User:Allixpeeke/Baltimore County, Maryland

This page is about the county in Maryland. For the independent city, see Baltimore.

Baltimore County
County
Baltimore County
The Baltimore County Courthouse
Flag Seal
Nickname:  "B-More County"
Location within the U.S. state of Maryland
Maryland's location within the U.S.
Country	United States
State	Maryland
Founded	June 30, 1659
Named for	Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore
Seat	Towson
Largest community	Dundalk
Area
• Total	682 sq mi (1,770 km2)
• Land	598 sq mi (1,550 km2)
• Water	83 sq mi (210 km2)  12%
Population
• Estimate  (2014)	826,925
• Density	1,346/sq mi (520/km2)
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional districts	1st, 2nd, 3rd, 7th
Website	www.baltimorecountymd.gov

Baltimore County is a county in the north part of the U. S. state of Maryland.  It is the Maryland county with the third-most people.  In 2010, 805,029 people lived in the county.  Its county seat (the place where the laws are made) is in Towson.  Towson is in the north-middle section of the county.  It's north of the City of Baltimore, but not far.  The county was named after Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore (1605–1675).  Cecil Calvert who was Proprietor (or "owner") of the Province of Maryland.  ("Province of Maryland" is what the land was called before it became a state.)

The City of Baltimore was part of Baltimore County in the past.  Now, it is not.  The City of Baltimore is a sailing "port of entry" (place where ships come in) made in 1706.  The Town was made in 1729.  The Town of Baltimore became the "county seat" of Baltimore County in 1767.  Later, a new court building was made.  The Town of Baltimore was formed into a City - 1796/1797.  After many small pieces of land were taken from the Baltimore County by the Town in the 1780s, larger pieces of land were taken from the County at three points in time.  The first time land was added to the Town was in 1816.  It added the land called the "Precincts" on the west, north (up to North Avenue), east, and south-west sides.  The second time, land was added on the west and north in 1888.  The east side industry towns of Canton and Highlandtown were not taken by Baltimore City until thirty years later because these places had business owners and owners of factories (big buildings in which workers made things) who tried to stop the taking of land from the county.  The third and last big taking of land happened 1918-1919.  Again, land was taken from the County on all three sides (west, north, and east).  This time, land was also taken from Anne Arundel County to the south.  This happened along the south shores of the Patapsco River.  When the second Maryland state constitution (the basic set of laws that explain how all the other laws and rules must be made and followed) was made in 1851, it separated Baltimore City from the County.  Baltimore City became one of the few "independent cities" in the United States.  An "independent city" is a city that is not part of a county.  The City of Baltimore was made to be on the same level as the other 23 counties of the state.  The Constitution also gave the city some "home rule" powers.  "Home rule" power is the power to make laws of its own in addition to any laws made by the General Assembly of Maryland (the group that makes laws for the whole state).  In 1948, voters voted to change the 1867 Maryland Constitution.  This change said that there may not be any more takings of land except when residents say it is okay.  The population got as high as 959,000 in 1950, and has gone down every ten years since.  The city and county did not get along during the time of the 1950s, '60s, and '70s Civil Rights movement (when black people were trying to be seen as equal to white people).  But the city and county began working together by the '80s because of increasing society problems in the county's older "inner suburbs."  They have worked together to make "state assembly districts" that cross both sides of the border, to put together local government agencies, and to let the state government take some of their power away.

Some of the county's main employers are:

1. MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center (a hospital) on the east side in Rossville;
2. the Social Security Administration, which has its nation-wide headquarters on the west side in Woodlawn; and
3. Black & Decker in Towson.

The Glenn L. Martin Company in the far-east town of Middle River had 53,000 employees in World War II making fighting airplanes and airplane stuff for the war effort.  The Bethlehem Steel Corporation had more than 30,000 workers at its big Sparrows Point steel mill on the waterfront peninsula (land with water on three sides of it).  This was the largest in the world at one time.  Of the 410,100 people who worked in the county in 2009, 25% had jobs in education, health, and human services, and 10% in selling stuff.  Less than 1% were in farming.  The south-west corner of the county has the University of Maryland, Baltimore County in it.  It is between Catonsville and Arbutus.  Towson University is at the county seat (Towson) which is north of the City.  It is now the second largest college/university in the state.  Towson also has the Goucher College liberal arts school in it.  Coucher College was an all-woman school in the past.  Now, it is a school with both women and men in it.  And Stevenson University (which was Villa Julie College in the past) is also in the county.  Stevenson University has changed from just being a business and secretary school to having a wide range of things to study.  It has buildings in Stevenson and Owings Mills.

