Everything about Maryland totally explained
|
IncomeRank = 1
st |
AdmittanceOrder = 7
th |
AdmittanceDate =
April 28,
1788 |
TimeZone =
Eastern:
UTC-5/
-4 |
Latitude = 37° 53′ N to 39° 43′ N |
Longitude = 75° 03′ W to 79° 29′ W |
WidthUS = 101|
Width = 145 |
LengthUS = 249 |
Length = 400 |
HighestPoint =
Hoye Crest |
HighestElevUS = 3,360|
HighestElev = 1,024 |
MeanElevUS = 344 |
MeanElev = 105 |
LowestPoint =
Atlantic Ocean It is comparable in size to the
European country of
Belgium. According to the most recent information provided by the
U.S. Census Bureau, as of August 2007, Maryland is now the wealthiest state in the United States, with a median household income of US$65,144, ahead of
New Jersey which had previously held that title.
It was the seventh state to ratify the
United States Constitution and bears two nicknames, the
Old Line State and the
Free State. Its history as a
border state has led it to exhibit characteristics of both the
Northern and
Southern regions of the United States. Generally, the rural
Southern and
Eastern Shore regions of Maryland reflect a
Southern culture, while densely-populated Central Marylandradiating outward from
Baltimore City and the
Washington Beltwayexhibit characteristics of the
Northeast.
Maryland is a
life sciences hub with over 350 biotechnology firms, making it the third-largest such cluster in the nation. Institutions and agencies located throughout Maryland include
University System of Maryland,
Johns Hopkins University,
Howard Hughes Medical Institute,
Celera Genomics,
Human Genome Sciences (HGS),
The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR), the
Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
Geography
Physical geography
Maryland possesses a great variety of
topography, hence its nickname, "America in Miniature." It ranges from sandy
dunes dotted with seagrass in the east, to low marshlands teeming with water snakes and large
bald cypress near the bay, to gently rolling hills of
oak forest in the
Piedmont Region, and mountain
pine groves in the west.
Maryland is bounded on the north by
Pennsylvania, on the west by
West Virginia, on the east by
Delaware and the
Atlantic Ocean, and on the south, across the
Potomac River, by
West Virginia and
Virginia. The mid-portion of this border is interrupted on the Maryland side by
Washington, DC, which sits on land that was originally part of Maryland. The
Chesapeake Bay nearly bisects the state, and the counties east of the bay are known collectively as the
Eastern Shore. Most of the state's waterways are part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, with the exceptions of a portion of
Garrett County (drained by the
Youghiogheny River as part of the watershed of the
Mississippi River), the eastern half of Worcester County (which drains into Maryland's Atlantic coastal bays), and a small portion of the state's northeast corner (which drains into the
Delaware River watershed). So prominent is the Chesapeake in Maryland's geography and economic life that there has been periodic agitation to change the state's official nickname to the "Bay State," a name currently used by
Massachusetts.
The highest point in Maryland is
Hoye Crest on Backbone Mountain, in the southwest corner of
Garrett County, near the border with West Virginia and near the headwaters of the North Branch of the Potomac River. Maryland's only ski area,
Wisp, is located close to Backbone Mountain. Near the small town of
Hancock, in western Maryland, about two-thirds of the way across the state, the state is only about wide. This geographical curiosity makes Maryland the narrowest state, bordered by the
Mason-Dixon Line to the north, and the north-arching Potomac River to the south.
Portions of Maryland are included in various official and unofficial geographic regions. For example, the
Delmarva Peninsula comprises the Eastern Shore counties of Maryland, the entire State of Delaware, and the two counties that make up the
Eastern Shore of Virginia, while the westernmost counties of Maryland are considered part of
Appalachia. Much of the Baltimore-Washington corridor lies just south of the piedmont in the Coastal Plain, though it straddles the border between the two regions.
