The story
History
18th century
Gaithersburg was settled in 1765 as a small agricultural settlement known as Log Town near the present-day Summit Hall on Ralph Crabb's 1725 land grant "Deer Park". The northern portion of the land grant was purchased by Henry Brookes, and he built his brick home "Montpelier" there, starting with a log cabin, built between 1780 and 1783. In 1802, Benjamin Gaither built his home on the land. In 1807, Gaither married Brooke's daughter Margaret, and Benjamin and Margaret inherited a portion of Henry Brooke's land prior to his death. By the 1850s the area had ceased to be called Log Town and was known to inhabitants as Gaithersburg.
19th century
The Forest Oak Post Office, named for a large tree in the town, was located in Gaither's store in 1851.
On July 10, 1864, using the route of present-day Maryland Route 355, over 10,000 Confederate troops camped overnight in the area, including the present Bohrer Park, after a one-day march from Frederick after the Battle of Monocacy. The next day the troops continued towards Washington, D.C. in an unsuccessful attempt to take the national capital.
When the railroad was built through town in 1873, the new station was called Gaithersburg, an officially-recognized name for the community for the first time. Also in 1873, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad constructed a station at Gaithersburg, designed by Ephraim Francis Baldwin as part of his well-known series of Victorian stations in Maryland. Rapid growth occurred shortly thereafter, and on April 5, 1878, the town was officially incorporated as the Town of Gaithersburg.
Gaithersburg boomed during the late 19th century and churches, schools, a mill, grain elevators, stores, and hotels were built. Much of this development focused around the railroad station.
In 1899, Gaithersburg was selected as one of six global locations for the construction of an International Latitude Observatory as part of a project to measure the Earth's wobble on its polar axis; as of 2007, the Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory is the only National Historic Landmark in Gaithersburg. The observatory and five other observatories in Japan, Italy, Russia, and the U.S. gathered information, which, along with information from satellites, is used to determine polar motion, the size, shape, and physical properties of the Earth, and to aid the space program through the precise navigational patterns of orbiting satellites. The Gaithersburg station operated until 1982 when computerization rendered the manual observation obsolete.
20th century
In 1968, Gaithersburg was upgraded from a town to a city. In the late 1960s and 1970s, a 1,000-acre tract on I-270 became part of IBM's headquarters.
Gaithersburg remained a predominantly rural farm town until the 1970s when more construction began. As the population grew, with homes spreading throughout the area, Gaithersburg began taking on a suburban and semi-urban feel, leaving its farming roots behind. During the late 1990s and 2000s, it had become one of the most economically and ethnically diverse areas in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area as well as the State of Maryland, with people from all walks of life calling Gaithersburg home. This can be seen in the local schools, with Gaithersburg High School and Watkins Mill High School having two of the most diverse student bodies in the region.
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During a 1997 rainstorm, the 295-year-old forest oak tree that gave its name to the Forest Oak Post Office crashed down. The tree served as the inspiration for the city's logo, which is also featured prominently on the city's flag.
21st century
In 2007, parts of the film Body of Lies were filmed in the city, at a building on 100 Edison Park Drive. The film was released in 2008 and the building is now the Montgomery County Police Department's headquarters.
On July 16, 2010, Gaithersburg was part of the area where a 3.6 magnitude earthquake was felt, one of the strongest to occur in Maryland.
After years of decline and loss of tenants, including three of its four anchor stores in 2019, Lakeforest Mall closed on March 31, 2023, with plans to demolish it and redevelop the area.
Gaithersburg is also the location of the United States Army Reserve Legal Command. The NIST Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.
2020 census
As of the 2020 census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657. The median age was 36.7 years. 23.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 13.1% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 92.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.3 males age 18 and over.
100.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.0% lived in rural areas.
There were 25,908 households in Gaithersburg, of which 35.0% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 46.0% were married-couple households, 17.6% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 30.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 27,182 housing units, of which 4.7% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 5.3%.
2022 ACS
As of the 2022 American Community Survey, there were 68,952 people and 24,523 households in the town. The racial makeup of the city was 33% White, 13% Black, 15% Asian, and 1% from other races. Hispanic people of any race were 36% of the population.
The median household income was $95,453, and 6% of people were under the poverty line.
The average time to work was 30 minutes, 57% of people drove alone, 11% carpooled, 8% took public transit, 1% biked, 2% walked and 20% worked from home.
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 59,933 people, 22,000 households, and 14,548 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,875.8 inhabitants per square mile (2,268.7/km2). There were 23,337 housing units at an average density of 2,287.9 per square mile (883.4/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 31.9% White, 16.3% African American, 0.5% Native American, 16.9% Asian (6.01 Chinese, 4.77% Indian, 2.03% Korean, 1.69% Filipino, 1.02% Vietnamese, 0.62% Burmese), 0.1% Pacific Islander, 10.7% from other races, and 4.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people were 24.2% of the population (8.3% Salvadoran, 2% Honduran, 1.9% Mexican, 1.9% Peruvian, 1.7% Guatemalan).
There were 22,000 households, of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.3% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.9% were non-families. 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.24.
The median age in the city was 35.1 years. 24.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 33.8% were from 25 to 44; 24.6% were from 45 to 64; and 9.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.6% male and 51.4% female.
2000 census
As of the census of 2000, there were 52,613 people, 19,621 households, and 12,577 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,216.2 inhabitants per square mile (2,014.0/km2). There were 20,674 housing units at an average density of 2,049.7 per square mile (791.4/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 34.7% White, 19.5% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 13.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 3.6% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. 24.8% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 34.3% of Gaithersburg's population was foreign-born.
There were 19,621 households, out of which 34.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.6% were married couples living together, 11.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.9% were non-families. 27.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.14 the population was spread out, with 25.0% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 37.7% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 8.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 95.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.4 males.
From Wikipedia’s article on Gaithersburg, Maryland, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4