Beltsville, Maryland

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Beltsville, Maryland
settlement_type = CDP
nickname =
motto =

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mapsize = 250x200px
map_caption = Location of Beltsville, Maryland


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = Maryland
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Prince George's
government_footnotes =
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leader_title =
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unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =
area_magnitude =
area_total_km2 = 17.2
area_land_km2 = 17.2
area_water_km2 = 0.0
area_total_sq_mi = 6.6
area_land_sq_mi = 6.6
area_water_sq_mi = 0.0

population_as_of = 2000
population_footnotes =
population_total = 15690
population_density_km2 = 913.9
population_density_sq_mi = 2366.9

timezone = Eastern (EST)
utc_offset = -5
timezone_DST = EDT
utc_offset_DST = -4
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 41
elevation_ft = 135
latd = 39 |latm = 2 |lats = 15 |latNS = N
longd = 76 |longm = 55 |longs = 4 |longEW = W

postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 20704-20705
area_code = 301
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 24-06400
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0597069
website =
footnotes =

Beltsville is a census-designated place (CDP) in northern Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. The population was 15,691 at the 2000 census.

Geography

Beltsville is located at coor dms|39|2|15|N|76|55|4|W|city (39.037509, -76.917847)GR|1, adjacent to the Montgomery County-Prince George's County line.

According to the United States Census Bureau, Beltsville has a total area of 6.6 square miles (17.2 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 15,690 people, 5,690 households, and 3,823 families residing in Beltsville. The population density was 2,366.9 people per square mile (913.7/km²). There were 5,865 housing units at an average density of 884.8/sq mi (341.6/km²). The racial makeup of Beltsville is 48.20% White, 31.96% African American, 0.26% Native American, 10.75% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 5.42% from other races, and 3.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 9.84% of the population.

There were 5,690 households out of which 32.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.0% were married couples living together, 13.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 23.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.74 and the average family size was 3.27.

In Beltsville the population is spread out with 23.6% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 34.5% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, and 8.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.8 males.

The median income for a household in Beltsville is $57,722, and the median income for a family was $66,087. Males had a median income of $40,914 versus $35,645 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $24,679. About 5.5% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.4% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

History

Beltsville's history dates back to 1649, when the land was part of an convert|80000|acre|km2|0|sing=on land grant given to Richard Snowden I by Lord Baltimore of England. Snowden and his family were planters who established large plantations on which they built comfortable manor homes. Soon after, other settlers also moved into the area, but they were farmers who could only afford a few acres of land and whose families lived in small cabins. The principal crop was tobacco, most of which was shipped to England. Because of the fertile soil and desirable growing conditions, the crops prospered.

Industry came to Beltsville in the early 1700s when iron ore was discovered in the area. The Muirkirk Iron Furnace on U.S. 1 was established by Andrew and Elias Elliott, who learned their iron-making skills in Muirkirk, Scotland. They produced some of the best-quality pig iron in the country and supplied the U.S. Army with cannons, shot, wheels, and other iron products during both the Revolutionary and Civil Wars.

By 1730, Post Road (now called Route 1) was the main thoroughfare through Beltsville. Though crude, it made stagecoach travel possible. In 1783, Gabriel Peterson Van Horn established a stage line and built the Van Horn Tavern on Odell Road, where passengers could spend the night as they traveled between Baltimore and Washington. The trip took one and one-half days.

Beltsville boasts a distinguished Revolutionary War hero as its native son. General Rezin Beall, who was born on Turkey Flight Plantation on Old Gunpowder Road in 1723, prevented a British invasion at Drum Point on the Chesapeake Bay with only 100 men. He is credited with the fact that there are no Revolutionary War battlefields in Maryland.

In 1835 one of the first rail lines in the country, the Washington branch of the B&O Railroad, was built through Prince George's County. Coming from Baltimore, the line entered the county at Laurel and ran southwesterly to Bladensburg, then into Washington DC. B&O established a rail stop and freight depot on land purchased from a tobacco farmer named Trueman Belt, and they named the place after him. The new community of Beltsville was doubly blessed, for the Baltimore-Washington Turnpike crossed the rail line there. It soon became a thriving little trading center, eclipsing the older community of Vansville further north on the pike.

[
National Agricultural Library in Beltsville]

As the Federal Government grew, in 1910 the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) began to purchase land in Beltsville for its Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the main in-house research arm of the United States Department of Agriculture. The land now houses the Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC). The first parcel acquired was convert|375|acre|km2|1 of the Walnut Grange Plantation with its historic [http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=7342 "Butterfly House"] . The Center eventually encompassed convert|14600|acre|km2|0 and became the largest and most prominent center of agricultural science research in the world.

There are a number of historic homes and buildings still standing in Beltsville. The oldest home was built in 1773. One of the largest of the older buildings, built in 1880, was the three-story [http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=pphhphoto&action=browse&fileName=md/md1100/md1166/photos/browse.db&recNum=0&itemLink=D?hh:2:./temp/~pp_xxLs::&title2=Ammendale+Normal+Institute,+6101+Ammendale+Road,+Beltsville,+Prince+George's+County,+MD&displayType=1 "Ammendale Normal Institute"] which was destroyed by fire in 1998. Beltsville has grown because of its location on the Route 1 corridor and because its residents have always been industrious and progressive. With churches of all denominations, schools, activity centers for both children and adults, and civic organizations, it continues to grow and prosper. Through all its growth, however, Beltsville continues to have a small-town feel.

Experimental post-hardcore band Thrice recorded The Illusion of Safety here and dedicated a song to the city, name 'The Beltsville Crucible'.

Education

Primary and secondary schools

Public schools

Beltsville's public schools are a part of the Prince George's County Public Schools system.

Public elementary schools include:
* [http://www.pgcps.org/~beltsvac Beltsville Elementary School] on Wicomico Avenue
* [http://www.pgcps.org/~calvert Calverton Elementary School] on Beltsville Road

Public middle schools include:
* [http://www.pgcps.org/~mlkms Martin Luther King Middle School] on Ammendale Road

Public high schools include:
*High Point High School [http://www.pgcps.org/~hpoint] on Powder Mill Road

Private schools

There are also three parochial schools in Beltsville: Augsburg Academy (Lutheran), St Joseph's School (Roman Catholic), and Beltsville Seventh-day Adventist (SDA).

Augsburg Academy, a K-8 school that is affiliated with Augsburg Evangelical Church, opened in 2005. Its curriculum is based on the curriculum of Hillsdale Academy, the K-12 school affiliated with Hillsdale College, Michigan.

Trivia

* Beltsville is home to the corporate offices of Ritz Camera Centers. The chain includes Ritz Camera, Wolf Camera, Kit's Camera, Inkley's, Cameras West, and The Camera Shop. The company also owns Boater's World Marine Centers, which is headquartered in the same building. [http://www.ritzpix.com]

* Comic book writer and illustrator Frank Cho grew up in Beltsville, and often draws his characters with T-shirts sporting the town's name.

References

External links

* [http://www.beltsville.com/ Beltsville website] (including links to "The Beltsville News")
* [http://www.beltsvillerec.org/ Beltville Community Center and Recreation Council]
* [http://www.mdp.state.md.us/MSDC/census/cen2000/maps/PLC00/prinplc.pdf A scalable PDF map of Prince George's County, MD showing the boundaries of the Beltsville Census Designated Place and other CDPs and Census Incorporated Places in the county -- from the Maryland Department of Planning web site]