History

The oldest political record of the county that people know about is in the Maryland State Archives in the Hall of Records in the state capital of Annapolis.  It is from 12 January 1659, when a "writ" (written order) was made for the General Assembly of Maryland (the group that makes laws for the whole state of Maryland) to its sheriff (a law enforcement officer who serves as the chief law enforcement official for his county).  Sixteen fifty-nine is seen by historians (history writers) to be the county's year of "erection" (year of being started).  Before that, Old Baltimore County was known more as a thing of land than a thing of politics.  These were all part of Old Baltimore County:

• most of north-east Maryland,
• what was then the north-west edge of the Province of Maryland,
• present day Baltimore City,
• present day Cecil County,
• present day Harford County, and
• parts of Carroll, Anne Arundel, Frederick, Howard, and Kent Counties.

In 1674, the Proprietor (or "owner") made the lines that marked the edges of old Baltimore County.  Different parts of the Old County were cut off as population went up in the outer parts over the next hundred years.  This allowed people living in these parts to have shorter distances to new county seats with their courts and businesses.

In 1674, Cecil County was made by taking part of north-east Baltimore County and part of north-west Kent County.  In 1748, Frederick County was made by taking part of west Baltimore County and part of Prince George's County to the south.  In 1773, Harford County was made by taking part of east Baltimore County.  In 1837, Carroll County was made by taking another part of west Baltimore County and a part of east Frederick County.  In XXXX, the border between south Baltimore County and north Anne Arundel County was changed to be the upper Middle and Western Branches of the Patapsco River.  (After that, in 1838, a part of Anne Arundel County's north-west area was named the "Western District" or "Howard District" of Arundel.  In 1851, the "Howard District" became the new Howard County.  It was named after Col. John Eager Howard (1752–1827).  Col. John Eager Howard was a Revolutionary War commander (leader) of the "Maryland Line" of the Continental Army.)

Today, Baltimore County's first "county seat" (the place where the laws are made and the courts do stuff) is called "Old Baltimore".  It was on land next to the Bush River that became part of Harford County in 1773.  Before 1674, the Baltimore County court events were held in private homes.  In 1674, the General Assembly passed "An Act for erecting a Court-Houſe and Priſon in each County within this Province."  The court building and jail for Baltimore County seem to have been in "Old Baltimore" near the Bush River.  We know this because the General Assembly passed "An Act for Advancement of Trade" in 1683 to "eſtabliſh Towns, Ports, and Places of Trade, within this province".  One of the Baltimore County towns made by the law was "on Buſh River, on Town Land, near the Court-Houſe."  The court building on the Bush River talked about in the 1683 Act was probably the one made by the 1674 Act.  "Old Baltimore" existed as early as 1674.  We don't know what happened in that place before that year, if anything.  For years, nobody knew the exact place of Old Baltimore.  People knew that it was somewhere near today's Aberdeen Proving Grounds (APG).  APG is a U. S. Army place where weapons are tested.  APG's "Cultural Resource Management Program" tried to find Old Baltimore.  APG hired the company of R. Christopher Goodwin & Associates (Goodwin) to do this.  Goodwin found the place of Old Baltimore by comparing history stuff with the actual land.  APG sent people in with Goodwin to make any bombs that had not exploded safe.  The group worked from fall 1997 through winter 1998.  The group dug 420 test holds.  They found many things made by humans, for example, King Charles II farthing (an English coin), French and English gun flints, glass, metal, and other stuff.  The team also found bricks that that had been part of the tavern owned by colonist James Phillips.  James Phillips was an important owner of land in the place.  The other most important owner of land in Old Baltimore was William Osbourne.  Osbourne ran the ferry across the Bush River.  Rev. George Armistead Leakin wrote that Dr. George I. Hays wrote that William Osborne's grandmother (born Sarah Osborne) great-aunt (Fanny Osborne) had told Dr. Hays about an event in William Osborne's life.  Rev. Leakin wrote that the Susquehannocks (a tribe from further north in Pennsylvania famous for liking to be in war) took William Osbourne’s oldest son.  Osbourne and some other people tried to save the boy but failed.  Osbourne never again saw the boy.  Some say this made Osbourne sad until he died.

