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Maryland (US: /ˈmɛrɪlənd/ ^ⓘ MERR-il-ənd) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to its east, and the national capital of Washington, D.C. to the southwest. With a total area of 12,407 square miles (32,130 km²), Maryland is the ninth-smallest state by land area, and its population of 6,177,224 ranks it the 18th-most populous state and the fifth-most densely populated. Maryland's capital is Annapolis, and the most populous city is Baltimore.

Maryland's coastline was first explored by Europeans in the 16th century. Prior to that, it was inhabited by several Native American tribes, mostly the Algonquian peoples. As one of the original Thirteen Colonies, Maryland was founded by George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, a Catholic convert who sought to provide a religious haven for Catholics persecuted in England. In 1632, Charles I of England granted Lord Baltimore a colonial charter, naming the colony after his wife, Henrietta Maria. In 1649, the Maryland General Assembly passed an Act Concerning Religion, which enshrined the principle of toleration. Religious strife was common in Maryland's early years, and Catholics remained a minority, albeit in greater numbers than in any other English colony. Maryland's early settlements and population centers clustered around waterways that empty into the Chesapeake Bay. Its economy was heavily plantation-based and centered mostly on the cultivation of tobacco. Demand for cheap labor from Maryland colonists led to the importation of numerous indentured servants and enslaved Africans. In 1760, Maryland's current boundaries took form following the settlement of a long-running border dispute with Pennsylvania. Many of its citizens played key political and military roles in the American Revolutionary War. Although it was a slave state, Maryland remained in the Union during the American Civil War, and its proximity to Washington D.C. and Virginia made it a significant strategic location. After the Civil War ended, Maryland took part in the Industrial Revolution, driven by its seaports, railroad networks, and mass immigration from Europe.

Since the 1940s, the state's population has grown rapidly, to approximately six million residents, and it is among the most densely populated U.S. states. As of 2015^[update], Maryland had the highest median household income of any state, owing in large part to its proximity to Washington, D.C., and a highly diversified economy spanning manufacturing, retail services, public administration, real estate, higher education, information technology, defense contracting, health care, and biotechnology. Maryland is one of the most multicultural states in the country; it is one of the six states where non-Whites compose a majority of the population, with the fifth-highest percentage of African Americans, and high numbers of residents born in Africa, Asia, Central America, and the Caribbean. The state's central role in U.S. history is reflected by its hosting of some of the highest numbers of historic landmarks per capita. (Full article...)

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There are 23 counties and one independent city in the U.S. state of Maryland. Many of the counties in Maryland were named for relatives of the Barons Baltimore, who were the proprietors of the Maryland colony from its founding in 1634 through 1771. The Barons Baltimore were Catholic, and George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, originally intended that the colony be a haven for English Catholics, though for most of its history Maryland has had a majority of Protestants.

Though formally an independent city rather than a county, the City of Baltimore is considered the equal of a county for most purposes and is functionally a county-equivalent in most respects. (Full article...)

