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80-463: The center was founded in 1990 as a private land trust with the goal of protecting and preserving farmland and historic sites in Howard County . The conservancy currently also manages legal easements on an additional 1,600 acres of land. In 2014, the conservancy started a second nature center at Belmont Manor. The Mt. Pleasant farm dates back to 1692 when Patuxent Ranger Thomas Browne II built

160-621: A binary division of society in the South increased after the American Civil War and the emancipation of slaves. Southern whites struggled to regain political and social dominance of their societies during and after the Reconstruction era . They were intent on controlling the freedmen and asserting white supremacy . Although a few families identified as Piscataway by the early 20th century, prevailing racial attitudes during

240-563: A deadly flu pandemic swept the county starting with an early outbreak in Camp Meade in adjacent Anne Arundel County. The 1930s saw a shift from one-room schoolhouses to centralized schools with bus service. By 1939 wheat harvesting fell to just 18,800 acres (7,600 ha). In 1940, local newspaper owner Paul Griffith Stromberg led a five-county commission to study a superhighway between Baltimore and Washington through Howard County. The Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956 eventually led to

320-530: A dialect of Nanticoke . One of their neighboring tribes, with whom they merged after a massive decline of population following two centuries of interactions with European settlers, called them the Conoy. Two major groups representing people who identify as Piscataway descendants received state recognition as Native American tribes in 2012: the Piscataway Indian Nation and Tayac Territory and

400-663: A district that splits into Anne Arundel County to the south-east, along with two Democratic state delegates. From 1914 to 1968, Howard County was governed by a system of three elected commissioners with four-year terms. Prior to 1962, the only polling location in the county was located in Ellicott City. In May 1962, voters were offered a second location to vote, also in Ellicott City at the National Armory on Montgomery Road. Senator James Clark Jr. proposed

480-399: A family was $ 119,810. Males had a median income of $ 82,307 versus $ 59,128 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 45,294. About 2.8% of families and 4.2% of the population were below the poverty line , including 4.6% of those under age 18 and 5.5% of those age 65 or over. As of the census of 2000, there were 247,842 people, 90,043 households, and 65,821 families residing in

560-507: A five-person County Council and a County Executive in 1965. In 1968, the county implemented a charter form of government. In 1984 a councilmanic referendum was approved, switching council from at-large representation to district representation. The County Council serves as the county's legislative branch; members also provide constituent service and sit as members of the Zoning Board and Liquor Board. The current Howard County Executive

640-429: A log house on a land grant "Ranters Ridge". Owners and descendants Ruth and Francis Brown died in 1990 and 1992 respectively requesting their estate be preserved and used for educational purposes. James Eacker, George Reynolds, Joyce Kelly and Senator James A. Clark, Jr. completed tasks to acquire the farm and have the state and county pay estate expenses. In 1997, the center hired its first full-time director. In 2005

720-704: A planned community that included people from diverse socioeconomic and racial backgrounds. African-Americans have lived in Howard County for centuries, with the African-American population increasing greatly after the 1960s. Immigration from Asia, particularly Korea, India, and China, as well as Latin America, has also contributed to Howard County's diversity. While historically primarily Christian, Howard County now has sizable Jewish , Muslim , and Hindu populations. As of 2019, 18,700 Jewish people lived in

800-715: A quarter million residents by the year 2000. Race relations and desegregation became major issues of the time. From 1963 to 1966 the Rouse Company bought 14,000 acres (5,700 ha) of land and rezoned it for the Columbia Development. In 1972, the Marriott company proposed to build a regional theme park on Rouse-owned land but was denied zoning. The county has a number of properties on the National Register of Historic Places . According to

880-533: A record of acting as a bellwether in state-wide elections since the late 20th century: Since at least the 1950s, Howard County has voted for the successful senatorial candidate in both Maryland's Class I and Class III seats, and since 1998 the county has voted for the successful gubernatorial candidate, voting for Republican Bob Ehrlich in the 2002 gubernatorial election , Democrat Martin O'Malley in 2006 and 2010 , Republican Larry Hogan in 2014 and 2018 , and Democrat Wes Moore in 2022 . Since 1984,

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960-706: Is Democrat Calvin Ball III , who was elected in November 2018 and took office on December 3, 2018. The county is entirely within Maryland's 3rd congressional district , represented by Democrat John Sarbanes . The County Council adopts ordinances and resolutions, and has all of the county's legislative powers. There are five council districts throughout the county. The current County Council as of December 2022 includes 4 Democrats and 1 Republican. Statistics for July 2014 indicate that Howard County's unemployment rate