A quirk of Maryland's geography is that the state contains no natural lakes. During the last
Ice Age, glaciers didn't reach as far south as Maryland, and therefore didn't carve out deep natural lakes as exist in northern states. There are numerous man-made lakes, the largest being
Deep Creek Lake, a reservoir in
Garrett County. The lack of glacial history also accounts for Maryland's soil, which is more sandy and muddy than the rocky soils of
New England.
Human geography
The majority of Maryland's population is concentrated in the cities and suburbs surrounding
Washington, DC and Maryland's most populous city,
Baltimore. Historically, these and many other Maryland cities developed along the
fall line, the point at which rivers are no longer navigable from sea level due to the presence of rapids or waterfalls. Maryland's capital,
Annapolis, is one exception to this rule, lying along the
Severn River close to where it empties into the Chesapeake Bay. Other major population centers include suburban hubs
Columbia in
Howard County,
Silver Spring,
Rockville and
Gaithersburg in
Montgomery County,
Frederick in
Frederick County and
Hagerstown in
Washington County. The eastern, southern, and western portions of the state tend to be more rural, although they're dotted with cities of regional importance such as
Salisbury and
Ocean City on the
Eastern Shore,
Lexington Park and
Waldorf in
Southern Maryland, and
Cumberland in
Western Maryland.
Image:Annapolis street.jpg|Annapolis
Image:btown.jpg|Baltimore City
Image:Bethesda downtown panorama.jpg|Bethesda
Image:McKeldin Library, front view, mid-afternoon light, August 21, 2006.jpg|College Park
Image:cumberland md downtown.jpg|Cumberland
Image:Ellicott City Main Street.jpg|Ellicott City
Image:Frederick Public Library.jpg|Frederick
Image:Gaithersburg City Hall 1.jpg|Gaithersburg
Image:GreenbeltRooseveltCtr1.jpg|Greenbelt
Image:Hagerstown Downtown Potomac St.JPG|Hagerstown
Image:LaurelMuseum.jpg|Laurel
Image:Ocean City Maryland aerial view north.jpg|Ocean City
Image:Rockvillemd.jpg|Rockville
Image:Ellsworth-ssmd.png|Silver Spring
Climate
Maryland has wide array of climates for a state of its size. It depends on numerous variables, such as proximity to water, elevation, and protection from colder weather due to
downslope winds.
The eastern half of Maryland lies on the
Atlantic Coastal Plain, with very flat topography and very sandy or muddy soil. This region has a
humid subtropical climate (
Köppen Cfa), with hot, humid summers and a short, mild to cool winter. This region includes the cities of
Salisbury,
Annapolis,
Ocean City, and southern and eastern greater
Baltimore.
Beyond this region lies the
Piedmont which lies in the transition between the
humid subtropical climate zone and the
humid continental climate zone (Köppen
Dfa), with hot, humid summers and moderately cold winters where average annual snowfall exceeds 20 inches and temperatures below 10°F are annual occurrences. This region includes
Frederick,
Hagerstown,
Westminster,
Gaithersburg and northern and western greater
Baltimore.
Extreme western Maryland, in the higher elevations of
Allegany County and
Garrett County lie completely in the
Humid continental climate (Köppen
Dfa) due to elevation (more typical of inland
New England and the Midwestern U.S.) with milder summers and cold, snowy winters. Some parts of extreme western Maryland possess the cool summer Humid continental climate (Köppen Dfb), with summer average temperatures below 71 °F.
Precipitation in the state is very generous, as it's on most of the East Coast. Annual rainfall ranges from 40-45 inches (1000-1150 mm) in virtually every part of the state, falling very evenly. Nearly every part of Maryland receives 3.5-4.5 inches (95-110 mm) per month of precipitation. Snowfall varies from 9 inches (23 cm) in the coastal areas to over 100 inches (250 cm) a winter in the western mountains of the state.
