Examine individual changes

''''Southern Maryland''' in popular usage is composed of the state's southernmost counties on the "[[Western Shore]]" of the [[Chesapeake Bay]] in the state of [[Maryland]]. This region includes all of [[Calvert County, Maryland|Calvert]], [[Charles County, Maryland|Charles]], and [[St. Mary's County, Maryland|St. Mary's]] counties and sometimes the southern portions of [[Anne Arundel County, Maryland|Anne Arundel]] and [[Prince George's County, Maryland|Prince George's]] counties. [[Image:Southernmaryland.png|right|thumb|300px|Southern Maryland counties. Those shaded in red are considered part of Southern Maryland, while those in pink may or may not be considered in Southern Maryland, depending on the source.]] == History == ===Native Americans and first contact with the English=== Southern Maryland was originally inhabited by [[Piscataway Indians]]. [[Captain John Smith]] explored the area in 1608 and 1609.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.calvertmarinemuseum.com/landfall/schmidt/index.html |title=Capt. John Smith's 1608 Chesapeake Voyage |author=Christine Wright |year=2002 |publisher=Calvert Marine Museum |accessdate=2007-12-08 }}<br> He explored the lower Chesapeake Bay in 1607.</ref> In 1634 [[St. Mary's City]], at southern Maryland's lower tip was the site of Maryland's first colonial settlement. It was also the first [[Roman Catholic]] English settlement in [[North America]]. Today, two thirds of the original site is now a large [[Living history|living]] history museum complex and archeological research area and the other third is now the campus of [[St. Mary's College of Maryland]]. ===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.<ref>"Reconstructing the Brick Chapel of 1667" Page 1, ''See section entitled'' "The Birthplace of Religious Freedom" https://stmaryscity.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Chapel-Reconstruction.pdf</ref> 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 passage of one of the earliest laws requiring religious tolerance which was written and passed there by the Maryland colonial assembly. The first woman to ever request a vote in English speaking North America is very likely to have occurred there as well. ===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.<ref>"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</ref><ref name="Maclear, J.F. 1995">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</ref><ref name="Paul Boyer page 70">"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,</ref> ===Plantation economy and slavery=== St. Mary's was abandoned as a settlement,<ref>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</ref><ref name="darkroom.baltimoresun.com">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", Baltimore Sun, Aug 30, 2013, http://darkroom.baltimoresun.com/2013/08/unearthing-early-american-life-in-st-marys-city/#1</ref> but [[tobacco]] and later, also wheat plantations expanded there <ref name="darkroom.baltimoresun.com"/> and in Southern Maryland as a whole during the [[slavery]] era. The plantation system is believed to have contributed to rural poverty even before the end of slavery as it depressed the local labor market and stunted other forms of economic growth. Poverty and ignorance grew and the area became known for lack of education and rural impoverishment, except for a tiny handful of plantation owners. ===Civil War=== During the [[American Civil War]], wartime sympathies, although divided in Maryland, leaned much more strongly towards the South,<ref>"Civil War in Maryland: Southern Sympathizers", aryland State Archives, June 25, 2004, http://teaching.msa.maryland.gov/000001/000000/000114/html/t114.html</ref> especially in Southern Maryland. From the war's beginning, however, large numbers of Union occupying troops and patrolling river gunboats prevented the state's secession, although nighttime smuggling across the [[Potomac River]] with [[Virginia]] took place. [[John Wilkes Booth]] was helped by some people in his escape through the area after killing President [[Abraham Lincoln]]. ===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, Maryland|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 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,<ref name="somdnews.com">"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</ref> and the gambling came to be seen as a blight and was finally outlawed by Governor [[J. Millard Tawes]] and the state legislature.<ref name="ww2.somdnews.com">"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</ref> 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.