It seems that the "Old Baltimore" court building was left unused by 1695.  It seems this way because the county justices (judges) tried to sell the old court building at Bush River.  It seems a new court building at "Simm's Choice" on the Baltimore County side of the Little Gunpowder Falls was being built since 1692.  The county justices bought the land under the "house of justice" from Michael Judd in 1700.  Michael Judd built the "house of justice."  This move away from the Bush River area shows the growing economic and political importance of the Gunpowder area.

The county seat moved again in the next decade of the 18th century.  Starting in 1712, the "county seat" was in old Joppa, near Great Gunpowder Falls.  Later, by 1724, the Assembly allowed (1) Thomas Tolley, (2) Capt. John Taylor, (3) Daniel Scott, (4) Lancelot Todd, and (5) John Stokes to buy 20 acres of land.  The Assembly separated the land into 40 pieces with streets and alleys.  A court building and jail were already built.  By 1750, there were around 50 houses.  Some were large, two-story buildings made of brick.  There was also a church (St. John's Anglican Parish), a court building, warehouses (buildings used for storing stuff), inns (places where travellers can buy food, drink, and a place to sleep), bars, stores, a public wharf (man-made landing place for ships), a "gallows-tree" (a tree for hanging people), and whipping posts (places where people are whipped).  (This place does not exist anymore, but it was north-east of the City, near what is today "Joppatowne", off Harford Road.)  The "county seat" stayed in Joppa until 1768.

Baltimore City was in Baltimore County in the past.  It was old Baltimore Town back then.  Old Baltimore Town was a growing and bustling (busy) port town (town with a place for ships to stop to trade or refuel).  Some residents of old Baltimore Town who were in business and politics wanted Baltimore Town to become the new county seat.  They used money-related pressure to make it become the county seat in 1767.  They also paid 300 pounds of sterling (see sterling on English Wiktionary) for a new court building.  The new court building was made in 1768 at the new "Courthouse Square".  (Today, this is on North Calvert Street, between East Lexington and East Fayette Streets.  The "Battle Monument Square" is there now.  "Battle Monument Square" was built from 1815 to 1822.  "Battle Monument" was built to remind people of defending the city and county in the Battle of North Point and the War of 1812.  In the War of 1812, Fort McHenry was attacked by the British Royal Navy in the Patapsco River.)  A second court building was made from 1805 to 1809 on the west side of the Square, at North Calvert and East Lexington Streets.  (In the future, after the city separated from the county, a third court building was built.  This was the old Supreme Bench of Baltimore City.  It was built on the whole west block of North Calvert, East Lexington, East Fayette, and Saint Paul Streets from 1896 to 1900.  In 1985, it was renamed the Clarence M. Mitchell, Jr. City Circuit Courthouse after the famous Baltimorean and national civil rights leader, Clarence M. Mitchell, Jr. (1911–1984).  Mitchell was "considered the 101st U.S. Senator".)

Baltimore City was the "county seat" of Baltimore County since 1767 (before the American Revolution).  It had been the county seat for almost 85 years.  The City of Baltimore became separate from Baltimore County on 4 July 1851.  (The west, north, and east borders of Baltimore City touch Baltimore County.)  Baltimore City became separate because of the second Maryland Constitution (the basic set of laws that explain how all the other laws and rules must be made and followed in Maryland).  Towsontown became the new "county seat" of Baltimore County three years later, on 13 February 1854.  This happened because voters voted for it to happen.  A new Baltimore County Courthouse (court building) was built in Towsontown.  It was made of local limestone and marble.  It was finished in 1855.  Many new parts were added in 1910, 1923, and 1958.  It now has flower gardens, shrubs, and curved walk paths outside of it.  A separate, newer "County Courts Building" was built to the west, behind the old Courthouse, because the County's legal system and government offices had grown very much by the 1970s.  There is a paved plaza (open area with solid covering to walk on) between the two buildings.