Because of its location near the
Atlantic Coast, Maryland is somewhat vulnerable to
tropical cyclones, although the
Delmarva Peninsula, and the outer banks of
North Carolina to the south provide a large buffer, such that a strike from a major hurricane (category 3 or above) isn't very likely. More often, Maryland might get the remnants of a tropical system which has already come ashore and released most of its energy. Maryland averages around 30-40 days of thunderstorms a year, and averages around 6 tornado strikes annually.
| Monthly normal high and low temperatures for various Maryland cities |
| City |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
| Hagerstown | 38/21 |
42/23 |
52/31 |
63/41 |
74/51 |
82/60 |
86/64 |
84/62 |
77/55 |
66/43 |
54/35 |
43/27
|
| Frederick | 41/25 |
46/27 |
56/35 |
67/44 |
77/54 |
85/62 |
89/67 |
87/66 |
80/59 |
68/47 |
57/38 |
46/30
|
| Baltimore | 44/29 |
47/31 |
57/39 |
68/48 |
77/58 |
86/68 |
91/73 |
88/71 |
81/64 |
70/52 |
59/42 |
49/33
|
| Ocean City | 44/28 |
46/30 |
53/35 |
61/44 |
70/53 |
79/62 |
84/67 |
83/67 |
78/62 |
68/51 |
58/41 |
49/32
|
(External Link ) |
Flora and fauna
As is typical of states on the
East Coast, Maryland's plant life is abundant and healthy. A good dose of annual precipitation helps to support many types of plants, including
seagrass and various
reeds at the smaller end of the spectrum to the gigantic
Wye Oak, a huge example of
White oak, the state tree, which can grow in excess of 70 feet (20 m) tall. Maryland also possesses an abundance of pines and
maples among its endemic tree life. Many foreign species are cultivated in the state, some as ornamentals, others as novelty species. Included among these are the
Crape Myrtle,
Italian Cypress,
live oak in the warmer parts of the state, and even
hardy palm trees in the warmer central and eastern parts of the state. USDA plant
hardiness zones in the state range from Zone 5 in the extreme western part of the state to 6 and 7 in the central part, and Zone 8 around the southern part of the coast, the bay area, and most of
metropolitan Baltimore. Large areas of Maryland have problems with
kudzu, an invasive plant species that chokes out growth of endemic plant life. Maryland's state flower, the
Black-eyed Susan, grows in abundance in wild flower groups throughout the state where it often becomes a favorite of the state insect, the
Baltimore Checkerspot Butterfly.
The state harbors a great number of
deer, particularly in the woody and mountainous west of the state, and overpopulation can become a problem from year-to-year. The
Chesapeake Bay provides the state with its huge cash crop of
blue crabs, rockfish, and numerous seabirds. Mammals can be found ranging from the mountains in the west to the central areas and include bears, mountain lions, foxes, raccoons, and Otters. Maryland is famous for its population of rare wild horses found on
Assateague island. Every year an event occurs during which members of the horse population are captured and waded across the Chesapeake to
Chincoteague, Virginia. This conservation technique ensures the tiny island isn't overrun by the horses. Another purebred animal from Maryland is the Chesapeake Bay Retriever dog, which was bred specifically for water sports, hunting and search and rescue in the Chesapeake area. The Chesapeake Bay Retriever was also the first breed recognized by the American Kennel Club in
1878. Maryland's reptile and amphibian population is led by the
Diamondback Terrapin turtle, which was adopted as the mascot of
University of Maryland. The state also hosts the
Baltimore Oriole, which is the official state bird and mascot of the MLB team the Baltimore Orioles.
Lawns in Maryland carry a variety of species, mostly due to its location in the Transition Zone for
lawngrasses. The western part of the state is cold enough to support
Kentucky Bluegrass, and Fine Fescues, which are widespread from the foothills west. The area around the
Chesapeake Bay is usually turfed with transition species such as
Zoysia, Tall fescue, and
Bermudagrass.
St. Augustine grass can be grown in the parts of the state that are in Zone 8.