<ref name="ww2.somdnews.com"/> Raley led the way in ending the region's isolation<ref name="somdnews.com"/><ref name="ReferenceA">"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</ref> by having a series of bridges built and roads expanded into highways.<ref name="somdnews.com"/><ref name="ReferenceA"/> Raley is largely credited for enabling the development of modern St. Mary's County.<ref name="somdnews.com"/><ref name="ReferenceA"/> He was falsely accused of working to end gambling outright in the region,<ref name="ww2.somdnews.com"/> which ended in his defeat and his official political career.<ref name="ww2.somdnews.com"/> In fact he had supported a referendum on gambling which would have put the decision directly in the hands of voters.<ref name="ww2.somdnews.com"/> 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.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> ==Population and economics== During recent times, the region experienced suburban development as the [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]] [[suburbs]] expanded southward. This expansion took place primarily in [[Prince George's County, Maryland|Prince George's County]], and around [[Waldorf, Maryland|Waldorf]] (a regional shopping hub) and [[St. Charles, Maryland|St. Charles]] (a planned community in [[Charles County, Maryland|Charles County]]), [[Lexington Park, Maryland|Lexington Park]] ([[St. Mary's County, Maryland|St. Mary's County]]) and [[Prince Frederick, Maryland|Prince Frederick]] ([[Calvert County, Maryland|Calvert County]]). This expansion of the Washington DC metropolitan area has caused much of southern Maryland's formerly predominant southern culture to fade giving way to a rapidly growing northeastern culture that is found throughout much of the [[Northeast Megalopolis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A36333-2005Feb18?language=printer |title=Bay's Dialects Slowly Dying |author=David A. Fahrenthold |date=February 19, 2005 |publisher=The Washington Post |accessdate=2007-12-08 }}</ref> However, as noted, land-use maps show that the area is still primarily low-density.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mdp.state.md.us/INFO/newmaps/pax2_y2k.htm |title=Patuxent River – 2000 Land Use / Land Cover |publisher=Maryland Department of Planning |year=2000 |accessdate=2007-12-08 }}</ref> 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 [[Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant|nuclear power plant]]<ref>[http://www.constellationenergy.com/generation/ccnpp.asp Power generation: Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant]. (2006). [[Constellation Energy]]. Retrieved December 22, 2006.</ref> and a [[Dominion Cove Point LNG, LP|liquified natural gas terminal]]<ref>[http://www.calvertchamber.org/m/20/Dominion-Cove-Point-LNG Dominion Cove Point LNG]. (2005). Calvert Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved December 22, 2006.</ref> (both in [[Lusby, Maryland|Lusby]]), a [[Indian Head Naval Surface Weapons Center|Naval ordnance]] test ground (at [[Indian Head, Maryland|Indian Head]]),<ref>[http://www.ih.navy.mil Indian Head division, Naval Surface Warfare Center]. (n.d.). United States Department of Navy. Retrieved December 22, 2006.</ref> [[Chalk Point Generating Station|electric power plants]] (at Aquasco and Morgantown)<ref>[http://www.mirant.com/our_business/where_we_work/chalkpoint.htm Chalk Point Generating Plant]. (n.d.). [[Mirant]] Corporation. Retrieved December 22, 2006.</ref> and an oil terminal<ref>[http://www.mirant.com/our_business/where_we_work/pineypoint.htm Mirant Piney Point]. (n.d.). Mirant Corporation. Retrieved December 22, 2006.</ref> (at [[Piney Point]]). The beautiful towns of [[Solomons Island]] and [[Chesapeake Beach, Maryland|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.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marylandtransportation.com/Planning/Southern%20Maryland/Existing%20Conditions%20Exec%20Summar.pdf |format=PDF|title=Summer 2007 &mdash; Draft Existing Conditions Summary |publisher=Maryland Department of Transportation |year=2007 |accessdate=2007-12-06 }}</ref> The growing of [[tobacco]], once a dominant crop, has declined greatly because of state government farm buyouts during the 1990s. [[St. Mary's County]] is home to [[Amish]] and [[Mennonite]] communities. In addition, two state recognized tribes exist [[Piscataway Indian Nation|Piscataway Native American tribe]], tribes that live along the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay in southern Maryland (see [[We-Sorts]]). Fishing, boating and crabbing are popular activities in this region; large marinas are found in the [[Solomons Island]] and [[North Beach, Maryland|North Beach]] areas. However, the population of fish and other marine life is threatened by pollution and environmental factors. Ancient marine fossils are abundant at Calvert Cliffs. == Geography == The region's northern boundary passes through [[Prince George's County, Maryland|Prince George's County]] and [[Anne Arundel County]], east of [[Washington, D.C.