Hagerstown, Maryland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hagerstown, Maryland
City
City of Hagerstown
Downtown Hagerstown's southbound Potomac Street in November 2007.
Seal
Nicknames:  Hub City, Maryland's Gateway to the West, H-Town, (formerly) Home of the Flying Boxcar
Motto(s):  A Great Place to Live, Work, and Visit
Location in Maryland and in Washington County
Hagerstown, Maryland Location in Maryland Show map of Maryland Hagerstown, Maryland Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Maryland
County	Washington
Founded	1762
Incorporated	1813
Area
• City	12.56 sq mi (32.54 km2)
• Land	12.55 sq mi (32.51 km2)
• Water	0.01 sq mi (0.03 km2)
• Urban	76.7 sq mi (196.4 km2)
• Metro	1,019 sq mi (2,637 km2)
Elevation	538 ft (164 m)
Population  (2020)
• City	43,527
• Density	3,467.18/sq mi (1,338.71/km2)
• Urban	120,326
• Urban density	1,568.8/sq mi (612.7/km2)
• Metro	269,140
• Metro density	264.12/sq mi (102.063/km2)
• Demonym	Hagerstonian
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP code(s)	21740-21749
Area code(s)	301, 240
FIPS code	24-36075
GNIS feature ID	0598385
Website	www.hagerstownmd.org

Hagerstown hay-GƏRZ-town is a city in Washington County, Maryland, United States and the county seat of Washington County. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the Hagerstown metropolitan area (extending into West Virginia) was 269,140. Hagerstown ranks as Maryland's sixth-largest incorporated city and is the largest city in the Panhandle.

Hagerstown has a distinct topography, formed by stone ridges running from northeast to southwest through the center of town. Geography accordingly bounds its neighborhoods. These ridges consist of upper Stonehenge limestone. Many of the older buildings were built from this stone, which is easily quarried and dressed onsite. It whitens in weathering and the edgewise conglomerate and wavy laminae become distinctly visible, giving a handsome and uniquely "Cumberland Valley" appearance. Several of Hagerstown's churches are constructed of Stonehenge limestone. Its value and beauty as building rock may be seen particularly in St. John's Episcopal Church on West Antietam Street and the Presbyterian Church at the corner of Washington and Prospect Streets. Brick and concrete eventually displaced this native stone in the construction process.

Hagerstown anchors the Hagerstown metropolitan area, which lies just northwest of the Washington–Baltimore–Northern Virginia, DC–MD–VA–WV Combined Statistical Area in the heart of the Great Appalachian Valley. The population of the metropolitan area in 2010 was 269,140. Greater Hagerstown is the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the state of Maryland and among the fastest growing in the United States, as of 2009.

Despite its semi-rural Western Maryland setting, Hagerstown is a center of transit and commerce. Interstates 81 and 70, CSX, Norfolk Southern, and the Winchester and Western railroads, and Hagerstown Regional Airport form an extensive transportation network for the city. Hagerstown is also the chief commercial and industrial hub for a greater Tri-State Area that includes much of Western Maryland as well as significant portions of South Central Pennsylvania and the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia. Hagerstown has often been referred to as, and is nicknamed, the Hub City. A person born in Hagerstown is officially called a Hagerstonian.

History

Founding

The Hager House and Museum in Hagerstown City Park was once home to the city's founder, Jonathan Hager.

Burnside's Bridge, a site of heavy combat in the Battle of Antietam, which occurred south of Hagerstown.

Hagerstown Public Square circa 1900.

In 1739, Jonathan Hager, a German immigrant from Pennsylvania and a volunteer Captain of Scouts, purchased 200 acres (81 ha) of land in the Great Appalachian Valley between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains in Maryland and called it Hager’s Fancy. In 1762, Hager officially founded the town of Elizabethtown which he named after his wife, Elizabeth Kershner. Fourteen years later, Jonathan Hager became known as the "Father of Washington County" after his efforts helped Hagerstown become the county seat of newly created Washington County which Hager also helped create from neighboring Frederick County, Maryland. The City Council changed the community's name to Hager's-Town in 1813 because the name had gained popular usage, and in the following year, the Maryland State Legislature officially endorsed the changing of the town’s name.

In 1794 government forces arrested 150 citizens during a draft riot which was staged by protesters in response to the Whiskey Rebellion.