History
In 1629,
George Calvert, 1st Lord Baltimore in the
Irish House of Lords, fresh from his failure further north with
Newfoundland's Avalon colony, applied to
Charles I for a new royal charter for what was to become the
Province of Maryland. Calvert's interest in creating a colony derived from his
Catholicism and his desire for the creation of a haven for Catholics in the new world. In addition, he was familiar with the fortunes that had been made in tobacco in Virginia, and hoped to recoup some of the financial losses he'd sustained in his earlier colonial venture in Newfoundland. George Calvert died in April 1632, but a charter for "Maryland Colony" (in
Latin, "Terra Maria") was granted to his son,
Cæcilius Calvert, 2nd Lord Baltimore, on
June 20,
1632. The new colony was named in honor of
Henrietta Maria, Queen Consort of Charles I. The specific name given in the charter was phrased "Terra Mariae,
anglice, Maryland". The English name was preferred over the Latin due in part to the undesired association of "Mariae" with the Spanish Jesuit
Juan de Mariana. Leonard, Cecilius' younger brother was put in charge of the expedition because Cecilius didn't want to go.
To try to gain settlers, Maryland used what is known as the
headright system, which originated in Jamestown. The government awarded land to people who transported colonists to Maryland.
On
March 25,
1634, Lord Baltimore sent the first settlers into this area. Although most of the settlers were Protestants, Maryland soon became one of the few regions in the
British Empire where Catholics held the highest positions of political authority. Maryland was also one of the key destinations of tens of thousands of British convicts. The
Maryland Toleration Act of 1649 was one of the first laws that explicitly dictated
religious tolerance, though toleration was limited to Trinitarian Christians.
The royal charter granted Maryland the
Potomac River and territory northward to the fortieth parallel. This proved a problem when
Charles II granted a charter for
Pennsylvania, because the grants (which were made using an inaccurate map) overlapped. Maryland's northern boundary would put
Philadelphia, the major city in Pennsylvania, partially within Maryland, while Pennsylvania's southern boundary would encompass much of Maryland, resulting in conflict between the
Calvert family, which controlled Maryland, and the
Penn family, which controlled Pennsylvania. This led to the
Cresap's War (also known as the Conojocular War), a border conflict between Pennsylvania and Maryland, fought in the 1730s. Hostilities erupted in 1730 with a series of violent incidents prompted by disputes over property rights and law enforcement, and escalated through the first half of the decade, culminating in the deployment of military forces by Maryland in 1736 and by Pennsylvania in 1737. The armed phase of the conflict ended in May 1738 with the intervention of King George II, who compelled the negotiation of a cease-fire. A final settlement wasn't achieved until 1767, when the
Mason-Dixon Line was recognized as the permanent boundary between the two colonies.
After
Virginia made the practice of
Anglicanism mandatory, a large number of Puritans migrated from Virginia to Maryland, and were given land for a settlement called Providence (now
Annapolis). In 1650, the Puritans revolted against the proprietary government and set up a new government that outlawed both
Catholicism and Anglicanism. In March 1654, the
2nd Lord Baltimore sent an army under the command of Governor
William Stone to put down the revolt. His
Roman Catholic army was decisively defeated by a
Puritan army near Annapolis in what was to be known as the "Battle of the Severn".
The Puritan revolt lasted until 1658. In that year the Calvert family regained control of the colony and re-enacted the Toleration Act. However, after England's "
Glorious Revolution" of 1688, when
William of Orange and his wife Mary came to the throne and firmly established the Protestant faith in England, Catholicism was again outlawed in Maryland, until after the American
Revolutionary War. Many wealthy plantation owners built chapels on their land so they could practice their Catholicism in relative secrecy. During the persecution of Maryland Catholics by the
Puritan revolutionary government, all of the original Catholic churches of southern Maryland were burned down.
St. Mary's City was the largest site of the original Maryland colony, and was the seat of the colonial government until 1708. St Mary's is now an archaeological site, with a small tourist center. In 1708, the seat of government was moved to Providence, which had been renamed
Annapolis. The city was renamed in honor of
Queen Anne in 1694.