1040-493: Is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland . As of the 2020 census , the population was 334,529. Since there are no incorporated municipalities, there is no incorporated county seat either. Therefore, its county seat is the unincorporated community of Ellicott City . Howard County is part of the larger Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area . The county is part of the Central Maryland region of

1120-408: Is at 5.2 percent (7,527 persons). Howard County Public School System employs 8,136 of which 4,670 are teachers. The County Government employs 3,323 outside of the school system with 672 police, 482 public works, and 472 fire and rescue employees. The top ten private sector employers in Howard County are as follows: Awards and recognitions achieved by Howard County or locations within it include

1200-679: Is bounded on the north and northeast by the Patapsco River , on the southwest by the Patuxent River , and on the southeast by a land border with Anne Arundel County. Both the Patapsco and Patuxent run largely through publicly accessible parkland along the county borders. The Patuxent border includes the Triadelphia and Rocky Gorge reservoirs . Howard County lies in the humid subtropical climate zone. As one travels west in

1280-490: The 2020 United States census , there were 328,200 people by June 1, 2020 The population density was 1,300 inhabitants per square mile (500/km ) As of the 2010 United States census , there were 287,085 people, 104,749 households, and 76,333 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,144.9 inhabitants per square mile (442.0/km ). There were 109,282 housing units at an average density of 435.8 per square mile (168.3/km ). The racial makeup of

1360-516: The Catholic Church consistently continued to identify Indian families by that classification in their records. Such church records became valuable resources for scholars and family and tribal researchers. Anthropologists and sociologists categorized the self-identified Indians as a tri-racial community. They were commonly called a name (regarded as derogatory by some) " Wesorts ." In the 19th century, census enumerators classified most of

1440-555: The Indian Reorganization Act , Chief Turkey Tayac organized a movement for American Indian peoples that gave priority to their self-identification. There are still Indian people in southern Maryland, living without a reservation in the vicinity of US 301 between La Plata and Brandywine . They are formally organized into several groups, all bearing the Piscataway name. After Chief Turkey Tayac died in 1978,

1520-654: The Iroquois but peace was negotiated. In 1697, the Piscataway relocated across the Potomac and camped near what is now The Plains, Virginia , in Fauquier County . Virginia settlers were alarmed and tried to persuade the Piscataway to return to Maryland, though they refused. Finally in 1699, the Piscataway moved north to what is now called Heater's Island (formerly Conoy Island) in the Potomac near Point of Rocks, Maryland . They remained there until after 1722. In

1600-602: The Piscataway and Susquehannock peoples. The Maryland Historical Trust has documented Indigenous sites along the Patapsco, Patuxent, Middle and Little Patuxent River valleys. In 1652, the Susquehannock tribes signed a peace treaty with Maryland, giving up their provenance over the territory that is now Howard County. In 1800, the mean center of U.S. population as calculated by the US Census Bureau

1680-584: The Susquehannock and other Iroquoian peoples from the north had almost entirely destroyed many of the Algonquian settlements above present-day Great Falls, Virginia on the Potomac River. The villages below the fall line survived by banding together for the common defense. They gradually consolidated authority under hereditary chiefs, who exacted tribute, sent men to war, and coordinated the resistance against northern incursions and rival claimants to

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1760-691: The Taux ( Doeg ) on the Virginia side of the river. Rivals and reluctant subjects of the Tayac hoped that the English newcomers would alter the balance of power in the region. In search of trading partners, particularly for furs, the Virginia Company , and later, Virginia Colony , consistently allied with enemies of the settled Piscataway. Their entry into the dynamics began to shift regional power. By

1840-528: The U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 253 square miles (660 km ), of which 251 square miles (650 km ) is land and 2.7 square miles (7.0 km ) (1.0%) is water. It is the second-smallest county in Maryland by land area and smallest by total area. Howard County is located in the Piedmont Plateau region of Maryland, with rolling hills making up most of the landscape. It

1920-555: The Virginia Colony . They were believed to have merged with the Meherrin . Numerous contemporary historians and archaeologists, including William H. Gilbert , Frank G. Speck , Helen Rountree , Lucille St. Hoyme , Paul Cissna , T. Dale Stewart , Christopher Goodwin , Christian Feest , James Rice, and Gabrielle Tayac , have documented that a small group of Piscataway families continued to live in their homeland. Although

