and many settlers died until immunities built up in the population. Religious tensions and also periods of open conflict also continued to be a major challenge.

St. Mary's City is widely considered to be the birthplace of religious freedom in North America.[4] The colony there started under a mandate of religious tolerance in a time when England was anything but religiously tolerant. There was still much religious strife in St. Mary's City that led to the passage of one of the earliest laws requiring religious tolerance which was written and passed there by the Maryland colonial assembly.

The fall of St. Mary's City

After 61 years as Maryland's capital an uprising of Protestants put an end to religious tolerance, overthrowing the old Catholic leadership and putting an end to colonial St. Mary's City itself, moving the colonial capital to Annapolis.[5][6][7]

Plantation economy and slavery

St. Mary's City was abandoned as a capitol but was slowly consolidated from smaller farms into a large, single slave plantation by the late 1600s.,[8][9] Tobacco and later, also wheat plantations, expanded there[9] and in Southern Maryland as a whole during the slavery era.

Civil War

During the American Civil War, wartime sympathies were divided in Maryland[10] and Southern Maryland was sympathetic to the Confederates next to Maryland's Eastern Shore. From the war's beginning, however, large numbers of Union occupying troops and patrolling river gunboats prevented the state's secession, although frequent nighttime smuggling across the Potomac River with Virginia took place, including of Maryland men volunteering for Confederate service. John Wilkes Booth was helped by several people in his escape through the area and in crossing the river after killing President Abraham Lincoln. Thousands of captured Confederate troops were confined in harsh conditions at Point Lookout prison camp at the southern tip of the peninsula.

Transition to modern era

Southern Maryland was traditionally a rural, agricultural, oyster fishing and crabbing region; linked by passenger and freight steamboat routes. These steamboat routes operated on the Chesapeake Bay and major rivers until the 1930s before the building of highways and the Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge on U.S. Highway 301. (The latter highway was named after Robert Crain, an attorney who owned the state's largest farm, Mount Victoria, and who campaigned for the road's construction). Weekend excursion boats also carried Washingtonians to small amusement parks and amusement pavilions at numerous Potomac shore locations. From 1949 (1943 in some places) to 1968, the region was known for its poverty and its slot machine gambling.

Raley's campaign to modernize St. Mary's County

There was a lot of rural poverty at the time,[11] and the gambling came to be seen as a blight and was finally outlawed by Governor J. Millard Tawes and the state legislature.[12] A local political figure, St. Mary's County politician J. Frank Raley Jr. organized a slate of local candidates with the platform of challenging the old political machine and lifting the region out of its generations long poverty.[12]

Raley led the way in ending the region's isolation[11][13] by having a series of bridges built and roads expanded into highways.[11][13] Raley is largely credited for enabling the development of modern St. Mary's County.[11][13]

He was falsely accused of working to end gambling outright in the region,[12] which ended in his defeat and his official political career.[12] In fact he had supported a referendum on gambling which would have put the decision directly in the hands of voters.[12] He continued nevertheless lobbying on behalf of the Southern Maryland region and sitting on development boards and so continued to have a major influence in favor of economic development in the region for the rest of his life.[13]

Population and economics

During recent times, the region experienced suburban development as the Washington suburbs expanded southward. This expansion took place primarily in Prince George's County, and around Waldorf (a regional shopping hub) and St. Charles (a planned community in Charles County), Lexington Park (St. Mary's County) and Prince Frederick (Calvert County). However, as noted, land-use maps show that the area is still primarily low-density.[14]

Many southern Marylanders work at Andrews Air Force Base, the U.S. Census Bureau or at Patuxent River Naval Air Station and its related industries. Other smaller industries include a nuclear power plant[15] and a liquified natural gas terminal[16] (both in Lusby), a Naval ordnance test ground (at Indian Head),[17] electric power plants (at Aquasco and Morgantown)[18] and an oil terminal[19] (at Piney Point). The beautiful towns of Solomons Island and Chesapeake Beach 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.[20]

Military bases

Southern Maryland has seven military bases.

  • Patuxent River Naval Air Station, Lexington Park, St. Mary's County, home of the national test pilot school and place where the F-35 fighter aircraft was developed.
  • Joint Base Andrews (Andrews Air Force Base), Camp Springs, in southern Prince Georges County, home of Air Force One and Marine One, aircraft for the president of the United States
  • Indian Head Naval Surface Warfare Center, Indian Head, Charles County, national munitions research and development center
  • Webster Field, St. Inigoes, St. Mary's County, aircraft research and development, training field for test pilots
  • US Military Reserve Globecom Radio Receiving Station, classified base in Brandywine, Maryland, linked by encoded radio to the White House, Air Force One, the Department of Defense Command and worldwide nuclear submarines via satellite in case of nuclear war, for security reasons the base does not appear on Google Maps
  • Coast Guard Station Cove Point, Calvert County and Coast Guard Station St. Inigoes, St. Mary's County; public safety and rescue, law enforcement and fisheries enforcement for area waters

Northern areas of Southern Maryland also have many Pentagon, Crystal City, Virginia and US Naval Academy related commuters.

Geography

The region's northern boundary passes through Prince George's County and Anne Arundel County, east of Washington. Its eastern boundary is the Chesapeake Bay and its southern and western boundary is the Potomac River, Maryland's boundary with Virginia (and through it, the Northern Neck).