Most of the English colonists arrived in Maryland as indentured servants, hiring themselves out as laborers for a fixed period to pay for their passage. In the early years the line between indentured servants and African slaves or laborers was fluid. Some Africans were allowed to earn their freedom before slavery became a lifelong status. Most of the free colored families formed in Maryland before the Revolution were descended from relationships or marriages between servant or free white women and enslaved, servant or free African or African-American men. Many such families migrated to Delaware, where land was cheaper. As the flow of indentured laborers to the colony decreased with improving economic conditions in England, more slaves were imported. The economy's growth and prosperity was based on slave labor, devoted first to the production of tobacco.
Maryland was one of the
thirteen colonies that revolted against British rule in the
American Revolution. On
February 2,
1781, Maryland became the 13th state to approve the ratification of the
Articles of Confederation which brought into being the United States as a united,
sovereign and
national state. It also became the seventh state admitted to the US after ratifying the new Constitution. The following year, in December of 1790, Maryland ceded land selected by President
George Washington to the federal government for the creation of
Washington, D.C.. The land was provided from
Montgomery and
Prince George's Counties, as well as from
Fairfax County and
Alexandria in
Virginia (though the lands from Virginia were later returned through
retrocession). The land provided to
Washington, D.C. is actually "sitting" inside the state of Maryland (land that's now defunct in theory).
During the
War of 1812, the British military attempted to capture the port of Baltimore, which was protected by
Fort McHenry. It was during this bombardment that
the Star Spangled Banner was written by
Francis Scott Key.
Despite widespread support for the
Confederate States of America among many wealthy landowners, who had a vested interest in slavery, Maryland didn't secede from the Union during the
American Civil War. This may be due in part to the temporary suspension of the Legislature by Governor
Thomas Holliday Hicks and arrest of many of its
fire eaters by President
Abraham Lincoln prior to its reconvening. Many historians contend that the votes for secession wouldn't have been there regardless of these actions. Of the 115,000 men who joined the militaries during the Civil War, 85,000, or 77%, joined the Union army. To help ensure Maryland's inclusion in the Union, President Lincoln suspended several civil liberties, including the writ of habeas corpus, an act deemed illegal by Maryland native Chief Justice
Roger Taney. Lincoln ordered US troops to place artillery on
Federal Hill to directly threaten the city of
Baltimore, and helped to ensure the election of a new pro-union governor and legislature. President Lincoln even went so far as to jail certain pro-South members of the state legislature at
Fort McHenry including the Mayor of Baltimore,
George William Brown. Ironically, the grandson of
Francis Scott Key was included in those jailed. The Constitutionality of these actions is still a source of controversy and debate. Because Maryland remained in the Union, it was exempted from the anti-slavery provisions of the
Emancipation Proclamation (The Emancipation Proclamation only applied to states in rebellion). A
constitutional convention was held during 1864 that culminated in the passage of a new state constitution on November 1 of that year. Article 24 of that document outlawed the practice of
slavery. The right to vote was extended to non-white males in 1867.
Demographics
As of 2006, Maryland has an estimated population of 5,615,727, which is an increase of 26,128, or 0.5%, from the prior year and an increase of 319,221, or 6.0%, since the year 2000. This includes a natural increase since the last census of 189,158 people (that is 464,251 births minus 275,093 deaths) and an increase due to net migration of 116,713 people into the state. Immigration from outside the United States resulted in a net increase of 129,730 people, and migration within the country produced a net loss of 13,017 people.
In 2006, 645,744 were counted as foreign born, which represents mainly people from Latin America and Asia. About 4.0% are undocumented (illegal) immigrants. Maryland also has a large Korean American population. In fact, 1.7% are Korean, while as a whole, almost 6.0% are Asian.
Most of the population of Maryland lives in the central region of the state, in the
Baltimore Metropolitan Area and
Washington Metropolitan Area, both of which are part of the
Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The Eastern Shore is less populous and more rural, as are the counties of western and southern Maryland.
The two counties of Western Maryland,
Allegany and
Garrett, are mountainous and sparsely populated, resembling
West Virginia more than they do the rest of Maryland.
The
center of population of Maryland is located on the county line between
Anne Arundel County and
Howard County, in the
unincorporated town of
Jessup (External Link).
