Our Beginnings

Prince George’s County has over 300 years of rich history.

Prince George’s County was established on April 23, 1696, and was named after Prince George of Denmark, husband to Queen Anne of England. However, before the establishment of Prince George’s County, the land belonged to Native Americans.

Prince George’s County was first inhabited by the Piscataway and the Susquehannock Indians. The land was occupied for thousands of years before the first Europeans sailed to these shores. The English were the first to explore and chart it. Captain John Smith, the bay’s first explorer, wrote, “Within is a country that may have the prerogative over the most places known, for large and pleasant navigable rivers, heaven and earth never agreed better to frame a place for man’s habitation…Here are mountains, hills, plains, valleys, rivers and brooks, all running more pleasantly into a fair bay, compassed but for the mouth, with fruitful and delightsome land.”[i]

In the early 1600’s, Governor Leonard Calvert established good relations with the Piscataway Indians, and with their permission, founded Maryland’s first settlement, St. Mary’s City. The county was established in 1696 and named for Prince George of Denmark. Extending from the Charles County line on the south all the way to the Pennsylvania border, the new county included Montgomery, Frederick, Washington, Allegany, and Garrett counties; part of Carroll County; and all of the District of Columbia.

Prince George’s County grew in the 1700′s. Prince George’s County’s land was settled and men and women from all over Europe came here to find homes. Africans were brought here as slaves to work the land. Maryland quickly grew, by virtue of the promises of land and religious freedom.

As the years went by, trading centers along the rivers grew into towns places like Marlborough, Nottingham, Bladensburg, Queen Anne, and Piscataway. Merchants built stores; lawyers and doctors established practices; clergymen consecrated churches; and innkeepers opened their doors to travelers and residents alike. Some iron was even mined and worked in the upper Patuxent region. But Prince George’s County, despite this growth, remained predominantly agricultural. Agriculture was the basis of the economy and directly or indirectly provided the livelihood for every resident. One crop was at the heart of this agricultural economy and that crop was tobacco.[ii]

Tobacco, in the 1800’s, was the source of wealth to Prince George’s County.

Our Transition

Although the land area of Prince George’s County is a whopping 495.5 square miles, the original territory of Prince George’s County was comprised of much more land including what is now the District of Columbia, Montgomery, Frederick, Washington, Alleghany and Garrett Counties. In 1791, Prince George’s County provided land to create the greater part of our Nation’s Capital, Washington, D.C.  Prince George’s is still home to expanses of farmland, horse country (Prince George’s County was home to two Triple Crown Winners: Gallant Fox in 1930 and Omaha in 1935) and wildlife (nine kinds of turtles and 317 types of birds have been officially observed in Prince George’s County).

In the early 1800′s at least half of the population of Prince George’s County, Maryland, was enslaved African Americans. Today, 64% of the population consists of African American’s who are well educated, integrated into the higher levels of the political and economic structure and whose average income is almost double the national average for African American families.[iii]

Prince George’s has grown into a truly diverse community. The total population of Prince George’s has blossomed from 200,000 in the 1940’s to over 800,000 today.  Our population growth is not limited to an increase in African American residents, but includes a growth in the numbers of American Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Native Hawaiian, Latino, Indian and African residents to name a few.

Because of our progress in area of race relations, the The 1990 Almanac of American Politics declared Prince George’s County to be “one of the nation’s most important counties and a place that gives us a hopeful glimpse of a possible future.”

The social progress made in Prince George’s County has attracted national commendation, placing the county in the position of national role model.

Our wealth from tobacco in the 1800’s has given way to industries such as construction, trade, professional services, education & health services, and leisure & hospitality.

Survey after survey ranks Prince George’s as one of the nation’s most affluent counties, though often forgotten, because Montgomery and Fairfax counties compete annually for the title of “Nation’s Richest.” Prince George’s gained a reputation as a rough-and-tumble working class suburb of Washington during its period of massive growth at mid-century; that reputation lingers. Those who live and work in Prince George’s County, raising families and earning their livelihoods, are less concerned with image than reality, however. They know Prince George s County to be a heterogeneous community with diverse neighborhoods, rich, poor, but mostly middle class; rural, urban, but mostly suburban.[iv]

On the Path to Greatness

Our Present: A Gift of Promise

According to the 2010 U.S. Census, Prince George’s County, Maryland is home to an estimated 863,420 with a median household income of $71,260.[i]

Prince George’s County is home to over 70,000 firms, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (established as NASA’s first space flight center), Andrews Air Force Base & the President’s Air Force One aircraft, the United States Census Bureau, Andrews Air Force Base, the University of Maryland’s College Park campus, Rosecroft Raceway, the Prince George’s Equestrian Center, USDA’s Agricultural Research Center, Six Flags America, Bowie State University and FedEx Field, home of the Washington Redskins and the gorgeous development that is unfolding at National Harbor.

Prince George’s County has a growing base of exquisite restaurants, cultural events, performing arts, museums, sporting events, recreational centers, nature trails, camping and hiking facilities.

Today, as Prince George’s citizens profess to be “On the Path to Greatness”, we stand at a great position with much to accomplish to achieve the greatness we seek.

So, Path to Greatness is uniting our diverse population with a common goal.  We’re investing in our communities with passion, hard work and donations.  We’re determined to elevate our fabulous Prince George’s County to its full potential.

And we invite every resident and business in the county to share in the moment.

What Greatness Looks Like

The Future We Seek …

Prince George’s County is a community that insists on strong leadership, with public schools that are thriving, producing highly educated and socially well-adjusted students that rank in large numbers among the best in the world.  The economy is thriving with ever increasing interest from corporations to headquarter here. Community involvement is widespread and represented by every corner of the county and walk of life. Flourishing real estate markets, growing green and sustainability initiatives, and an overall high quality of life are imprints of the combined efforts of our engaged citizens on the Path to Greatness. The image of Prince George’s County as a culturally rich, progressive community, moving steadily in the right direction serves as a beacon of hope to communities throughout the nation and the world.