Food and cuisine

oysters are still widely available although they were once fished from the bay and it's tidal tributaries in greater numbers, and are served either fried, raw, or stuffed. "Rockfish", the Maryland word for striped bass, is considered the most prized fish dish in Southern Maryland.[21]

Perhaps the most notable food dish originating from Southern Maryland is stuffed ham, which includes cabbage, kale, onions, spices and seasonings that are chopped and mixed, then stuffed into deep slits slashed in a whole, corned ham.[22]

Towns and communities

Towns and places in Southern Maryland include:

Anne Arundel County:

Calvert County:

Charles County:

Prince George's County:

St. Mary's County:

Sports

Club League Venue Established Championships
Southern Maryland Blue Crabs ALPB, Baseball Regency Furniture Stadium 2008 0

Many residents also identify with national sports teams in Washington DC or Baltimore.

Colleges

Colleges in Southern Maryland include:

Notable Southern Marylanders

References

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Southern Maryland.
  1. ^ a b "Legislative Election Districts: Southern Maryland". Maryland Manual Online. Maryland State Archives, State of Maryland. 14 March 2022. Retrieved 22 June 2022. Southern Maryland: Calvert, Charles & St. Mary's Counties & parts of Anne Arundel & Prince George's Counties
  2. ^ Greenwell, Megan (21 August 2008). "Religious Freedom Byway Would Recognize Maryland's Historic Role". Washington Post, Metro Section. Nash Holdings. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
  3. ^ Wright, Christine (2002). "Capt. John Smith's 1608 Chesapeake Voyage". Calvert Marine Museum. Retrieved 2007-12-08.
  4. ^ "Reconstructing the Brick Chapel of 1667" Page 1, See section entitled "The Birthplace of Religious Freedom" "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-03-13. Retrieved 2015-12-10.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ^ "ST. MARY'S COUNTY, MARYLAND: HISTORICAL CHRONOLOGY", Maryland Manual Online, Maryland State Archives, Government of the State of Maryland, http://msa.maryland.gov/msa/mdmanual/36loc/sm/chron/html/smchron.html
  6. ^ Maclear, J.F. (1995). Church and State in the Modern Age: A Documentary History. New York: Oxford University Press US. ISBN 0-19-508681-3
  7. ^ "The Enduring Vision: A History of the American People, Volume I: To 1877", By Paul Boyer, Clifford Clark, Karen Halttunen, Sandra Hawley, Joseph Kett, "Chapter: 4 The Bonds of Empire: 1660-1740" page 70, Cengage Learning, publisher, Jan 1, 2012,
  8. ^ Frank D. Roylance, Evening Sun, "They're unearthing more than a chapel at St. Mary's site BURIED PAST", November 13, 1990 http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1990-11-13/news/1990317111_1_chapel-mary-city-brick
  9. ^ a b Kenneth K. Lam, "Unearthing early American life in St. Mary’s City: St. Mary’s City is an archaeological jewel on Maryland’s Western Shore", The Baltimore Sun, Aug 30, 2013, http://darkroom.baltimoresun.com/2013/08/unearthing-early-american-life-in-st-marys-city/#1
  10. ^ "Civil War in Maryland: Southern Sympathizers", Maryland State Archives, June 25, 2004, http://teaching.msa.maryland.gov/000001/000000/000114/html/t114.html
  11. ^ a b c d "Raley remembered as architect of modern St. Mary’s: Former state senator dies at 85; slots ended, bridge created through his work", Jason Babcock, Staff writer http://www.somdnews.com/article/20120822/NEWS/708229616/1044/news&source=RSS&template=gazette
  12. ^ a b c d e "For 21 years, slot machines ruled in St. Mary’s", Jason Babcock, Southern Maryland Newspapers, Wednesday, July 26, 2006, http://ww2.somdnews.com/stories/072606/entefea172603_32091.shtml Archived 2014-04-07 at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ a b c d "J. Frank Raley, 85, St. Mary’s City", Southern Maryland News, Wednesday, August 22, 2012 http://www.somdnews.com/article/20120822/misc/708229670/-1/j-frank-raley-85-st-mary-s-city&template=southernmaryland Archived 2014-04-04 at archive.today
  14. ^ "Patuxent River – 2000 Land Use / Land Cover". Maryland Department of Planning. 2000. Retrieved 2007-12-08.
  15. ^ Power generation: Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant. (2006). Constellation Energy. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
  16. ^ Dominion Cove Point LNG. (2005). Calvert Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
  17. ^ Indian Head division, Naval Surface Warfare Center Archived 2005-01-08 at the Wayback Machine. (n.d.). United States Department of Navy. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
  18. ^ Chalk Point Generating Plant Archived 2006-03-17 at archive.today. (n.d.). Mirant Corporation. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
  19. ^ Mirant Piney Point Archived 2006-10-15 at archive.today. (n.d.). Mirant Corporation. Retrieved December 22, 2006.
  20. ^ "Summer 2007 — Draft Existing Conditions Summary" (PDF). Maryland Department of Transportation. 2007. Retrieved 2007-12-06.
  21. ^ "Chesapeake Bay shapes state food customs". 21 November 2012.
  22. ^ Alumnae (1959). Treasured Recipes of Old St. Mary's County. St. Mary's Academy.
  23. ^ "Domestic Names".
  24. ^ "Domestic Names".
  25. ^ "Christina Milian Biography". ChristinaMilian.org - The Official Site of Christina Milian. Milian Corporation. Archived from the original on 2007-11-20. Retrieved 2007-12-14.
  26. ^ Hoard, Christian (April 9, 2003). "Young, Hopeless, Rich, and Famous". Rolling Stone Australia. Archived from the original on October 1, 2007.

Coordinates: 38°28′N 76°48′W / 38.467°N 76.800°W / 38.467; -76.800

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