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Prince George's County, Maryland
Map
Location in the state of Maryland
Maryland's location in the USA
Statistics
Founded	1696
Seat	Upper Marlboro
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	498 sq mi (1,290 km²) 485 sq mi (1,256 km²) 13 sq mi (34 km²), 2.61%
Population  - (2005)  - Density	846,123 1,652/sq mi (638/km²)
Website: www.co.pg.md.us

Prince George's County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland located immediately north, east, and south of Washington, D.C. It has a population approaching 900,000 and is the wealthiest county in the nation with an African-American majority.^[1][2]

The county was named for Prince George of Denmark, the brother of King Christian V of Denmark and Norway, and husband of Queen Anne of Great Britain. Its county seat is Upper Marlboro.

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

Contents 1 History 2 Geography 2.1 Adjacent jurisdictions 3 Government 3.1 County Executive 3.2 Other officials 3.3 State and national representation 4 Demographics 5 Religion 6 Crime and law enforcement 7 Emergency medical and fire services 8 Education 8.1 Colleges and universities 8.2 Public schools 9 Transportation 10 Significant Enterprises 10.1 Media 11 Cities and towns 12 Unincorporated places 13 Sister cities 14 Notable residents 15 References 16 External links

Prince George's County was created by the Council of Maryland in 1696 ^[3] from portions of Charles and Calvert Counties and a portion was detached in 1748 to form Frederick County. Since Frederick County was subsequently divided to form the present Allegany, Garrett, Montgomery, and Washington counties, all of these counties in addition were derived from what had up to 1748 been Prince George's County.

In 1791, portions of Prince George's County were ceded to form the new District of Columbia, along with portions of Montgomery County, Maryland, as well as parts of Virginia that were later returned to Virginia.

During the War of 1812 the Sheriff's Office was involved in an incident which resulted in the writing of our national anthem.^{[citation needed]} When the British army marched on Washington they passed through Upper Marlboro. The local residents cooperated with the invading army and the British Commander saw to it that no major damage was done to local property.^{[citation needed]} After the Battle of Bladensburg and the burning of Washington, the British army marched back through Upper Marlboro. This time some of the British soldiers looted local farms and were arrested by a Sheriff's Posse.^{[citation needed]} The stragglers were placed in the county jail.^{[citation needed]} When the British commander learned of the arrests of his soldiers, he ordered the arrest of the ringleaders of the posse in turn.^{[citation needed]} One of these was Dr. William Beam who was arrested and held for ransom on a British warship.^{[citation needed]} His brother-in-law, Francis Scott Key, went to the British fleet anchored off Baltimore Harbor and witnessed the attack on Fort McHenry. This inspired him to write the Star-Spangled Banner.^[4]

On July 1, 1997, the Prince George's County section of the city of Takoma Park, Maryland, which straddled the boundary between Prince George's and Montgomery counties, was transferred to Montgomery County. This was done after city residents voted to be under the sole jurisdiction of Montgomery County, and subsequent approval by both counties and the Maryland General Assembly. This was the first change in Prince George's County's boundaries since 1791, and the first alteration of the boundaries of any county in Maryland since the early 1900s.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 498 sq mi (1,291 km²). 485 sq mi (1,257 km²) of it is land and 13 sq mi (34 km²) of it (2.61%) is water.

The Patuxent River forms the county's eastern border with Howard, Anne Arundel, and Calvert Counties.