Race
The five largest reported ancestries in Maryland are
German (15.7%),
Irish (11.7%),
English (9%), unspecified
American (5.8%), and
Italian (5.1%
(External Link)).
African-Americans are concentrated in
Baltimore City,
Prince George's County, and the southern Eastern Shore. Most of the
Eastern Shore and
Southern Maryland are populated by Marylanders of British ancestry, with the Eastern Shore traditionally Methodist and the southern counties Catholic. Western and northern Maryland have large
German-American populations.
Italians and
Poles are centered mostly in the large city of
Baltimore. Jews are numerous throughout
Montgomery County and in
Pikesville northwest of
Baltimore. Hispanics are numerous in
Hyattsville/
Langley Park,
Wheaton and
Gaithersburg.
Maryland has one of the largest proportions of racial minorities in the country, trailing only the four
minority-majority states.
The city of Baltimore and Maryland's 23 counties levy local "piggyback" income taxes at rates between 1.25% and 3.2% of Maryland taxable income. Local officials set the rates and the revenue is returned to the local governments quarterly. Maryland's state sales tax is 6%. All real property in Maryland is subject to the property tax. Generally, properties that are owned and used by religious, charitable, or educational organizations or property owned by the federal, state or local governments are exempt. Property tax rates vary widely. No restrictions or limitations on property taxes are imposed by the state, meaning cities and counties can set tax rates at the level they deem necessary to fund governmental services. These rates can increase, decrease or remain the same from year to year. If the proposed tax rate increases the total property tax revenues, the governing body must advertise that fact and hold a public hearing on the new tax rate. This is called the Constant Yield Tax Rate process.
Baltimore City is the eighth largest port in the nation, and was at the center of the February 2006 controversy over the Dubai Ports World deal because it was considered to be of such strategic importance. The state as a whole is heavily industrialized, with a booming economy and influential technology centers. Its computer industries are some of the most sophisticated in the United States, and the federal government has invested heavily in the area. Maryland is home to several large military bases and scores of high level government jobs.
Transportation
Roads
Interstate highways include I-95, which enters the northeast portion of the state, goes through Baltimore, and becomes part of the eastern section of the Capital Beltway to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge. I-68 connects the western portions of the state to I-70 at the small town of Hancock. I-70 continues east to Baltimore, connecting Hagerstown and Frederick along the way. I-83 connects Baltimore to southern central Pennsylvania (Harrisburg and York, Pennsylvania). Maryland also has a portion of I-81 that runs through the state near Hagerstown. I-97, fully contained within Anne Arundel County and the shortest one- or two-digit Interstate highway outside of Hawaii, connects the Baltimore area to the Annapolis area.
There are also several auxiliary Interstate highways in Maryland. Among them are two beltways encircling the major cities of the region: I-695, the McKeldin (Baltimore) Beltway, which encircles Baltimore; a portion of I-495, and the Capital Beltway, which encircles Washington, D.C. I-270, which connects the Frederick area with Northern Virginia and the District of Columbia through major suburbs to the northwest of Washington, is a major commuter route and is as wide as fourteen lanes at points. Both I-270 and the Capital Beltway are currently extremely congested; however, the ICC or Intercounty Connector, which began construction in November 2007, is hoped to alleviate some of the congestion over time. Construction of the ICC was a major part of the campaign platform of former Governor Robert Ehrlich, who was in office from 2003 until 2007, and of Governor Martin O'Malley, who succeeded him.
Maryland also has a state highway system that contains routes numbered from 2 through 999, however most of the higher-numbered routes are either not signed or are relatively short. Major state highways include Routes 2 (Governor Ritchie Highway/Solomons Island Road), 4, 5, 32, 45 (York Road), 97 (Georgia Avenue), 100, 210 (Indian Head Highway), 295 (Baltimore-Washington Parkway), 355, and 404.
Airports
Maryland's largest airport is Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (formerly known as Friendship Airport and recently renamed for Baltimore-born former and first African-American Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall). The only other airports with commercial service are at Hagerstown and Salisbury. The Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C., are also serviced by the other two airports in the region, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Dulles International Airport, both in Northern Virginia.