American Civil War

Hagerstown's strategic location at the border between the North and the South made the city a primary staging area and supply center for four major campaigns during the Civil War. In 1861, General Robert Patterson's troops used Hagerstown as a base to attack Virginia troops in the Shenandoah Valley. In the Maryland Campaign of 1862, General James Longstreet's command occupied the town while en route to the Battle of South Mountain and Antietam. In 1863, the city was the site of several military incursions and engagements as Gen. Robert E. Lee's army invaded and retreated in the Gettysburg Campaign. In 1864, Hagerstown was invaded by the Confederate army under Lt. Gen. Jubal Early. On Wednesday, July 6, Early sent 1,500 cavalry, commanded by Brig. Gen. John McCausland, into Hagerstown. The Confederates levied a ransom of $20,000 and a large amount of clothing, in retribution for U.S. destruction of farms, feed and cattle in the Shenandoah Valley. This is in contrast to neighboring Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, which McCausland razed on July 30 when the borough failed to supply the requested ransom of $500,000 in U.S. currency, or $100,000 in gold.

Throughout the Civil War, private physicians and citizens of Hagerstown gave assistance or aid to men from both the North and South in a number of locations, including the Franklin Hotel, Washington House, Lyceum, Hagerstown Male Academy, Key-Mar College, and a number of private residences.

The spread of smallpox by returning soldiers to families and friends was a substantial problem during the war.

Following the war, in 1872 Maryland and Virginia cooperated to re-inter Confederate dead from their impromptu graves to cemeteries in Hagerstown, Frederick and Shepherdstown, West Virginia. Roughly 60% however, remained unidentified. In 1877, 15 years after the Battle of Antietam, also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg, approximately 2,800 Confederate dead from that battle and also from the battles on South Mountain were re-interred in Washington Confederate Cemetery, within Rose Hill Cemetery in Hagerstown.

Railroads

Hagerstown's nickname of the "Hub City" came from the large number of railroads (and roads) that served the city. Hagerstown was the center of the Western Maryland Railway and an important city on the Pennsylvania, Norfolk and Western, Baltimore and Ohio, and Hagerstown and Frederick Railroads. Currently, the city is a vital location on CSX, Norfolk Southern, and the Winchester and Western Railroads.

Hagerstown was formerly served by the Hagerstown & Frederick Railway, an interurban trolley system, from 1896 to 1947.

Little Heiskell

The weathervane known as "Little Heiskell," a symbol of the city of Hagerstown, Maryland.

One of the most recognizable symbols of Hagerstown is the weathervane known as "Little Heiskell." Named after the German tinsmith Benjamin Heiskell who crafted it in 1769 in the form of a Hessian soldier, it stood atop the Market House first and City Hall second for a combined 166 years. It was moved from the Market House to City Hall in 1824.

During the Civil War era, the weathervane gained its characteristic bullet hole from a Confederate sharpshooter, who won a bet after shooting it from a full city block away.

Finally in 1935, the original was retired to the Museum of the Washington County Historical Society, later to be moved to its present display in the Jonathan Hager House. An exact replica has replaced it atop City Hall.

The weathervane has also been depicted in the city's annual Mummers Day Parade by Mr. Charles Harry Rittenhouse, Sr. sporting all of the necessary accoutrements of a German Mercenary Soldier.

Little Heiskell was at one time the mascot of North Hagerstown High School.

Aviation heritage

Hagerstown's first aircraft production came in World War I with the Maryland Pressed Steel Company building the Bellanca CD biplane in hopes of securing government contracts.

From 1931 to 1984, Fairchild Aircraft was based in Hagerstown and was by far the area's most prominent employer. The importance of the company to the city and the country as a whole earned Hagerstown its former nickname "Home of the Flying Boxcar."

Fairchild moved to Hagerstown from Farmingdale, New York, in 1931 after Sherman Fairchild purchased a majority stock interest in Kreider-Reisner Aircraft Company of Hagerstown in 1929. Among Fairchild's products during World War II were PT-19/PT-23/PT-26 (Cornell) and AT-21 trainers, C-82 "Packet" cargo planes and missiles. At its height in World War II, Fairchild employed directly and indirectly up to 80% of Hagerstown's workforce or roughly 10,000 people.