|Washington]]. Its eastern boundary is the [[Chesapeake Bay]] and its southern and western boundary is the [[Potomac River]], Maryland's boundary with [[Virginia]]. ==Food and cuisine== Perhaps the most notable food dish originating from Southern Maryland is [[stuffed ham]], which is cabbage, kale, onions, spices and seasonings that are chopped and mixed, then stuffed into deep slits slashed in a whole, corned ham.<ref>{{cite book|last=Alumnae|title=Treasured Recipes of Old St. Mary's County|year=1959|publisher=St. Mary's Academy}}</ref> [[Seafood]] is popular amongst Southern Marylanders, given the region's location along the [[Chesapeake Bay]] and its tributaries. Both steamed crabs and [[crab cake]]s are considered Southern Maryland delicacies due to the large amount of harvesting of [[Callinectes sapidus|blue crabs]] from the bay. Also popular are [[oyster]]s, which were once fished from the bay in great numbers, and served either fried, raw, or stuffed. [[Striped bass|Rockfish]] is considered one of the most prized fish dishes in Southern Maryland.<ref>http://www.americanfoodroots.com/50-states/about-maryland/</ref> == Towns and communities == {{unreferenced section|date=September 2014}} Towns and places in Southern Maryland include: '''Anne Arundel County:''' *[[Deale, Maryland|Deale]] *[[Shady Side, Maryland|Shady Side]] '''Calvert County:''' *[[Chesapeake Beach, Maryland|Chesapeake Beach]] *[[Dunkirk, Maryland|Dunkirk]] *[[Huntingtown, Maryland|Huntingtown]] *[[Lusby, Maryland|Lusby]] *[[North Beach, Maryland|North Beach]] *[[Prince Frederick, Maryland|Prince Frederick]] (county seat) *[[Port Republic, Maryland|Port Republic]] *[[St. Leonard, Maryland|St. Leonard]] *[[Solomons, Maryland|Solomons]] '''Charles County:''' *[[Bel Alton, Maryland|Bel Alton]] *[[Bryans Road, Maryland|Bryans Road]] *[[Bryantown, Maryland|Bryantown]] *[[Cobb Island, Maryland|Cobb Island]] *[[Dentsville, Maryland|Dentsville]] *[[Indian Head, Maryland|Indian Head]] *[[Hughesville, Maryland|Hughesville]] *[[La Plata, Maryland|La Plata]] (county seat) *[[Nanjemoy, Maryland|Nanjemoy]] *[[Pomfret, Maryland|Pomfret]] *[[Potomac Heights, Maryland|Potomac Heights]] *[[St. Charles, Maryland|St. Charles]] *[[Waldorf, Maryland|Waldorf]] *[[White Plains, Maryland|White Plains]] '''Prince George's County:''' *[[Accokeek, Maryland|Accokeek]] *[[Brandywine, Maryland|Brandywine]] *[[Cheltenham, Maryland|Cheltenham]] *[[Clinton, Maryland|Clinton]] *[[Eagle Harbor, Maryland|Eagle Harbor]] *[[Fort Washington, Maryland|Fort Washington]]{{discuss|moving the boundaries without reliable sources}} *[[Piscataway, Maryland|Piscataway]] *[[Upper Marlboro, Maryland|Upper Marlboro]] (county seat) '''St. Mary's County:''' *[[California, Maryland|California]] *[[Charlotte Hall, Maryland|Charlotte Hall]] *[[Hollywood, Maryland|Hollywood]] *[[Leonardtown, Maryland|Leonardtown]] (county seat) *[[Lexington Park, Maryland|Lexington Park]] *[[Mechanicsville, Maryland|Mechanicsville]] *[[Ridge, Maryland|Ridge]] *[[St. Mary's City, Maryland|St. Mary's City]] ==Sports== {| class="wikitable" |- ! scope="col" | Club ! scope="col" | League ! scope="col" | Venue ! scope="col" | Established ! scope="col" | Championships |- ! scope="row" style="font-weight: normal;" | [[Southern Maryland Blue Crabs]] | [[Atlantic League of Professional Baseball|ALPB]], Baseball | [[Regency Furniture Stadium]] | 2008 | 0 |} == Colleges == Colleges in Southern Maryland include: * The [[College of Southern Maryland]], a community college with campuses in Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary's counties * [[St. Mary's College of Maryland]], in St. Mary's City == Notable Southern Marylanders == {{BLP sources section|date=December 2007}} * Rep. [[Steny Hoyer]] (D), [[Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives|Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives]], represents southern Maryland as the representative for [[Maryland's 5th congressional district]]. He lives in [[Mechanicsville, Maryland|Mechanicsville]]. * Two former [[First Lady of the United States|first ladies]] hail from southern Maryland: [[Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams]], wife of [[John Quincy Adams]], and [[Margaret Mackall Smith Taylor]], wife of [[Zachary Taylor]]. * Co-discover of the [[North Pole]], [[Matthew Henson]] and Captain [[Raphael Semmes]] of the [[CSS Alabama|CSS ''Alabama'']] were born near [[Nanjemoy]], Charles County. Prominent [[American Revolutionary War|revolutionary war]] statesmen [[John Hanson]], [[Thomas Stone]], and [[William Smallwood|General Smallwood]] were from [[Charles County]]. [[Samuel Mudd|Dr. Samuel Mudd]], convicted of conspiracy to murder in the [[Abraham Lincoln]] [[assassination]], was also a native of Charles County. * Television journalists [[Ted Koppel]], [[Judy Woodruff]], [[Al Hunt]], newspapermen [[Ben Bradlee]] and [[Sally Quinn]], and weatherman [[Doug Hill (meteorologist)|Doug Hill]] all have houses in [[St. Mary's County]].