The county has a number of places that are important to the history of (1) the United States of America, (2) the State of Maryland, and (3) Baltimore County.  Some of these places are on the "National Register of Historic Places".  The National Park Service of the U. S. Department of the Interior controls the "National Register of Historic Places" because of the "Historic Sites Act" of August 1935.

Law and government

Baltimore County has had a charter government since 1956.  The government has in it a County Executive and a seven-member County Council.  The County Executive and Council members are elected in years with elections for governor.  A person may, at most, hold the County Executive job for two terms in a row.

As there are no incorporated cities or towns within Baltimore County.  All local government services given to its people who live in Baltimore County are given by the county government, even though many of these services are normally associated with city-type governmental agencies.  (Howard County is the only other Maryland county that has no incorporated cities within it.)

The County used to have a system of an elected Board of County Commissioners with members elected at large.  It replaced that system in 1956 with a more-modern "executive-council" system of government.  Since then, it has had eleven county executives and one "acting" executive, of which ten were Democrats, two were Republicans, and zero were Libertarians.  Spiro T. Agnew, who was once Vice President of the United States, was the third executive from 1962 to 1966.  After that, he was elected Governor of Maryland.  He was governor from 1967 to 1969, when he was elected on a national ticket with 37th President Richard M. Nixon in 1968 and became Vice President in 1969.  He was later accused of corruption and bribery while serving earlier as the County executive.  He pleaded "no contest" to unprecedented Federal criminal charges and was forced to resign in 1973.  This was before the separate "Watergate" political scandal which caused President Nixon to step down a year later.

Historically, Baltimore County leans Democratic, but not as much as Baltimore City.  In general, the northern parts of the county lean Republican, while the southern part is more Democratic.

State's attorney

It's the Baltimore County State's Attorney's job to prosecute the felony (serious crime), misdemeanor (not-serious crime), and juvenile (young-people) cases that happen in the county.  Right now, the State's Attorney is Scott Shellenberger.  He is a Democrat.  The person before him wasSandra A. O'Connor.  She was a Republican.  She served eight terms before retiring in 2006.

Law enforcement

The Baltimore County Police Department is supposed to enforce the law in the county.  The person in charge of the department is Chief James W. Johnson right now.

Started in the middle of the 17th century, the job of Sheriff of Baltimore County was at first done by the county justices from 1662 to 1676.  After then, the colonial governor chose a sheriff from three names given by the Court to the colonial governor.  Although the length of time that a person had the job differed in the early years, a standard two-year term was started in 1692.  Seven years later, it became a three-year term with separate commissions.  The sheriff acted as the main local representative of the Proprietary Government.  Because he was given power by the governor, the sheriff had good reason to want the laws and requirements of the Province upheld.  It was his job to take money from people against their will, which they called taxation.  After 1692, he also had to take a yearly poll tax of forty pounds of tobacco in order to fund the Anglican Church (Church of England).  A sheriff got to keep a percentage of all monies taken, usually about five percent.  He also got paid yearly for the other parts of the job, for example, telling the governor about stuff going on within the County, taking or estimating the census every so often, telling the county courts about official laws and proprietary requests, and choosing juries for the court sessions.  He did not only enforce all of the laws of the Province of Maryland.  He also posted the new laws on the court building door or other public places.  That way, the people and citizens could be aware of any new laws.  While his main job was to do what the Proprietor wanted, the sheriff was also aware of the problems that many poor planters and tradesmen faced.  With taxes, yearly quit-rents, and other expensive spendings, many of the poorer people moving there were not able to pay their debts when due.  The sheriff often give credit to these planters and paid their immediate debts out of his own pocket.  This lessened the impact of taxes for the poor.  The poor then repaid the sheriff after their harvests were brought in.

Today, it is still the Baltimore County Sheriff's Department job to keep the two main County Circuit Courts buildings and different courtrooms elsewhere safe, as well as process and warrant service.  Sherriff's Deputies are sworn police officers.  They share the same powers of the more-recently-organised County Police Department.  Right now, R. J. Fisher is the Baltimore County Sheriff.