2000-586: The wealthiest counties in the US . Many of the most affluent communities in the area, such as Clarksville , Dayton , Glenelg , Glenwood , and West Friendship , are located along the Route 32 corridor in Howard County. The main population center of Columbia/Ellicott City is regularly ranked in Money magazine 's Top 10 "Best Places to Live". According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau , Howard County ranks fourth in

2080-716: The " Maryland Line " of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War , commander notably at the Battle of Cowpens in South Carolina in 1781, among others. He was the fifth governor of Maryland , serving from 1788 to 1791. Prior to the European colonization of what is now Howard County in the 1600s, the area served as farming and hunting grounds for Indigenous peoples including

2160-481: The 1800s and 1900s, Howard County was a predominantly white and mainly rural county with a small population. In 1950, the population was only 23,000. Since the 1950s, the county's population has increased tenfold and has diversified into a majority minority county. Almost half of Howard County's population identified as non-Hispanic and/or non-white by 2017. Much of the racial diversification of Howard County came after 1967, when The Rouse Company designed Columbia to be

2240-686: The 18th century, the Maryland Colony nullified all Indian claims to their lands and dissolved the reservations. By the 1720s, some Piscataway as well as other Algonquian groups had relocated to Pennsylvania just north of the Susquehannah River . These migrants from the general area of Maryland are referred to as the Conoy and the Nanticoke . They were spread along the western edge of the Pennsylvania Colony , along with

2320-693: The Algonquian Lenape who had moved west from modern New Jersey, the Tutelo , the Shawnee and some Iroquois . The Piscataway were said to number only about 150 people at that time. They sought the protection of the powerful Haudenosaunee , but the Pennsylvania Colony also proved unsafe. Most of the surviving tribe migrated north in the late eighteenth century and were last noted in the historical record in 1793 at Detroit , following

2400-926: The American Revolutionary War, when the United States gained independence. In 1793 a conference in Detroit reported the peoples had settled in Upper Canada, joining other Native Americans who had been allies of the British in the conflict. Today, descendants of the northern migrants live on the Six Nations of the Grand River First Nation reserve in Ontario, Canada . Some Piscataway may have moved south toward

2480-601: The Chesapeake and Tidewater region, arriving according to archeologists' estimates from roughly 3,000 to 10,000 years ago. Those people of Algonquian stock who would coalesce into the Piscataway nation, lived in the Potomac River drainage area since at least AD 1300. Sometime around AD 800, peoples living along the Potomac had begun to cultivate maize as a supplement to their ordinary hunting-gathering diet of fish, game, and wild plants. Some evidence suggests that

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2560-519: The Gudelsky Environmental Education Center opened. In 2008, the center started an exhibit on solar energy , promoting it as a way of reducing energy costs. In 2010, the center obtained an owl as part of a program to teach children about environmental threats to the owl species. A historic barn from Mt. Joy in Ellicott City has been relocated to the site. Howard County, Maryland Howard County

2640-490: The January 1851 constitutional convention, Thomas Beale Dorsey submitted a petition led by James Sykes. A committee was formed with Dorsey, Bowie, Smith, Harbine and Ricaud. After several postponements, the district was erected officially as Howard County on July 4, 1851, after the approval of the new constitution at the election held June 4, 1851. The plantations of modern Howard County used slave labor as early as 1690. At

2720-649: The Maryland Colony continued to compete for control of Piscataway land. Piscataway fortunes declined as the English Maryland colony grew and prospered. They were especially adversely affected by epidemics of infectious disease , which decimated their population, as well as by intertribal and colonial warfare. After the English tried to remove tribes from their homelands in 1680, the Piscataway fled from encroaching English settlers to Zekiah Swamp in Charles County, Maryland . There they were attacked by

2800-472: The Maryland Commission on Indian Affairs stated that the Piscataway had provided adequate documentation of their history and recommended recognition. On January 9, 2012, Gov. Martin O'Malley issued executive orders recognizing all three Piscataway groups as Native American tribes. As part of the agreement that led to recognition, the tribes renounced any plans to launch gambling enterprises, and