Trains
Amtrak trains serve Baltimore's Penn Station, BWI Airport, New Carrollton, and Aberdeen along the Northeast Corridor. In addition, train service is provided to Rockville and Cumberland on the Amtrak Capitol Limited. MARC commuter trains, operated by the State's Transit Authority, connect nearby Washington, D.C., Frederick, Baltimore, and many towns between. The Washington Metro subway and bus system serve Montgomery County and Prince George's County. The Maryland Transit Administration's light rail and short subway system serve Baltimore City and adjacent suburbs.
Law and government
The Government of Maryland is conducted according to the state constitution. The Government of Maryland, like the other 49 state governments, has exclusive authority over matters that lie entirely within the state's borders, except as limited by the Constitution of the United States. Maryland is a republic; the United States guarantees her "republican form of government" although there's considerable disagreement about the meaning of that phrase.
Power in Maryland is divided among three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial. The Maryland General Assembly is composed of the Maryland House of Delegates and the Maryland Senate. Maryland's governor is unique in the United States as the office is vested with significant authority in budgeting. The legislature may not increase the governor's proposed budget expenditures. Unlike most other states, significant autonomy is granted to many of Maryland's counties.
Most of the business of government is conducted in Annapolis, the state capital. Virtually all state and county elections are held in even-numbered years not divisible by four, in which the President of the United States isn't elected - this, as in other states, is intended to divide state and federal politics.
The judicial branch of state government consists of one united District Court of Maryland that sits in every county and Baltimore City, as well as 24 Circuit Courts sitting in each County and Baltimore City, the latter being courts of general jurisdiction for all civil disputes over $25,000.00, all equitable jurisdiction and major criminal proceedings. The intermediate appellate court is known as the "Court of Special Appeals" and the state supreme court is the "Court of Appeals". The appearance of the judges of the Maryland Court of Appeals is unique in that Maryland is the only state whose judges wear red robes.
Politics
Since pre-Civil War times, Maryland politics has been largely controlled by the Democrats. Even as the politics of the Democratic party have shifted, over the last century, the views of the state have shifted with them. Blue-collar "Reagan Democrats" frequently vote Republican, but Maryland is nonetheless well-known for its loyalty to the Democratic Party, especially inside metropolitan areas. The state is dominated by the two urban/inner suburban regions of Baltimore and Washington, D.C. . In addition, many jobs are directly or indirectly dependent upon the federal government. As a result, Baltimore, Montgomery County and Prince George's County often decide statewide elections. This is balanced by lesser populated areas on the Eastern Shore, Western Maryland, and outer suburbs that tend to support Republicans, even though seven of nine Shore counties have Democratic-majority voter rolls.
Maryland has supported the Democratic nominee in the last four presidential elections, and by an average of 15.4%. In 1980, it was one of just six states to vote for Jimmy Carter. Maryland is often among the Democratic nominees' best states. In 1992, Bill Clinton fared better in Maryland than any other state except his home state of Arkansas. In 1996, Maryland was Clinton's 6th best, in 2000 Maryland ranked 4th for Gore and in 2004 John Kerry showed his 5th best performance in Maryland.
Both Maryland Senators and six of its eight Representatives in Congress are Democrats, and Democrats hold super-majorities in the state Senate and House of Delegates. The previous Governor, Robert Ehrlich, was the first Republican to be elected to that office in four decades, and after one term lost his seat to Baltimore Mayor Martin J. O'Malley, a Democrat.
U.S. Congressman Steny Hoyer (MD-5), a Democrat, is the Majority Leader for the 110th Congress of the House of Representatives. His district covers parts of Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties, in addition to all of Charles, Calvert and St. Mary's counties in southern Maryland.
John Kerry easily won the state's 10 electoral votes in 2004 by a margin of 13 percentage points with 55.9% of the vote. However, presidential election years are not deeply contested as national party resources are spent mostly in swing states.
