Montgomery County, Maryland

Template:US County infobox Montgomery County is a suburban county located in the state of Maryland north and west of Washington, D.C..

Its county seat is Rockville, and its most populous community is Silver Spring.

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

Contents

1 History 2 Geography 3 Demographics 4 Law and government 4.1 County Executives 4.2 Legislative body 5 Cities and towns 6 External link

History

The area now known as Montgomery County was originally a part of Charles County when counties were first established in Maryland. 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.)

In 1997, a portion of Prince George's County was transferred to Montgomery County so that the entire city of Takoma Park would be in a single county.

In 2002, Montgomery County caught national headlines durring the Beltway sniper attacks in October. The sniper attacks began October 2, 2002, with a series of five fatal shootings in 15 hours in Montgomery County. Montgomery County Police Chief Charles Moose achieved notoriety not just for his role in the case, but additionally for resigning because he was barred by law from writing a book about the incidents while still performing his job.

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 is water. The total area is 2.29% water.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there are 873,341 people, 324,565 households, and 224,274 families residing in the county. The population density is 680/km² (1,762/mi²). There are 334,632 housing units at an average density of 261/km² (675/mi²). The racial makeup of the county is 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. 11.52% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

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

In the county the population is 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 are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 37 years. For every 100 females there are 92.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 88.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county is $71,551, and the median income for a family is $84,035. Males have a median income of $54,005 versus $40,714 for females. The per capita income for the county is $35,684. 5.40% of the population and 3.70% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 5.90% of those under the age of 18 and 5.90% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Law and government

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	1994-2006

Legislative body

The Montgomery County Council was originally composed of seven members, all elected at large, but with five required to reside in specific districts. In 19__ the charter was revised to provide that the five district councilmembers would be elected by the voters in their districts, but the size of the council was increased to nine members, with four at large.

Cities and towns

This county contains the following incorporated municipalities:

• 3 Cities:
  1. Gaithersburg (incorporated 1878)
  2. Rockville (incorporated 1860)
  3. Takoma Park (incorporated 1890)
• 12 Towns:
  1. Barnesville (incorporated 1888)
  2. Brookeville (incorporated 1808)
  3. Chevy Chase (Town of) (incorporated 1918)
  4. Chevy Chase View (incorporated 1993)
  5. Chevy Chase Village (incorporated 1910) (note that, despite the name, Chevy Chase Village is a town and not a village.)
  6. Garrett Park (incorporated 1898)
  7. Glen Echo (incorporated 1904)
  8. Kensington (incorporated 1894)
  9. Laytonsville (incorporated 1892)
  10. Poolesville (incorporated 1867)
  11. Somerset (incorporated 1906)
  12. Washington Grove (incorporated 1937)
• 4 Villages:
  1. Chevy Chase, Village of, Section 3 (incorporated 1982)
  2. Chevy Chase, Village of, Section 5 (incorporated 1982)
  3. Martin's Additions (incorporated 1985)
  4. North Chevy Chase (incorporated 1996)

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.[1] (http://mlis.state.md.us/other/Legislative_Handbooks/Volume%20VI/chapter4.htm) 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

External link

Montgomery County goverment (http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/)

	State of Maryland </b> Cities | Government | History | U.S. Senators and Representatives
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