Cecil County, Maryland

Cecil County, Maryland
Seal
Location in the state of Maryland
Maryland's location in the U.S.
Founded	1674
Seat	Elkton
Largest city	Elkton
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	417.88 sq mi (1,082 km²) 348.13 sq mi (902 km²) 69.75 sq mi (181 km²), 16.69%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	101,108 290/sq mi (112/km²)
Website	www.ccgov.org

Cecil County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. It is part of the Delaware Valley. It was named for Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore (1605–1675), who was the first Proprietary Governor of the colony of Maryland from 1632 until his death in 1675. The county seat is Elkton. The newspaper of record is the Cecil Whig. As of 2010, the population was 101,108.

Law and government

Cecil County is governed by county commissioners, the traditional form of county government in Maryland.

History

Cecil County was created in 1674 by proclamation of the Governor. It was created from portions of Baltimore and Kent Counties. One of the earliest developers of the county was George Talbot appointed Surveyor-General of Maryland in 1683,^{[citation needed]} who came from Ballyconnell, County Cavan, Ireland.

The county has a number of properties on the National Register of Historic Places.

Geography

Cecil County is in the northeast corner of Maryland, bounded on the north and east by the Mason-Dixon Line with Pennsylvania and Delaware. The western border is defined by the lower reaches of the Susquehanna River and the northernmost coves, flats and tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay. On the south, the county is bounded by the Sassafras River and Kent County, Maryland. The county is part of the Delmarva Peninsula as well as Maryland's "Eastern Shore."

Topographically, Cecil County straddles the border between the rolling hills of the Piedmont Plateau north of Route 40 and the flatlands of the Atlantic Coastal Plain to the south. The highest and most rugged hills are found in the northwestern and north-central parts of the county, reaching 534 feet (163 m) just south of the Mason-Dixon Line near Nottingham, Pennsylvania and just east of U.S. Route 1. The lowest elevation is sea level along the Chesapeake Bay.

Cecil County is primarily rural, with denser development around the county seat of Elkton and along Route 40. The county is bisected from east to west by the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, which connects the Delaware River to the Chesapeake Bay by way of the Elk River. The canal passes through the town of Chesapeake City, where a high-level bridge facilitates the passage of large ships beneath Maryland State Route 213.

Cecil County is also bisected east-to-west by Interstate 95, known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Highway in Maryland. The highway provides a major artery for traffic between the Baltimore-Washington area to the southwest and the Philadelphia and New York/New Jersey regions to the northeast. For purposes of the 2010 census, the federal government has designated Cecil County as part of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metropolitan area.

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 417.88 square miles (1,082.3 km²), of which 348.13 square miles (901.7 km²) (or 83.31%) is land and 69.75 square miles (180.7 km²) (or 16.69%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Chester County, Pennsylvania (northeast)
• Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (north)
• New Castle County, Delaware (east)
• Harford County (west)
• Kent County (south)

Demographics

Historical populations
of Cecil County

Year Population 1790 13,625 1800 9,018 1810 13,066 1820 16,048 1830 15,432 1840 17,232 1850 18,939 1860 23,862 1870 25,874 1880 27,108 1890 25,851

Year Population 1900 24,662 1910 23,759 1920 23,612 1930 25,827 1940 26,407 1950 33,356 1960 48,408 1970 53,291 1980 60,430 1990 71,347 2000 85,951 2010 101,108

2010

Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:

• 89.2 White
• 6.2 Black
• 0.3% Native American
• 1.1% Asian
• 0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
• 2.2% Two or more races
• 1.0% Other races
• 3.4% Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

2000

As of the census of 2000, there were 85,951 people, 31,223 households, and 23,292 families residing in the county. The population density was 247 people per square mile (95/km²). There were 34,461 housing units at an average density of 99 per square mile (38/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 93.39% White, 3.91% Black or African American, 0.33% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.50% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. 1.52% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 17.9% were of German, 16.1% Irish, 13.8% English, 13.8% American and 6.5% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 31,223 households out of which 37.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.60% were married couples living together, 11.10% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.40% were non-families. 19.90% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71 and the average family size was 3.12.

In the county the population was spread out with 27.70% under the age of 18, 7.50% from 18 to 24, 31.20% from 25 to 44, 23.20% from 45 to 64, and 10.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 98.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $50,510, and the median income for a family was $56,469. Males had a median income of $40,350 versus $28,646 for females. The per capita income for the county was $21,384. About 5.40% of families and 7.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.20% of those under age 18 and 7.70% of those age 65 or over.

May 2008 the county commissioners adopted a 10% property tax increase. This is in addition to the property tax increase added by the increasing property assessments, which are increased each year and reassessed every 3 years.

Maryland state planning data suggest that the population of the county could double in the next thirty years, reaching 160,000 by 2030.

As of the 2010 Census the racial makeup of Cecil County was 87.38% Non-Hispanic white, 6.22% black, 0.29% Native American, 1.08% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.09% Non-Hispanics of some other race, 1.80% Non-Hispanics of two or more races and 3.37% Hispanics.

Public libraries

There are 7 branches of the Cecil County Public Library and the Library also does significant outreach throughout the county.

Public school system

There are 17 elementary schools, 6 middle schools,and 5 high schools, operated by Cecil County Public Schools.

Cities and towns

This county contains the following incorporated municipalities:

1. Cecilton (incorporated 1864)
2. Charlestown (incorporated 1742)
3. Chesapeake City (incorporated 1849) (Note that despite the name, Chesapeake City is a town and not a city .)
4. Elkton (incorporated 1787)
5. North East (incorporated 1849)
6. Perryville (incorporated 1882)
7. Port Deposit (incorporated 1824)
8. Rising Sun (incorporated 1860)

All but one are classified as towns under Maryland law. Elkton was officially pronounced a city on March 1, 2011.^{[citation needed]}

The United States Census Bureau recognizes no Census-Designated Places in Cecil County, which is unusual for Maryland counties, which usually have many unincorporated population centers.

There are a few areas that aren't listed as Census Designated Places:

1. Calvert
2. Carpenter Point
3. Childs
4. Colora
5. Conowingo
6. Earleville
7. Elk Mills
8. Elk Neck
9. Fair Hill
10. Georgetown
11. Perry Point
12. Red Point
13. Warwick
14. White Crystal Beach

Notable residents

• Robert Alexander, born in Cecil County, delegate to the Continental Congress
• John Andrews, (1746–1813), born in Cecil County, was one of the leaders of the separation of the Episcopal Church from the Anglican Church
• Robert Somers Brookings, founder of the Brookings Institute
• David Davis - Associate Supreme Court Justice.
• Jacob Tome - founder of the Tome School

See also

• Cecil Whig - the local newspaper.
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Cecil County, Maryland

References

• ^{^} Tangel, Andrew (2006-01-10). "Hundreds discuss growth in Cecil County". The News Journal. pp. B1. 
• http://www.mdp.state.md.us/MSDC/Pop_estimate/Estimate_05/county/table1a.pdf
• In MacKinlay Kantor's If the South had Won the Civil War, Cecil County secedes from Maryland to join the state of Delaware, following Maryland's secession from the Union after Lee's victory at Gettysburg.

External links

• Cecil County government