The Maryland State Police (MSP); Marcus L. Brown, Superintendent and Maryland Transportation Authority Police (MdTA); Michael Kundrat, Chief are responsible for enforcing law on Interstate highways and transportation places that move across Baltimore County.

The headquarters of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services is at Suite 1000 at 300 East Joppa Road in the Towson CDP.  The headquarters of the Maryland State Police is at 1201 Reisterstown Road in the Pikesville CDP.

Fire Department

The Baltimore County Fire Department (B.Co.F.D.) tried to put out fires in Baltimore County.  When needed, it gives medical and rescue services to people living in the county and areas around the county (including Baltimore City) through mutual-aid agreements with those jurisdictions.  Some people in the department are paid while others were for companies that voluntarily give services to overlapping places.  Right now, there are 25 career (paid) stations and 33 volunteer stations.  There are more than 1,000 paid people and more than 2,000 volunteers.  The department also gives yearly fire inspections to commercial properties.  It also runs fire-investigation and fire-stopping learning activities as well as water and tactical rescue in the area.  John J. Hohman is Chief of the Baltimore County Fire Department right now.

Fire Department Support

Central Alarmers (Station 155) is a private organisation that gives fireground rehab support to firefighters (toilets, snacks, and drinks without alcohol) whenever firefighters in the central and eastern parts of the county have a big job or a job that takes a long time to do.

County Executives

Kevin B. Kamenetz is the County Executive right now.  He was sworn in for a second term on 1 December 2014.  He was a councilman in the Baltimore County Council from the northwest area of Baltimore County in the past.  The County Executive runs the offices and departments that enforce the county government's laws.

County Council

The County Council has all of the county's law-making power.  It passes "ordinances" and "resolutions."

Ever since 1 December 2014, the County Council has four Democrats, three Republicans, and zero Libertarians.

Baltimore County Council

District		Name	Party
	District 1	Tom Quirk	Democratic
	District 2	Vicki Almond	Democratic
	District 3	Wade Kach	Republican
	District 4	Julian E. Jones, Jr.	Democratic
	District 5	David S. Marks	Republican
	District 6	Cathy Bevins	Democratic
	District 7	Todd K. Crandell	Republican

Geography

The U. S. Census Bureau says that the county has a total area of 682 square miles.  Five-hundred ninety-eight square miles of that is land while 83 square miles (12%) is water.  Baltimore County is the third-largest county in Maryland by land area.  Much of the land has tall hills.  Some of these hills are as high as 800 feet above tide water.  The highest point in Baltimore County is around 960 feet above sea level.  That pount is along the Pennsylvania state line near Steltz.  The lowest point in Baltimore County is at sea level.  That point is along the shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay.

Much of Baltimore County is suburbs.  Northern Baltimore County is mostly rural with lots of hills and forests with trees that have leaves that fall off.

Counties and independent cities next to Baltimore County

• York County, Pennsylvania (north)
• Carroll County (west)
• Harford County (east)
• Anne Arundel County (south)
• Howard County (southwest)
• Baltimore City (south)

National protected area

• Hampton National Historic Site

State protected area

• Soldiers Delight Natural Environment Area

Transportation

Road

Many important interstate highways run through the county.  Some of these are I-95, I-83, I-195, I-795, I-895, and I-70.  The east end of I-70 stops in the county.  Most of the McKeldin Beltway, I-695, is inside the county, too.

Transit

The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) operates three rail systems in the Baltimore area.  All three systems have stations in Baltimore County.  The heavy-rail Metro Subway runs northwest of the city to Owings Mills.  The Light Rail system runs north of Baltimore City to Hunt Valley and south of the city through Baltimore Highlands.  Some of its routes end at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport which is in Linthicum (Anne Arundel County), Maryland.  Commuter MARC Train service is open in the county at Halethorpe, St. Denis, and Martin State Airport stations.

The MTA's local and regional bus services also serve Baltimore County.