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General images

Image 1Oriole Park at Camden Yards, home of the Baltimore Orioles (from Maryland)
Image 2A feral Chincoteague Pony on Assateague Island on Maryland's Atlantic coastal islands (from Maryland)
Image 3Spiro Agnew, the 39th Vice President of the United States during the Nixon administration, the highest-ranking political leader from Maryland since the nation's founding (from Maryland)
Image 4Ellicott City Station, on the original Baltimore and Ohio Railroad line, the oldest remaining passenger station in the nation. The rail line is still used by CSX Transportation for freight trains, and the station is now a museum. (from Maryland)
Image 5Memorial Chapel at the University of Maryland, Maryland's flagship university (from Maryland)
Image 6The Maryland State House in Annapolis dates to 1772, and houses the Maryland General Assembly and offices of the governor. (from Maryland)
Image 7The Battle of Antietam in 1862, one of the bloodiest battles of the American Civil War, with nearly 23,000 casualties (from Maryland)
Image 8Köppen climate types of Maryland, using 1991–2020 climate normals (from Maryland)
Image 9Maryland population distribution map; Maryland's population is concentrated mostly in the Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area. (from Maryland)
Image 10A map showing Maryland's median income by county. Data is sourced from the 2014 ACS five-year estimate report, published by the U.S. Census Bureau (from Maryland)
Image 11Tidal wetlands of the Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the nation and the largest water feature in Maryland (from Maryland)
Image 12Agriculture is an important part of Maryland's economy. (from Maryland)
Image 13The historical coat of arms of Maryland in 1876 (from Maryland)
Image 14A 1732 map of Maryland (from Maryland)
Image 15Physical regions of Maryland (from Maryland)
Image 16M&T Bank Stadium, home of the Baltimore Ravens (from Maryland)
Image 17Baltimore Basilica, the first Catholic cathedral built in the U.S. (from Maryland)
Image 18Ocean City, a beach resort along the Atlantic Ocean and a popular tourist destination in Maryland (from Maryland)
Image 19Sunset over a marsh at Cardinal Cove on the Patuxent River (from Maryland)
Image 20Black-eyed susans, the state flower, grow throughout much of the state. (from Maryland)
Image 21Ethnic origins in Maryland (from Maryland)
Image 22The ruins left by the Great Baltimore Fire of 1904 (from Maryland)
Image 23Maryland's counties (from Maryland)
Image 24The bombardment of Fort McHenry in the Battle of Baltimore, which inspired "The Star-Spangled Banner" (from Maryland)
Image 25Patapsco River includes the Thomas Viaduct and is part of the Patapsco Valley State Park; the river forms Baltimore's Inner Harbor as it empties into the Chesapeake Bay. (from Maryland)
Image 26Winter on Lancaster Street in Baltimore's Fells Point (from Maryland)
Image 27The Chesapeake Bay Bridge, which connects Maryland's Eastern and Western Shores (from Maryland)
Image 28American Film Institute Silver Theater (from Arts and culture of Maryland)
Image 29Western Maryland is known for its heavily forested mountains. A panoramic view of Deep Creek Lake and the surrounding Appalachian Mountains in Garrett County. (from Maryland)
Image 30University of Maryland, Baltimore County (from Maryland)
Image 31Great Falls on the Potomac River (from Maryland)

Map of counties in Maryland by racial plurality, according to 2020 U.S. census findings

Non-Hispanic White

40–50%

50–60%

60–70%

70–80%

80–90%

90%+

Black or African American

50–60%

60–70%

(from Maryland)

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In the news

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December 27

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1907 - Elihu Emory Jackson

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Pastrana at Maryland in 1966

Charles Alan Pastrana (November 20, 1944 – April 8, 2021) was an American football quarterback. He played college football for the University of Maryland from 1965 to 1968. In 1966, he set the Atlantic Coast Conference record for single-season passing touchdowns with 17. At Maryland, Pastrana also played on the lacrosse team and was named a first-team All-American defenseman in 1966. The Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL) selected Pastrana in the 11th round of the 1969 NFL/AFL draft. He played for Denver for two seasons, including three games as the starting quarterback. After his playing career, Pastrana coached football, lacrosse and wrestling at Anne Arundel Community College, where he taught as an associate professor, and coached football at the Severn School. (Full article...)

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Holiday with her dog, Mister c. 1947

Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made a significant contribution to jazz music and pop singing. Her vocal style, strongly influenced by jazz instrumentalists, inspired a new way of manipulating phrasing and tempo. She was known for her vocal delivery and improvisational skills.

After a turbulent childhood, Holiday began singing in nightclubs in Harlem where she was heard by producer John Hammond, who liked her voice. She signed a recording contract with Brunswick in 1935. Her collaboration with Teddy Wilson produced the hit "What a Little Moonlight Can Do", which became a jazz standard. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Holiday had mainstream success on labels such as Columbia and Decca. By the late 1940s, however, she was beset with legal troubles and drug abuse. After a short prison sentence, she performed a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall. She was a successful concert performer throughout the 1950s, with two further sold-out shows at Carnegie Hall. Because of personal struggles and an altered voice, her final recordings were met with mixed reaction, but were mild commercial successes. Her final album, Lady in Satin, was released in 1958. Holiday died of heart failure on July 17, 1959, at age 44. (Full article...)

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Did you know?

...that unlike most other American courts, the judges on the Maryland Court of Appeals wear crimson (not black) robes, and neck bands, reminiscent of British court dress?
...that Kent Island was founded in 1631 as part of Virginia, three years before St. Mary's City was founded?

...that the Thomas Viaduct (pictured) over the Patapsco River was the first multi-span masonry railroad bridge in the United States when it was constructed between 1833 and 1835?

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