• Anne Arundel County (east)
• Calvert County (southeast)
• Charles County (south)
• Howard County (north)
• Montgomery County (northwest)
• Fairfax County, Virginia (southwest)
• Alexandria, VA (southwest)
• Washington, DC (west)

Presidential elections results

Year	Republican	Democrat
2004	17.4% 55,532	81.8% 260,532
2000	18.4% 49,987	79.5% 216,119
1996	21.9% 52,697	73.5% 176,612
1992	24.5% 62,955	65.7% 168,691
1988	38.8% 86,545	60.0% 133,816
1984	41.0% 136,063	58.6% 95,121
1980	40.7% 78,977	50.9% 98,757
1976	42.0% 81,027	58.0% 111,743
1972	58.5% 116,166	40.3% 79,914
1968	41.2% 73,269	40.3% 71,524
1964	36.2% 46,413	63.8% 81,806
1960	42.0% 44,817	58.0% 62,013

Since 1792, the county seat has been Upper Marlboro. Prior to 1792, the county seat was located at Mount Calvert, a 76 acre (308,000 m²) estate along the Patuxent River on the edge of what is now in the unincorporated community of Croom.

Prince George's is a heavily Democratic jurisdiction, increasingly so as it has become majority African-American. The county regularly provides wide margins to Democrats, even in years when Democrats struggle nationally.

Prince George's County was granted a charter form of government in 1970.

Name	Party	Term
William W. Gullett	Democrat	1970-1974
Win Kelly	Democrat	1974-1978
Lawrence Hogan	Republican	1978-1982
Parris N. Glendening	Democrat	1982-1994
Wayne K. Curry	Democrat	1994-2002
Jack B. Johnson	Democrat	2002-

• State's Attorney: Glenn F. Ivey
• County Sheriff: Michael A. Jackson
• Chief of the County Police: Melvin High
• Superintendent of schools: John Deasy

The county is represented in the United States House of Representatives by Steny Hoyer (5th District) who was elected House Majority Leader in 2007, Albert Wynn (4th District), and Chris Van Hollen (8th District).

At the state level, the county is represented in the Maryland Senate and the Maryland House of Delegates by Districts 21, 22, 23 (A and B), 24, 25, 26, 27A, and 47 (23 delegates and 8 senators total).

As of the estimated census² of 2005, there were 846,123 people, 286,610 households, and 198,047 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,651/sq mi (638/km²). There were 308,929 housing units at an average density of 1,651.1/sq mi (241/km²).

The racial makeup of the county was:

• 62.70% African American
• 27.04% White
• 7.12% Hispanic or Latino
• 3.87% Asian
• 3.38% Other races
• 2.61% Two or More of any race
• 0.35% Native American
• 0.06% Pacific Islander

There were 286,610 households out of which 35.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.00% were married couples living together, 19.60% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.90% were non-families. 24.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 persons and the average family size was 3.25 persons.

In the county the population was spread out with 26.80% under the age of 18, 10.40% from 18 to 24, 33.00% from 25 to 44, 22.10% from 45 to 64, and 7.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females there were 91.50 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $55,256, and the median income for a family was $62,467. Males had a median income of $38,904 versus $35,718 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,360. About 5.30% of families and 7.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 9.20% of those under age 18 and 6.90% of those age 65 or over. Prince George's County is the most affluent county with an African-American majority in the United States.

In the Southern Spaces article "Negotiating Black Identities" sociologist Karyn Lacy compares Prince George's County with Fairfax County, VA to better understand "how contemporary middle-class Blacks are managing their lives in suburban spaces."

The county is home to over 800 churches, as well as a number of mosques, synagogues, and Hindu temples. Property belonging to religious entities makes up 3,450 acres (14 km²) of land in the county. ^[5]

Prince George's County is serviced by multiple law enforcement agencies. The Prince George's County Police Department is the primary police service for county residents. In addition, the Prince George's County Sheriff's Office acts as the enforcement arm of the county court, and also shares some responsibility with the county police. County parks are serviced by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission police force.

Besides the county-level services, many local municipalities maintain police departments that share jurisdiction with the county police services. Furthermore, the Maryland State Police enforces the law on state highways which pass through the county.