Rail

Both CSX Transportation and Amtrak mainlines run through the county.  Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad and the Northern Central Railway were rail lines that ran through the county in the past beginning in the 19th century.  The Northern Central Railway was the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad in the past, but later became part of the old Pennsylvania Railroad.  The Ma & Pa and parts of the Northern Central were left behind.  Today, the streetcar/trolley line coming north from Anne Arundel County and the Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport through Baltimore City uses the Northern Central right-of-way south of Cockeysville and Timonium.  Starting a little north of that, the right-of-way was changed into the popular hiking, biking, and jogging pathway from Lake Roland to the Mason–Dixon line.  Pennsylvania is now known now as the Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail.  It was named after someone who had been state secretary of natural resources.

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1790	38,937		—
1800	59,030		51.6%
1810	75,780		28.4%
1820	96,201		26.9%
1830	120,870		25.6%
1840	134,379		11.2%
1850	210,646		56.8%
1860	54,135		−74.3%
1870	63,387		17.1%
1880	83,336		31.5%
1890	72,909		−12.5%
1900	90,755		24.5%
1910	122,349		34.8%
1920	74,817		−38.8%
1930	124,565		66.5%
1940	155,825		25.1%
1950	270,273		73.4%
1960	492,428		82.2%
1970	621,077		26.1%
1980	655,615		5.6%
1990	692,134		5.6%
2000	754,292		9.0%
2010	805,029		6.7%
2014 (est.)	826,925		2.7%
The population of Baltimore County after 1860 was lower than before 1860 because the City of Baltimore was no longer part of Baltimore County after 1860.  The population was lower in 1890 than in 1880 because the City of Baltimore took more land from Baltimore County.  The population was lower in 1920 than in 1910 because the City of Baltimore again took land from Baltimore County. U. S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2014

2000 census

As of the 2000 United States Census, there were 754,292 people, 299,877 households, and 198,518 families in the county.  There were 1,260 people in each square mile of the county.  There were 313,734 housing units, which is 524 housing units in each square mile.  Seventy-four-point-three-nine percent of the people were white, 20.10% were black, 3.17% were Asian, 0.25% were native American, 0.03% were Pacific Islander, 0.62% were from other "races", and 1.43% were from two or more "races".  One-point-eight-three percent of the people were Hispanic or Latino.  Eighteen-point-four percent were ancestors of Germans, 10.8% were ancestors of Irish people, 7.3% were ancestors of English people, 7.0% were ancestors of Italian people, 6.1% were ancestors of Americans, and 5.4% were ancestors of Polish people.  There was also a large Jewish population that migrated from Park Heights into the communities of Pikesville, Owings Mills, and Reisterstown, referred to by Jewish residents as "100,000 Jews in three zip codes".  According to the North American Jewish Data Bank, as of 2011, Baltimore County is 7.5% Jewish with a Jewish population of around 60,000 people.

Thirty-point-two-zero percent of the households had children under the age of 18 living in them, 49.40% had married people living together, 12.80% had a female householder with no husband present, 33.80% were non-families, and 27.30% were just individuals.  Ten-point-one-zero percent had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household had 2.46 people in it while the average family had 3.00 people in it.

Twenty-three-point-six-zero percent of the people were under the age of 18, 8.50% were between 18 and 24, 29.80% were between 25 and 44, 23.40% were between 45 and 64, and 14.60% were 65 years old or older.  The median age was 38 years.  There were 90.00 males for every 100 females.  There were 86 males for every 100100 females age 18 and over.

The median income for a household in the county was $50,667, while the median income for a family was $59,998.  Males had a median income of $41,048 while females had a median income of $31,426.  The average income for the county was $26,167.  About 6.50% of the population were below the poverty line.  About 4.50% of families were below the poverty line.  About 7.20% of those under age 18 were below the poverty line.  About 6.50% of those age 65 or over were below the poverty line.

2010 census

As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 805,029 people, 316,715 households, and 205,113 families in the county.  There were 1,345½ people in each square mile of the county.  There were 335,622 housing units, which is 561 housing units in each square mile.  Sixty-four-point-six percent of the people were white, 26.1% were black, 5.0% were Asian, 0.3% were native American, 1.6% were from other "races," and 2.4% were from two or more "races."  Four-point-two percent of the people were Hispanic or Latino.  Twenty-point-seven percent were ancestors of Germans, 14.6% were ancestors of Irish people, 8.7% were ancestors of English people, 7.4% were ancestors of Italians, 5.8% were ancestors of Poles, and 5.0% were ancestors of Americans.