In the postwar era, Fairchild continued to produce aircraft in Hagerstown such as C-123 Provider, Fairchild F-27 and Fairchild Hiller FH-227, FH-1100, C-26 Metroliner, UC-26 Metroliner, Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II, and the Fairchild T-46 jet trainer.

Passenger terminal at Hagerstown Regional Airport-Richard A. Henson Field.

All production ceased in Hagerstown in 1984 and the company moved elsewhere. Presently, the company is based in San Antonio, Texas and after a series of mergers and acquisitions, is known as M7 Aerospace.

The Hagerstown Aviation Museum shows many of these original aircraft. Among the ones on display are: 1939 F24/UC-61C, 1945 C-82A, 1943 PT-19A, and the 1953 C-119. The museum is located near Hagerstown Regional Airport in the airport's former terminal.

Hagerstown is also the birthplace of Salisbury, Maryland-based Piedmont Airlines which started out as Henson Aviation. It was founded by Richard A. Henson in 1931. Today, Hagerstown Regional Airport-Richard A. Henson Field is named as such in honor of the airlines' founder.

Today, only small to medium-sized aviation companies remain in the area. Two notable names include Fugro EarthData, which maintains its aviation division in Hagerstown, and Sierra Nevada Corporation, a defense electronics engineering and manufacturing contractor.

Geography

Location and topography

Hagerstown is located at 39°38′34″N 77°43′12″W / 39.64278°N 77.72000°W / 39.64278; -77.72000 (39.642771, -77.719954). It is south of the Mason–Dixon line and north of the Potomac River and between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains in a part of the Great Appalachian Valley known regionally as Cumberland Valley and locally as Hagerstown Valley. The community also lies within close proximity of Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Virginia. Hagerstown, by driving distance, is approximately 70 miles (110 km) northwest of Washington, D.C., 72 miles (116 km) west-northwest of Baltimore, Maryland, and 74 miles (119 km) southwest of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.80 square miles (30.56 km²), of which, 11.79 square miles (30.54 km²) is land and 0.01 square miles (0.03 km²) is water. Major waterways within Hagerstown include Hamilton Run and Antietam Creek that are tributaries of the Potomac River. Natural landscape around Hagerstown consists of low, rolling hills with elevations of 500 feet (150 m) to 800 feet (240 m) above sea level and rich, fertile land that is well-suited and utilized for dairy farming, cornfields, and fruit orchards typical of Mid-Atlantic agriculture.

Climate

Hagerstown is situated in the transition between the humid subtropical climate zone and the humid continental climate zone (Köppen Dfa), with hot, humid summers and cool to moderately cold winters.

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 39,662 people, 16,449 households, and 9,436 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,364.0 inhabitants per square mile (1,298.8/km²). There were 18,682 housing units at an average density of 1,584.6 per square mile (611.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 75.8% White, 15.5% African American, 0.3% Native American, 1.3% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.1% from other races, and 5.1% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.6% of the population.

There were 16,449 households, of which 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.6% were married couples living together, 18.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 42.6% were non-families. 34.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 3.04.

The median age in the city was 34.5 years. 25.8% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 28.6% were from 25 to 44; 24% were from 45 to 64; and 12.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.3% male and 52.7% female. Between 2011 and 2015, 26.8% of the population lived in poverty.

Culture

Historical sites

Hagerstown's location at the center of the Western Maryland region makes it an ideal starting point for touring, especially with respect to the Civil War. Antietam National Battlefield, the site of the bloodiest single day in American history, is located in nearby Sharpsburg, Maryland. South Mountain State Battlefield is also located in Washington County in Boonsboro. Gettysburg, Monocacy, and Harpers Ferry battlefields are all located within a 30-minute drive of Hagerstown.

Fort Frederick State Park, which features a restored fort used in the French and Indian War, is west of the city in nearby Big Pool, Maryland.

Washington Monument State Park near Boonsboro pays tribute to the country's first president, George Washington. It is the oldest structure to honor the 'father of our country.'

Hagerstown is also home to the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park Headquarters.