The 2006 election cycle witnessed no significant change in this pattern of Democratic dominance, even though there were two major highly-contested races. After Democratic Senator Paul Sarbanes announced that he was retiring, Democratic Congressman Benjamin Cardin defeated Republican Lieutenant Governor Michael S. Steele, with 55% of the vote, against Steele's 44%. The governorship was also a point of interest, as Republican incumbent Robert Ehrlich was defeated by Democratic challenger Martin O'Malley, the Mayor of Baltimore, 53% to 46%. Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan, another leading candidate for the Democratic slot, pulled out of the highly anticipated primary, announcing his withdrawal on June 22, 2006, citing clinical depression.
While Maryland is a Democratic party stronghold, perhaps its best known political figure is a Republican - former Governor Spiro Agnew, who served as United States Vice President under Richard Nixon. He was Vice President from 1969 to 1973, when he resigned in the aftermath of revelations that he'd taken bribes while he was Governor of Maryland. In late 1973, a court found Agnew guilty of violating tax laws.
The late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall was raised in Baltimore, and during his time on the bench represented the liberal wing of the court that allowed abortion on a federal level, and uphold laws eliminating racial discrimination in the public and private spheres.
Education
Primary and secondary education
Public primary and secondary education in Maryland is overseen by the Maryland State Department of Education. The highest educational official in the state is the State Superintendent of Schools, currently Dr. Nancy Grasmick, who is appointed by the State Board of Education to a four-year term of office. The Maryland General Assembly has given the Superintendent and State Board autonomy to make educationally-related decisions, limiting its own influence on the day to day functions of public education. Each county and county-equivalent in Maryland has a local Board of Education charged with running the public schools in that particular jurisdiction.
Maryland has a broad range of private primary and secondary schools. Many of these are affiliated with various religious sects, including parochial schools of the Catholic Church, Quaker schools, Seventh-day Adventist schools, and Jewish schools. In 2003, Maryland law was changed to allow for the creation of publicly funded charter schools, although the charter schools must be approved by their local Board of Education and are not exempt from state laws on education, including collective bargaining laws.
On January 21, 2008, Philippine Consul Rico Fos announced that Baltimore, Maryland will employ an additional 178 new Filipino public school teachers this school year, bringing to a total of 1,000, the number of Filipino teachers in the metropolitan Washington (which includes parts of Maryland and Virginia). Maryland has a yearly shortage of 6,000 teachers.
Colleges and universities
The oldest college in Maryland, and the third oldest college in the United States, is St. John's College, founded in 1696 as King William's School. Maryland has 18 other private colleges and universities, the most prominent of which is Johns Hopkins University, founded in 1876 with a grant from Baltimore entrepreneur Johns Hopkins.
The first and largest public university in the state is the University of Maryland, College Park, which was founded as the Maryland Agricultural College in 1856 and became a public land grant college in 1864. The majority of public universities in the state are affiliated with the University System of Maryland. Two state-funded institutions, Morgan State University and St. Mary's College, as well as two federally funded institutions, the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and the United States Naval Academy are not affiliated with the University System of Maryland.
Sports
With two major metropolitan areas, Maryland has a number of major and minor professional sports franchises. Two National Football League teams play in Maryland, the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore and the Washington Redskins in Prince George's County. The Baltimore Orioles are the state's Major League Baseball franchise. The National Hockey League's Washington Capitals and the National Basketball Association's Washington Wizards formerly played in Maryland, until the construction of a Washington arena in 1997 (originally known as MCI Center, renamed Verizon Center in 2006). Maryland enjoys considerable historical repute for the talented sports players of its past, including: Cal Ripken Jr. and Babe Ruth.
Other professional sports franchises in the state include five affiliated minor league baseball teams, one independent league baseball team, an indoor soccer team, two indoor football teams, and three low-level outdoor soccer teams.
The official state sport of Maryland, since 1962, is jousting; the official team sport since 2004 is lacrosse. In 2008, intending to promote physical fitness for all ages, a bill was introduced in the state legislature to add walking as the official state exercise.
Further Information
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