Thirty-one-point-four percent of the households had children under the age of 18 living in them, 45.5% had married people living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 35.2% were non-families, and 28.3% were just individuals.  The average household had 2.48 people in it while the average family had 3.04 people in it.  The median age was 39.1 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $63,959 and the median income for a family was $78,385.  Males had a median income of $53,104 while females had a median income of $43,316.  The average income for the county was $33,719.  About 5.3% of families were below the poverty line.  About 8.1% of the population were below the poverty line.  About 10.1% of those under age 18 were below the poverty line.  About 7.6% of people who were age 65 or over were below the poverty line.

Economy

Main employers

The County's 2011 "Comprehensive Annual Financial Report" says that the businesses or organisations with the most employees in in the county are:

#	Employer	Number of employees
1	Social Security Administration/CMS	14,948
2	Baltimore County Public Schools	14,608
3	Baltimore County	8,429
4	MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center	3,500
5	Towson University	3,344
6	Greater Baltimore Medical Center	3,331
7	St. Joseph Medical Center	3,330
8	University of Maryland, Baltimore County	3,258
9	Erickson Living	3,070
10	The Sheppard and Enoch Pratt Hospital	2,380

Government and infrastructure

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Baltimore field office is in Milford Mill.

Education

Colleges and universities

The University System of Maryland has two universities in Baltimore County:

• Towson University.  This university is in Towson.  It was started in 1866 in Baltimore City.  Maryland State Normal School was its name back then.  In 1935, it was renamed Maryland State Teachers College at Towson.  It was renamed again in 1963, this time Towson State College.  In 1976, it became Towson State University.  It became Towson University in 1997.
• University of Maryland, Baltimore County.  This university is in Catonsville.  It was started in 1966.

There are also two private colleges in Baltimore County:

• Goucher College.  This college is also in Towson, on Saint Paul Street and 23rd Streets.  Women's College of Baltimore was its name when it was founded in 1885.
• Stevenson University.  Villa Julie College is what this university was named in the past.&nbs; It has buildings in Stevenson and Owings Mills.

These are some other schools in Baltimore County that have buildings:

• Loyola College in Maryland.  This college is in Hunt Valley.  Its main buildings are in Baltimore at North Charles Street and East Cold Spring Lane.  Loyola College was its full name in the past.  It was started in 1852.
• The Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC).  This college has buildings in Catonsville, Essex, and Dundalk.

Public schools

Baltimore County Public Schools runs all government schools in Baltimore County except for the Imagine Me Charter School which opened August 2008.

Private schools

Baltimore County has some private schools at the K-12 grade levels.  Some of these are:

• Arlington Baptist High School
• Baltimore Actors Theatre Conservatory
• Baltimore Lutheran School
• Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School
• The Boys' Latin School of Maryland
• Calvert Hall College High School
• Cambridge School of Baltimore
• Garrison Forest School
• Jemicy School
• Loyola Blakefield
• Maryvale Preparatory School
• McDonogh School
• Mount de Sales Academy
• Notre Dame Preparatory School
• Oldfields School (all-girls')
• Our Lady of Grace School
• Our Lady of Mt. Carmel
• The Park School
• St. James Academy in Monkton
• St. Paul's School & St. Paul's School for Girls
• St. Timothy's School (all-girls')

Family support services

Family and Children's Services of Central Maryland (FCS) is a private nonprofit organisation.  It offers general counselling, therapy for trauma, support for victims of domestic violence, and in-home assistance for disabled adults to Baltimore County residents.  It gives some services for free, while it gives other services on a sliding-fee scale based on income.  There are other private organisations that give different social services, too.