2880-565: The Maryland Constitution in November 1864. On May 1, 1883, Howard County joined Anne Arundel County and Harford County in liquor prohibition. By 1899, Howard County contained 400 miles (640 km) of dirt and 48 miles (77 km) of stone roads, including three paid turnpikes maintained by 118 men. Most traffic consisted of loads delivered to rail crossings. In 1909, County Commissioners Hess, Werner and O'Neil were charged with malfeasance regarding contract bids. In 1918,

2960-848: The Piscataway Conoy Tribe of Maryland. Within the latter group was included the Piscataway Conoy Confederacy and Sub-Tribes and the Cedarville Band of Piscataway Indians. All these groups are located in Southern Maryland . None are federally recognized . The Piscataway were recorded by the English (in days before uniform spelling) as the Pascatowies , Paschatoway , Pazaticans , Pascoticons , Paskattaway , Pascatacon , Piscattaway , and Puscattawy . They were also referred to by

3040-519: The Piscataway in having the English as allies and buffers were short-lived. The Maryland Colony was initially too weak to pose a significant threat. Once the English began to develop a stronger colony, they turned against the Piscataway. By 1668, the western shore Algonquian were confined to two reservations, one on the Wicomico River and the other on a portion of the Piscataway homeland. Refugees from dispossessed Algonquian nations merged with

3120-631: The Piscataway individuals as "free people of color", " Free Negro " or "mulatto" on state and federal census records, largely because of their intermarriage with blacks and Europeans. The dramatic drop in Native American populations due to infectious disease and warfare, plus a racial segregation based on slavery , led to a binary view of race in the former colony. By contrast, Catholic parish records in Maryland and some ethnographic reports accepted Piscataway self-identification and continuity of culture as Indians, regardless of mixed ancestry. Such

3200-518: The Piscataway migrated from the Eastern Shore , or from the upper Potomac, or from sources hundreds of miles to the north. It is fairly certain, however, that by the 16th century the Piscataway was a distinct polity with a distinct society and culture, who lived year-round in permanent villages. The onset of a centuries-long " Little Ice Age " after 1300 had driven Algonquian and Iroquoian peoples from upland and northern communities southward to

3280-552: The Piscataway split into three groups (outlined below): the Piscataway Conoy Confederacy and Subtribes (PCCS), the Cedarville Band of Piscataway Indians, and the Piscataway Indian Nation. These three organizations have disagreed over a number of issues: seeking state and federal tribal recognition, developing casinos on their land if recognition were gained, and determining which groups were legitimately Piscataway. Two organized Piscataway groups have formed: In

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3360-627: The Piscataway. Colonial authorities forced the Piscataway to permit the Susquehannock , an Iroquoian-speaking people, to settle in their territory after having been defeated in 1675 by the Iroquois Confederacy ( Haudenosaunee ), based in New York. The traditional enemies eventually came to open conflict in present-day Maryland. With the tribes at war, the Maryland Colony expelled the Susquehannock after they had been attacked by

3440-519: The Piscataway. The Susquehannock suffered a devastating defeat. Making their way northward, the surviving Susquehannock joined forces with their former enemy, the Haudenosaunee, the five-nation Iroquois Confederacy . Together, the Iroquoian tribes returned repeatedly to attack the Piscataway. The English provided little help to their Piscataway allies. Rather than raise a militia to aid them,

3520-410: The age of 18 living with them, 58.9% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 27.1% were non-families, and 21.9% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.72, and the average family size was 3.20. The median age was 38.4 years. The median income for a household in the county was $ 103,273, and the median income for

3600-428: The age of 18 living with them, 60.50% were married couples living together, 9.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.90% were non-families. 20.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.71, and the average family size was 3.18. In the county, the population was spread out, with 28.10% under

3680-406: The age of 18, 6.30% from 18 to 24, 34.40% from 25 to 44, 23.80% from 45 to 64, and 7.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.90 males. The median income for a household in the county was $ 101,003, and the median income for a family was $ 117,186 in 2009. The per capita income

3760-442: The construction of Interstate 70 across northern Howard County and Interstate 95 across the eastern part of the county. The sparsely populated county hosted population centers in Ellicott City, Elkridge, Savage, North Laurel and Lisbon with W.R. Grace and Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab as the largest new employers. Residents elected officials that campaigned to keep the county rural while planners prepared public works to support

3840-489: The county away from the Baltimore area, the winter temperatures get lower and winter snow is more common. Annual rainfall is about 45 inches (1,100 mm) throughout the county. Over a 60-year period from 1950 to 2010, there were 394 National Climatic Data Center reportable events causing 617 injuries, and 99 fatalities. There were 9 reported tornadoes, reaching a maximum of F2, with no recorded fatalities. For much of