As of 2006, the county reportedly contains the highest crime rate for the Washington Metro area, comparable to Baltimore.^[6][7]

Prince George's County hospitals include "Bowie Health Center", "Doctors Community Hospital" in Lanham, "Gladys Spellman Specialty Hospital & Nursing Center" in Cheverly, "Hospice of the Chesapeake" in Landover, "Laurel Regional Hospital", "Prince George's Hospital Medical Center" in Cheverly, "Southern Maryland Hospital Center" in Clinton, and "Washington Adventist Hospital" in Takoma Park.^[8] "Fort Washington Medical Center" also provides a small medical facility for its community.^[9]

The Prince George's County Volunteer Firemen's Association was formed in 1922 with several of the first companies organized in the county. The first members of the association were Hyattsville, Cottage City, Mount Rainier, and Brentwood.

In March 1966, the Prince George's County Government employed the firefighters who had been hired by individual volunteer stations and an organized career department was begun. The career firefighters and paramedics are represented by IAFF 1619.

Prince George's County became the first jurisdiction in Maryland to implement the 9-1-1 Emergency Reporting System in 1973. Advanced life support services began for citizens of the county in 1977. Firefighters were certified as Cardiac Rescue Technicians and deployed in what was called at the time Mobile Intensive Care Units to fire stations in Brentwood, Silver Hill, and Laurel.

As of 2007 the Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Department operates a combination system staffed by over 800 career firefighters and paramedics, and nearly 1,000 active volunteers.

• Bowie State University, located in unincorporated area north of Bowie
• Capitol College, located in unincorporated area south of Laurel
• Prince George's Community College, located in unincorporated area (Largo)
• Strayer University, PG Campus, in unincorporated area (Suitland)
• TESST College of Technology, located in unincorporated area (Beltsville)
• University of Maryland, College Park, in College Park
• University of Maryland University College, in unincorporated area (Adelphi)
• Washington Bible College and Capital Bible Seminary, in unincorporated area (Lanham)

The county's schools are managed by the Prince George's County Public Schools system.

The County contains a large portion of the Capital Beltway. A longstanding, fiercely contested plan exists to construct an east-west freeway, the Intercounty Connector ("ICC"). The ICC would extend Interstate 370 in Montgomery County to connect I-270 with Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 in Laurel.

Four terminus stations of the Washington Metro subway system are located in Prince George's County: Greenbelt, New Carrollton, Largo, and Branch Avenue. There has been much debate on the construction of the Purple Line, which would link highly-developed areas of both Montgomery and Prince George's Counties. Also worth noting is the potential expansion of the Green Line northward to Laurel and beyond.

The MARC Train (Maryland Area Rail Commuter) train service has two lines that traverse Prince George's County. The Camden Line runs between Baltimore Camden Station and Washington Union Station and has six stops in the county in Riverdale Park, College Park, Greenbelt, Muirkirk, Laurel and Laurel Racetrack. The Penn Line runs on the AMTRAK route between Baltimore Penn Station and Washington Union Station. It has three stops in the county: Bowie, Seabrook, and New Carrollton.

The College Park Airport (est. 1909) is the world's oldest continuously operated airport, and has adjacent historical museum and an early aviation-themed restaurant.

Prince George's County is home to the United States Department of Agriculture's Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, the United States Census Bureau, Andrews Air Force Base, the National Archives and Records Administration's College Park facility, the University of Maryland's flagship College Park campus, Six Flags America and Six Flags Hurricane Harbor, FedEx Field (home of the Washington Redskins), and the soon-to-be-completed National Harbor, which its developers, Peterson Companies and Gaylord Entertainment Company, bills the largest single mixed-use project and combined convention center–hotel complex on the East Coast.

• WPGC (AM & FM, Morningside, MD), takes its P-G-C call letters from the name Prince George's County.