{{Citation needed|date=June 2008}}<!-- checking, it seems that Quinn/Bradlee are in St. Mary's, the others in Calvert, however the linked topics contain none of this information --> * [[Theoretical ecology|Theoretical ecologist]] Dr. [[Robert Ulanowicz]] lived in [[Calvert County]] prior to his retirement in 2008 with [[Chesapeake Biological Laboratory]] in [[Solomons, Maryland|Solomons]], where he was a member of the faculty. * [[Roger B. Taney]], the [[Chief Justice of the United States]] who presided over the [[Dred Scott v. Sandford|Dred Scott decision]], was born in [[Calvert County]] near [[Prince Frederick, Maryland|Prince Frederick]]. * Former [[Comptroller of Maryland]] [[Louis L. Goldstein]] lived in [[Comptroller of Maryland|Calvert County]]. A portion of [[Maryland Route 2|MD 2]]/[[Maryland Route 4|MD 4]] in [[Calvert County]] was renamed in his honor after his death. * [[Stephanie Roper murder|Stephanie Roper]], noted victim of crime.<ref>http://www.mdcrimevictims.org/about-mdcvrc/</ref> A portion of [[Maryland Route 4|MD 4]] was renamed in her honor after her death. * [[Arthur Storer]], first [[astronomer]] in the American colonies and the original namesake for [[Halley's Comet]], lived the latter part of his life in [[Calvert County]]. A [[planetarium]] in [[Prince Frederick, Maryland|Prince Frederick]] bears his name. *[[Thomas Johnson (jurist)|Thomas Johnson]], the first elected [[governor of Maryland]] and [[Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States]]. The [[Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge]] connecting Calvert and St. Mary's counties was named in his honor. *Television and film screenwriter and producer [[Alfred Gough]] hails from [[Leonardtown, Maryland|Leonardtown]] in [[St. Mary's County, Maryland|St. Mary's County]]. * Former [[Maryland Senate|Maryland State Senator]] and [[Patuxent River]] advocate [[Bernie Fowler]] lives in [[Calvert County]]. Every year, in [[Broomes Island, Maryland|Broomes Island]] Fowler will hold a "wade-in" with other public officials to help determine the clarity levels of the Patuxent. * Singer [[Christina Milian]] once lived in [[Waldorf, Maryland|Waldorf]].<ref>{{cite web | title =Christina Milian Biography | work =ChristinaMilian.org - The Official Site of Christina Milian | publisher =Milian Corporation | date = | url =http://www.christinamilian.org/bio.php | accessdate =2007-12-14 |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20071120015017/http://www.christinamilian.org/bio.php <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archivedate = 2007-11-20}}</ref> * [[Joel Madden|Joel]] and [[Benji Madden]] from the band [[Good Charlotte]] grew up in Waldorf.<ref>{{Cite news| last =Hoard| first =Christian| title = Young, Hopeless, Rich, and Famous| magazine =Rolling Stone| date =April 9, 2003| url =http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/good_charlotte_young_hopeless_rich_and_famous| publisher =[[Rolling Stone Australia]]| postscript =<!--None--> }}</ref> * [[Turkey Tayac]], Piscataway tribal leader and herbal medicine man * [[Robert Stethem]], murder victim during hijacking of [[TWA Flight 847]] was from Pinefield, the northern section of Waldorf * Senator and astronaut [[John Glenn]] trained at [[Naval Air Station Patuxent River|Patuxent River Naval Air Station]] many years ago, as did [[Alan Shepard]] and other future astronauts. * [[Dashiell Hammett]], author of hard-boiled detective novels (creator of the "Maltese Falcon" and "The Thin Man") and short stories, and a screenplay writer, was born in St. Mary's County. * [[Danny Gatton]], guitarist, resided in Accokeek and Newburg. * [[Eva Cassidy]], interpretive vocalist and guitarist, lived in Oxon Hill and Bowie. * [[Link Wray]], pioneering rock guitarist, lived in Accokeek. * [[Professional wrestling|professional wrestler]] and [[WWE Hall of Fame|WWE Hall of Famer]] [[Scott Hall]] was born in St. Mary's County.{{cn|date=May 2016}} == References == {{Wikivoyage|Southern Maryland}} {{reflist}} {{Maryland}} {{coord|38|28|N|76|48|W|region:US-MD_type:adm2nd|display=title}} [[Category:Regions of Maryland]] [[Category:Southern Maryland| ]]'