3920-605: The county has also voted for the state-wide presidential winner, a streak of 10 straight presidential elections. At the state level of government, Howard County is represented by nine Democrats in the Maryland House of Delegates and three Democrats in the Maryland Senate . One Democratic state senator from the county represents a district that spills into Montgomery County to the west, as do two Democratic state delegates. Another Democratic state senator represents

4000-411: The county was 62.2% white, 17.5% Black or African American, 14.4% Asian, 0.3% American Indian, 2.0% from other races, and 3.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 5.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 17.7% were German , 13.9% were Irish , 10.6% were English , 7.0% were Italian , and 4.6% were American . Of the 104,749 households, 39.3% had children under

4080-543: The county, making up 5.8% of the total population. More than 6,000 non-Jewish people in the county have Jewish people in their households. As of 2010, only 1% of Jews in the county were Orthodox , while one-third each were Conservative and Reform and one-quarter were secular or non-denominational. In the same year, one-quarter of the Jewish community were poor or financially insecure, 17% made less than $ 50,000 per year, and half made annual incomes of $ 100,000 or more. As of

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4160-573: The county. The population density was 983 inhabitants per square mile (380/km ). There were 92,818 housing units at an average density of 368 per square mile (142/km ). The racial makeup of the county was 74.33% White, 14.42% Black, 0.24% Native American, 7.68% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 1.11% from other races, and 2.19% from two or more races. 3.02% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 15.1% were of German, 11.0% Irish, 9.3% English, 6.6% Italian and 5.7% American ancestry. There were 90,043 households, out of which 40.00% had children under

4240-514: The early 1630s, the Tayac's hold over some of his subordinate werowances had weakened considerably. However, when the English began to colonize what is now Maryland in 1634, the Tayac Kittamaquund managed to turn the newcomers into allies. He had come to power that year after killing his brother Wannas , the former Tayac. He granted the English a former Indian settlement, which they renamed St. Mary's City after Queen Henrietta Marie,

4320-570: The early and mid-twentieth century cultural revitalization movements. His leadership inspired tribes other than the Piscataway, and revival has also occurred among other Southeastern American Indian communities. These include the Lumbee , Nanticoke , and Powhatan of the Atlantic coastal plain. Assuming the traditional leadership title "tayac" during an era when American Indian identity was being regulated to some extent by blood quantum , outlined in

4400-665: The following Census-designated places in the county: Unincorporated places not listed as Census-designated places but known in the area include: 39°14′7″N 76°56′29″W  /  39.23528°N 76.94139°W  / 39.23528; -76.94139 Piscataway people Piscataway Indian Nation 103 Piscataway-Conoy Tribe of Maryland 3,500 The Piscataway / p ɪ s ˈ k æ t ə ˌ w eɪ / pih- SKAT -ə- WAY or Piscatawa / p ɪ s ˈ k æ t ə ˌ w eɪ , ˌ p ɪ s k ə ˈ t ɑː w ə / pih- SKAT -ə- WAY , PIH -skə- TAH -wə , are Native Americans . They spoke Algonquian Piscataway ,

4480-614: The following: Howard County does not have any commercial or public-use airport facilities. A 1967 Airport Study Commission recommended a facility for 150–250 aircraft to provide economic development, but was not initiated. With the closure of Haysfield Airport in 2012, there is one privately owned airstrip, Glenair Airport in Glenelg . Commercial air service is provided by Baltimore/Washington International Airport , Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport , and Washington Dulles International Airport . The Census Bureau recognizes

4560-520: The girl's education, including learning English. At a young age, Mary Kittamaquund married the much older English colonist Giles Brent , one of Margaret's brothers. After trying to claim Piscataway territory upon her father's death, the couple moved south across the Potomac to establish a trading post and live at Aquia Creek in present-day Stafford County, Virginia . They were said to have had three or four children together. Brent married again in 1654, so his child bride may have died young. Benefits to

4640-487: The historic Piscataway. In 1996 the Maryland Commission on Indian Affairs (MCIA) suggested granting state recognition to the Piscataway Conoy Confederacy and Subtribes. Critics were concerned about some of the development interests that backed the Piscataway Conoy campaign, and feared gaming interests. (Since the late twentieth century, many recognized tribes have established casinos and gaming entertainment on their reservations to raise revenues.) Gov. Parris Glendening , who