Communities

Census-designated places

Baltimore County has no "incorporated municipalities" (towns with their own governments) fully inside its borders.  These are the census-designated places that the Census Bureau recognises:

• Arbutus
• Baltimore Highlands
• Bowleys Quarters
• Carney
• Catonsville
• Cockeysville
• Dundalk
• Edgemere
• Essex
• Garrison
• Hampton
• Kingsville
• Lansdowne
• Lochearn
• Lutherville
• Mays Chapel
• Middle River
• Milford Mill
• Overlea
• Owings Mills
• Parkville
• Perry Hall
• Pikesville
• Randallstown
• Reisterstown
• Rosedale
• Rossville
• Timonium
• Towson (county seat)
• White Marsh
• Woodlawn

Unincorporated towns

Although these are not "Census-Designated Places," these are towns that local people know; many have their own post offices and are shown on roadmaps:

• Baldwin
• Boring
• Brooklandville
• Butler
• Chase
• Fork
• Fort Howard
• Fullerton
• Germantown
• Glen Arm
• Glencoe
• Glyndon
• Halethorpe
• Hereford
• Hunt Valley
• Hydes
• Jacksonville
• Long Green
• Maryland Line
• Monkton
• Nottingham
• Oella
• Parkton
• Phoenix
• Ruxton
• Sparks
• Sparrows Point
• Stevenson
• Turners Station
• Upper Falls
• Upperco
• White Hall

Notable residents

• Mario Dewar Barrett, famous R&B singer
• All Time Low, punk-rock band, formed in 2003
• Spiro Agnew, who was once Vice President of the United States, Baltimore County Executive, and governor of Maryland
• Holmes Alexander (1906–1985), historian, journalist, columnist, and member of the Maryland House of Delegates
• Peter Angelos, well-known lawyer and owner of the Baltimore Orioles
• A. J. Burnett, Major League Baseball player
• David Byrne, lead singer Talking Heads
• Tom Clancy, well-known author of political thrillers
• Kevin Clash, puppeteer most famous for Sesame Street's Elmo
• Louis S. Diggs, Baltimore County historian
• Samuel Durrance, Astronaut/Physicist
• Robert Ehrlich, 60th Governor of Maryland
• Jane Frank (1918–1986), artist (born in Baltimore, lived in Owings Mills and Towson most of her adult life)
• Lee Gatch, artist (born in a small rural town near Baltimore)
• Elaine Hamilton, abstract expressionist artist and Fulbright scholar
• Emily Spencer Hayden, photographer
• Foxhall P. Keene (1867–1941), horse breeder and Olympic gold medalist polo player
• Stacy Keibler, Actress and Model
• Harvey Ladew, designer of Ladew Topiary Gardens
• Bucky Lasek, famous vert ramp skateboarder, from Dundalk
• G. E. Lowman, clergyman and early radio evangelist
• Carol Mann, golfer
• Jim McKay, ABC-TV sportscaster
• John Merryman, Civil War militia officer, Maryland politician, and subject of the important habeas corpus case, Ex parte Merryman
• Glenn Milstead, known as the actor "Divine"
• Mo'Nique, American comedienne and actress
• Alexander S. Peak, writer and libertarian activist
• Michael Phelps, Olympic Gold-Medalist swimmer
• Rosa Ponselle, opera singer
• Charles Carnan Ridgely, (1760–1829), governor of Maryland and master of the Hampton estate
• Eliza Ridgely (1803–1867), third mistress of the Hampton estate and the subject of the well-known portrait painting Lady with a Harp
• Mike Rowe, t.v. show host for Dirty Jobs
• Pam Shriver, professional tennis player, Olympic Gold Medalist Tennis
• Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, politician and member of the Kennedy family
• Johnny Unitas, former Baltimore Colt and Hall of Fame football player
• John Waters, filmmaker
• Cheryl Wheeler, singer-songwriter
• Jim Gentile, Gus Triandos, and Mark Belanger, all of whom were Baltimore Orioles in the past
• Brooks Robinson and Jim Palmer, both of whom were Baltimore Orioles and Hall of Famers in the past
• Billy Hunter, major league baseball shortstop and manager in the past
• Bob Turley, major league baseball pitcher in the past
• Dick Szymanski, Baltimore Colt in the past
• Don Shula, Baltimore Colt, later coach of the Miami Dolphins, in the past
• Professional lacrosse players Ryan Boyle and Conor Gill

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Baltimore County, Maryland

External links

• Baltimore County Government
• Baltimore County Public Library system
• Baltimore Co. Public Schools
• Baltimore Weather – Provided by the weather station at UMBC.
• Baltimore County Timeline

[[Category:Maryland counties]] [[Category:1659 establishments]]