The city and surrounding vicinity also has a number of sites and districts listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They include the Antietam Furnace Complex Archeological Site, Antietam Hall, Brightwood, Colonial Theatre, Ditto Knolls, Dorsey-Palmer House, Elliot-Bester House, Jacob M. Funk Farm, Garden Hill, Good-Hartle Farm, Hager House, Hagerstown Armory, Hagerstown Charity School, Hagerstown City Park Historic District, Hagerstown Commercial Core Historic District, Hagerstown Historic District, Houses At 16-22 East Lee Street, Lantz-Zeigler House, Lehman's Mill Historic District, Long Meadows, Maryland Theatre, Henry McCauley Farm, Oak Hill Historic District, Old Forge Farm, Old Washington County Library, Paradise Manor, Potomac-Broadway Historic District, Price-Miller House, Rockland Farm, Rockledge, Rohrer House, South Prospect Street Historic District, Trovinger Mill, Valentia, Washington County Courthouse, Western Maryland Railway Station, Western Maryland Railway Steam Locomotive No. 202, and Wilson's Bridge.

Parks and museums

Washington County Museum of Fine Arts in Hagerstown City Park.

Within the city, there are numerous parks including Hagerstown City Park, which is home to the Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, Mansion House Art Gallery, Western Maryland 202 Locomotive Display and Museum, and the Hager House and Museum (once home of Jonathan Hager, founder of Hagerstown). Outside of the Park, Hagerstown Roundhouse Museum showcases exhibits of Hagerstown's early railroad history. Discovery Station, located downtown, is a hands-on science and technology museum featuring exhibits in numerous galleries and display areas, including the Hagerstown Aviation Museum.

Theater and arts

Hagerstown is home to the Maryland Theatre, a symphony house that plays host to the Maryland Symphony Orchestra and the annual Miss Maryland USA Beauty Pageants. The city also has the Washington County Playhouse, which does dinner theater performances. The new Academy Theatre Banquet & Conference Center, located downtown, houses the community theater group Potomac Playmakers. And the Barbara Ingram School for the Arts is a magnet school for gifted art students, located in downtown Hagerstown's arts and entertainment district on South Potomac Street.

Festivals and events

Walking path through willows in Hagerstown City Park.

Downtown Hagerstown recently has enjoyed a resurgence and now hosts several popular annual events. Downtown Live! is an alternative festival that features live reggae and rock music and entertainment held at various times throughout the year. The city draws thousands every year around May–June to the Western Maryland Blues Fest, which showcases blues artists from around the country. The popular Augustoberfest celebrates Hagerstown's German heritage. And the annual Alsatia Mummers' Halloween Parade happens to be the largest nighttime parade on the East Coast.

Fairgrounds Park features recreational facilities such as the Hagerstown Ice & Sports Complex and hosts various events throughout the year like the annual Hagerstown Hispanic Festival held in mid-September.

Professional sports

Hagerstown is home to the Hagerstown Suns minor-league baseball team. The Suns play in the South Atlantic League. They play in Municipal Stadium.

To the west of the city lies Hagerstown Speedway, a nationally known dirt-track racing venue. Another professional racing track, Mason-Dixon Dragway, is located just southeast of Hagerstown.

Sister cities and municipal partnerships

• Wesel, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany (since 10 March 1952)
• Hagerstown, Indiana, U.S. (unofficial)

Metropolitan area

Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV MSA consists of three counties:

• Washington County, Maryland
• Berkeley County, West Virginia
• Morgan County, West Virginia

The Primary Cities are Hagerstown, MD and Martinsburg, WV. Other communities in the MSA include: Halfway, MD, Paramount-Long Meadow, MD, Fountainhead-Orchard Hills, MD, Robinwood, MD, Maugansville, MD, Boonsboro, MD, Smithsburg, MD, Williamsport, MD, Falling Waters, WV, Hedgesville, WV, Inwood, WV and Berkeley Springs, WV.

The metropolitan area's population in 2000 was 222,771. The 2008 estimate is 263,753, making Greater Hagerstown the 169th largest metropolitan area in the United States. The growth rate from 2000-2008 is +18.4%, the 48th highest among metropolitan areas in the entire country and the highest in Maryland (and in West Virginia). The growth is mostly due to the influx of people from Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, MD.

Wikisource has the text of the 1905 New International Encyclopedia article Hagerstown.

• Geographic data related to Hagerstown, Maryland at OpenStreetMap

	Cearfoss	Maugansville	Leitersburg
	Clear Spring	Hagerstown	Smithsburg
			Funkstown
	Williamsport	Sharpsburg	Boonsboro

Economy

Once primarily an industrial community, Hagerstown's economy depended heavily on railroad transportation and manufacturing, notably of aircraft, trucks, automobiles, textiles, and furniture. Today, the city has a diversified, stable business environment with modern service companies in various fields as well as continued strength in manufacturing and transportation in railroads and highways. Surrounding Hagerstown, there has been and continues to be a strong agricultural presence while tourism, especially with respect to the retail sector, also provides support to the local economy.