4720-415: The lands. A hierarchy of places and rulers emerged: hamlets without hereditary rulers paid tribute to a nearby village . Its chief , or werowance , appointed a "lesser king" to each dependent settlement. Changes in social structure occurred and religious development exalted the hierarchy. By the end of the 16th century, each werowance on the north bank of the Potomac was subject to the paramount chief :

4800-450: The larger tribe was destroyed as an independent, sovereign polity, descendants of the Piscataway survived. They formed unions with others in the area, including European indentured servants and free or enslaved Africans. They settled into rural farm life and were classified as free people of color , but some kept Native American cultural traditions. For years the United States censuses did not have separate categories for Indians. Especially in

4880-445: The late 1990s, after conducting an exhaustive review of primary sources, a Maryland-state appointed committee, including a genealogist from the Maryland State Archives, validated the claims of core Piscataway families to Piscataway heritage. A fresh approach to understanding individual and family choices and self-identification among American Indian and African-American cultures is underway at several research universities. Unlike during

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4960-633: The late 19th century, and imposition of Jim Crow policies, over-determined official classification of minority groups of color as black. In the 20th century, Virginia and other southern states passed laws to enforce the " one-drop rule ", classifying anyone with a discernible amount of African ancestry as " negro ", " mulatto ", or " black ". For instance, in Virginia, Walter Plecker , Registrar of Statistics, ordered records to be changed so that members of Indian families were recorded as black, resulting in Indian families losing their ethnic identification. Phillip Sheridan Proctor, later known as Turkey Tayac ,

5040-442: The list for all Maryland school districts. Reservoir High School is currently the largest school in the county with over 1,900 students. In 2013 Howard County Library System was selected as the Library of the Year by Library Journal and cited by editor-at-large, John N. Berry, as "a 21st-century library model, with a position, doctrine, purpose, and curriculum worthy of study and consideration by every library in America, if not

5120-515: The names of their villages: Moyaone , Accotick, or Accokicke, or Accokeek ; Potapaco, or Portotoack ; Sacayo, or Sachia; Zakiah , and Yaocomaco, or Youcomako, or Yeocomico, or Wicomicons. Related Algonquian-speaking tribes included the Anacostan , Chincopin, Choptico , Doeg, or Doge, or Taux ; Tauxeneen, Mattawoman , and Pamunkey . More distantly related tribes included the Accomac, Assateague , Choptank , Nanticoke , Patuxent , Pocomoke , Tockwogh and Wicomoco . The Piscataway language

5200-407: The nation for educational attainment, with an estimated 63.6% of residents 25 and over holding a bachelor's degree or higher. In 2022, the Howard County Public School System was ranked the best school district in Maryland. In 2010, the center of population of Maryland was located in the Howard County town of Jessup . The name of the county honors Colonel John Eager Howard , an officer in

5280-466: The ruler of the Piscataway known as the Tayac . The English explorer Captain John Smith first visited the upper Potomac River in 1608. He recorded the Piscataway by the name Moyaons , after their "king's house", i.e., capital village or Tayac's residence, also spelled Moyaone , located at Accokeek Creek Site at Piscataway Park . Closely associated with them were the Nacotchtank people ( Anacostans ) who lived around present-day Washington, DC , and

5360-1104: The several Patuxent River settlements that were under some degree of Piscataway suzerainty . The Piscataway settlements appear in that same area on maps through 1700. Piscataway descendants now inhabit part of their traditional homelands in these areas. None of the three state-recognized tribes noted above has a reservation or trust land. Their status as "landless" Indians had contributed to their difficulty in proving historical continuity and being recognized as self-governing tribes. The Piscataway relied more on agriculture than did many of their neighbors, which enabled them to live in permanent villages. They lived near waters navigable by canoes. Their crops included maize, several varieties of beans, melons, pumpkins, squash and (ceremonial) tobacco, which were bred and cultivated by women. Men used bows and arrows to hunt bear, elk, deer, and wolves, as well as smaller game such as beaver, squirrels, partridges, and wild turkeys. They also did fishing and oyster and clam harvesting. Women also gathered berries, nuts and tubers in season to supplement their diets. As

5440-402: The slave states, all free people of color were classified together as black, in the hypodescent classification resulting from the racial caste of slavery. In the late 19th century, archaeologists , journalists , and anthropologists interviewed numerous residents in Maryland who claimed descent from tribes associated with the former Piscataway chiefdom . Uniquely among most institutions,