This county contains the following incorporated municipalities:

10 Cities

17 Towns

Bowie (incorporated 1882) College Park (incorporated 1945) District Heights (incorporated 1936) Glenarden (incorporated 1939) Greenbelt (incorporated 1937) Hyattsville (incorporated 1886) Laurel (incorporated 1870) Mount Rainier (incorporated 1910) New Carrollton (incorporated 1953) Seat Pleasant (incorporated 1931)

Berwyn Heights (incorporated 1896) Bladensburg (incorporated 1854) Brentwood (incorporated 1922) Capitol Heights (incorporated 1910) Cheverly (incorporated 1931) Colmar Manor (incorporated 1927) Cottage City (incorporated 1924) Eagle Harbor (incorporated 1929) Edmonston (incorporated 1924) Fairmount Heights (incorporated 1935) Forest Heights (incorporated 1945) Landover Hills (incorporated 1945) Morningside (incorporated 1949) North Brentwood (incorporated 1924) Riverdale Park (incorporated 1920) University Park (incorporated 1936) Upper Marlboro (incorporated 1870)

The city of Takoma Park was formerly partly in Prince George's County, but since 1997 has been entirely in Montgomery County. The part of Takoma Park that changed counties is in a single residential neighborhood, Carole Highlands; part of this neighborhood is still in Prince George's County.

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:

Accokeek Adelphi Andrews Air Force Base Beltsville Brandywine Calverton Camp Springs Carmody Hills-Pepper Mill Village Chillum Clinton

Coral Hills East Riverdale Forestville Fort Washington Friendly Glenn Dale Goddard Greater Landover Greater Upper Marlboro Hillandale

Hillcrest Heights Kettering Lake Arbor Langley Park Lanham-Seabrook Largo Marlow Heights Marlton Mitchellville Oxon Hill-Glassmanor

Rosaryville South Laurel Springdale Suitland-Silver Hill Temple Hills Walker Mill West Laurel Woodlawn Woodmore

Other unincorporated places not listed as Census-Designated Places but known in the area include:

Aquasco Ardmore Avondale Berwyn Carole Highlands Cedar Heights

Cheltenham Collington Green Meadow Lewisdale Montpelier North College Park

North Englewood Rogers Heights South Bowie Tuxedo West Bowie West Hyattsville

And two localities: Muirkirk (near Montpelier) and Chapel Oaks (near Fairmount Heights)

Prince George's County has three sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International, Inc. (SCI):

• Royal Bafokeng Nation, South Africa
• Rishon LeZion, Israel
• Ziguinchor, Senegal

• Chris Adler, American film actor, grew up in Greenbelt and attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt.^{[citation needed]}

• Dr. John Bayne, 19th-century founder of the University of Maryland, superintendent of county schools, Union Army physician, and one of the first Americans to grow and eat a tomato, proving they were not poisonous as had been thought, lived on Oxon Hill Road in Oxon Hill.

• Riddick Bowe, former world heavyweight boxing champion, and family lived in Sero Estates, Fort Washington.

• Sergey Brin, founder of Google, grew up in Adelphi and attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt.

• John Carroll, S.J. (1735-1815), first Roman Catholic Bishop and Archbishop in the United States, and founder of Georgetown University, was born in Upper Marlboro.

• Frank Cho, award-winning cartoonist, grew up in Beltsville and attended community college and university in the county.

• Thomas J. Claggett (1742 - 1816), first Episcopal Bishop consecrated in the United States and third Chaplain of the United States Senate, was from Upper Marlboro.

• Leonard Covington (1768-1813), born in Aquasco, United States Congressman from Maryland^[10]

• Roger Easton, Sr., Naval scientist, the chief inventor of GPS (Global Positioning System through satellite tracking) and winner of the 2004 National Medal of Technology, lived on Oxon Hill Road in Oxon Hill.

• Steven F. Gaughan,Prince George's County Police Officer, in 2005 was killed in the line of duty, was originally from Hyde Park, MA where a street corner is named in his memory

• Mya Harrison, pop musician, known simply as Mya.

• Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets later used on Sesame Street, grew up in College Park.

• Steny Hoyer, current Majority Leader of the United States House of Representatives, lived as a teenager in Suitland and Mitchellville, attended Suitland High School and Univ. Maryland - College Park, and later lived in Friendly before moving to St. Mary's County.