Healthcare

• Meritus Medical Center (a part of Meritus Health), acute care inpatient and outpatient facility.
• Western Maryland Hospital Center, chronic-care state-run health center.
• Brook Lane Psychiatric Center, private mental health facility.

Shopping

Hagerstown-Washington County boasts one of the highest densities of retail in the country.

Hagerstown has 2 major shopping malls:

• Hagerstown Premium Outlets, a 100+ store outlet mall which attracts visitors from Washington and Baltimore as well as nearby counties.
• Valley Mall, anchored by JCPenney, Belk, Old Navy, and Regal Cinemas 16.

Education

Hagerstown used to have a high school called Hagerstown High School, which became North Hagerstown High School (North High) and South Hagerstown High School (South High).

High schools

Colleges and universities

• Antietam Bible College, Biblical Seminary, and Graduate School
• Hagerstown Community College, 2-year public community college.
• Kaplan University, Hagerstown Campus, formerly known as Kaplan College and Hagerstown Business College.
• Kee Mar College, former women's college
• Mount Saint Mary's University, Hagerstown Campus, offers Masters of Business Administration (MBA) degrees.
• University System of Maryland at Hagerstown, a regional higher education center of the University System of Maryland offering various bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs in connection with other state colleges and universities in Maryland.

Infrastructure

Looking north along I-81 from MD 58 in Hagerstown

Highways

• Interstate 70 (runs east to Baltimore and west to Utah)
• Interstate 81 (runs north to Northern New York and south to Eastern Tennessee)
• U.S. Route 11 (runs parallel to I-81)
• U.S. Route 40 (runs parallel to I-70)
• 
  U.S. Route 40 Alternate (runs parallel to US 40 in Western Maryland)
• Maryland Route 58
• Maryland Route 60
• Maryland Route 64
• Maryland Route 65
• Maryland Route 144
• Maryland Route 632

Mass transportation

A street corner on Broadway near downtown Hagerstown.

• Washington County Transit buses provide extensive transportation within the city. More limited service is available to surrounding communities in Washington County.
• The Maryland Transit Administration operates the 505 Commuter Bus on weekdays to Shady Grove Metro Station, where riders can transfer to WMATA Red Line to reach Washington, D.C.
• Miller Cabs and Turner Vans service the Hagerstown area but are usually available only upon request. Downtown Taxi! offers cab service people can hail in the downtown vicinity.
• Greyhound Lines and Atlantic Charter Buses provide coach bus service to major cities near and far including directly to Baltimore, Harrisburg, Richmond, and Washington.
• Hagerstown Regional Airport (IATA: HGR, ICAO: KHGR, FAA LID: HGR), also known as Richard A. Henson Field, is located approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) due north of Hagerstown off U.S. Route 11 and Interstate 81. It is a frequent landing site for the U.S. President on the way to Camp David. The airport is commercially serviced by Allegiant Air with flights to and from Orlando Sanford International Airport and CapeAir with flights to and from Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. Alternatively, Washington Dulles International Airport, Washington National Airport, Baltimore-Washington Airport, and Harrisburg International Airport offer more extensive flight destinations and are all within 60 miles (97 km) to 75 miles (121 km) of Hagerstown.
• Despite being at the crossroads of CSX, Norfolk Southern, and the Winchester and Western railroads, there is no passenger rail service in Hagerstown. Martinsburg, WV offers Amtrak and MARC Train service to Union Station in Washington, D.C. while Frederick offers MARC commuter rail service as well.

Notable people

• See People from Hagerstown.

Images for kids

• 

  The Hager House and Museum in Hagerstown City Park was once home to the city's founder, Jonathan Hager.

• 

  Burnside's Bridge, a site of heavy combat in the Battle of Antietam, which occurred south of Hagerstown.

• 

  Hagerstown Public Square circa 1900.

• 

  The weathervane known as "Little Heiskell", a symbol of the city of Hagerstown, Maryland.

See also

In Spanish: Hagerstown (Maryland) para niños