• Cathy Hughes, founder and manager of Radio One, the nation's largest African American broadcasting company.

• Martin Lawrence, actor and comedian, lived in Landover and attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt.

• Sugar Ray Leonard, boxing champion, grew up in Palmer Park.

• G. Gordon Liddy, Presidential aide convicted in the Watergate scandal, later an author and radio personality, lives in Fort Foote, Fort Washington.

• Jan Scruggs, who conceived the National Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and Kathie Lee Gifford, network television personality, both grew up in Bowie.

• Sumner Welles, U.S. Undersecretary of State to Franklin Roosevelt, built and lived in Oxon Hill Manor, which is now a public facility.
• Lloyd Banks, rapper, lived in New Carrollton^{[citation needed]}

• Prince George's County Government, official site
• Prince George's County Historical Society
• The Dilemma of the Black Middle Class, includes analysis of the county.
• The Barbershop, live Internet podcast for Prince George’s County social issues
• Prince Georgians Care site, for and about county residents
• P.G. County by Connie Briscoe, a novel set in Prince George's County
• Crimes in Maryland
• Prince George's County: Looking at the Past, Planning for the Future, a look at the history of development in Prince George's County
• Prince George’s County crime maps

Coordinates: 38°50′N 76°51′W / 38.83, -76.85

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Prince George's County, Maryland
County seat: Upper Marlboro
Cities	Bowie | College Park | District Heights | Glenarden | Greenbelt | Hyattsville | Laurel | Mount Rainier | New Carrollton | Seat Pleasant
Towns	Berwyn Heights | Bladensburg | Brentwood | Capitol Heights | Cheverly | Colmar Manor | Cottage City | Eagle Harbor | Edmonston | Fairmount Heights | Forest Heights | Landover Hills | Morningside | North Brentwood | Riverdale Park | University Park | Upper Marlboro
CDPs	Accokeek | Adelphi | Andrews Air Force Base | Beltsville | Brandywine | Calverton | Camp Springs | Carmody Hills-Pepper Mill Village | Chillum | Clinton | Coral Hills | East Riverdale | Forestville | Fort Washington | Friendly | Glenn Dale | Goddard | Greater Landover | Greater Upper Marlboro | Hillandale | Hillcrest Heights | Kettering | Lake Arbor | Langley Park | Lanham-Seabrook | Largo | Marlow Heights | Marlton | Mitchellville | Oxon Hill-Glassmanor | Rosaryville | South Laurel | Springdale | Suitland-Silver Hill | Temple Hills | Walker Mill | West Laurel | Woodlawn | Woodmore
Communities	Aquasco | Ardmore | Avondale | Berwyn | Carmody Hills | Carole Highlands | Cedar Heights | Cheltenham | Collington | Glassmanor | Green Meadow | Kentland | Lanham | Landover | Montpelier | North College Park | North Englewood | Oxon Hill | Palmer Park | Pepper Mill Village | Rogers Heights | Seabrook | South Bowie | Tuxedo | West Bowie | West Hyattsville
Localities	Chapel Oaks | Muirkirk

	v • d • e State of Maryland Annapolis (capital)
Topics	Cities | Government | History | Congressional Delegations
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Cities	Annapolis | Baltimore | Bethesda | Bowie | College Park | Columbia | Cumberland | Ellicott City | Frederick | Gaithersburg | Germantown | Greenbelt | Hagerstown | Laurel | Rockville | Salisbury | Silver Spring | Takoma Park | Towson | Waldorf | Westminster
Counties	Allegany | Anne Arundel | Baltimore City | Baltimore County | Calvert | Caroline | Carroll | Cecil | Charles | Dorchester | Frederick | Garrett | Harford | Howard | Kent | Montgomery | Prince George's | Queen Anne's | St. Mary's | Somerset | Talbot | Washington | Wicomico | Worcester