5520-418: The state. Recent county development has led to some realignment towards the Washington, D.C. media and employment markets. The county is home to Columbia , a major planned community of approximately 100,000, founded in 1967. Howard County is frequently cited for its affluence, quality of life, and excellent schools. Its estimated 2020 median household income of $ 124,042 (~$ 143,882 in 2023) makes it one of

5600-403: The time of the Underground Railroad , some Howard County residents assisted slaves who were escaping to freedom. This was particularly risky, as many prominent plantation families were Confederate sympathizers during the Civil War , contributing militiamen to the South to protect local interests. Maryland was exempt from the Emancipation Proclamation , later abolishing slavery in the update of

5680-877: The warmer climate of the Potomac basin. Growing seasons there were long enough for them to cultivate maize. As more tribes occupied the area, they competed for resources and had an increasing conflict. By 1400, the Piscataway and their Algonquian tribal neighbors had become increasingly numerous because of their sophisticated agriculture, which provided calorie-rich maize , beans and squash . These crops added surplus to their hunting-gathering subsistence economy and supported greater populations. The women cultivated and processed numerous varieties of maize and other plants, breeding them for taste and other characteristics. The Piscataway and other related peoples were able to feed their growing communities. They also continued to gather wild plants from nearby freshwater marshes. The men cleared new fields, hunted, and fished. By 1600, incursions by

5760-714: The wife of King Charles I. The Tayac intended the new colonial outpost to serve as a buffer against the Iroquoian Susquehannock incursions from the north. Kittamaquund and his wife converted to Christianity in 1640 by their friendship with the English Jesuit missionary Father Andrew White , who also performed their marriage. Their only daughter Mary Kittamaquund became a ward of the English governor and of his sister-in-law, colonist Margaret Brent , both of whom held power in St. Mary's City and saw to

5840-718: The world." In 2015 the Howard County Library System was designated the top Star Library in its class. Howard County has voted for the Democratic presidential candidate in every election from 1992 on. In the 2020 presidential election , Democratic Party candidate Joe Biden received the highest percentage of Howard County's votes of any presidential candidate in the history of the county. The less populated western and northern parts of Howard County lean Republican. The more heavily populated southern and eastern parts are heavily Democratic. Howard County has

5920-492: The years of racial segregation, when all people of any African descent were classified as black, new studies emphasize the historical context and evolution of seventeenth, eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth century ethnic cultures and racial categories. The State of Maryland appointed a panel of anthropologists, genealogists, and historians to review primary sources related to Piscataway genealogy. The panel concluded that some contemporary self-identified Piscataway descended from

6000-414: Was $ 44,120. About 2.70% of families and 4.00% of the population were below the poverty line . The Howard County Public School System , the school district for the entire county, manages 71 schools and serves approximately 49,000 students. The graduation rate from this school district was 90.4% in 2009, and the county's schools are ranked among the best in the state. Student test scores consistently top

6080-567: Was born in 1895. Proctor revived the use of the title tayac , a hereditary office which he claimed had been handed down to him. Turkey Tayac was instrumental in the revival of American Indian culture among Piscataway and other Indian descendants throughout the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. He was allied with the American Indian Movement Project for revitalization. Chief Turkey Tayac was a prominent figure in

6160-423: Was common among the Algonquian peoples, Piscataway villages consisted of several individual houses protected by a defensive log palisade . Traditional houses were rectangular and typically 10 feet high and 20 feet long, a type of longhouse , with barrel-shaped roofs covered with bark or woven mats. A hearth occupied the center of the house with a smoke hole overhead. A succession of Indigenous peoples occupied

6240-601: Was found in what is now Howard County. In 1838, Dr. William Watkins of Richland Manor proposed the "Howard District" of Anne Arundel County . After several adjournments, the area of western Anne Arundel County was designated the Howard District in 1839. The district had the same status as a county except that it was not separately represented in the Maryland General Assembly . In 1841, the county built its first courthouse in Ellicott City. At

6320-543: Was opposed to gambling, denied the tribe's request. In 2004, Governor Bob Ehrlich also denied the Piscataway Conoy's renewed attempt for state recognition, stating that they failed to prove that they were descendants of the historical Piscataway Indians, as required by state law. Throughout this effort, the Piscataway-Conoy stated they had no intent to build and operate casinos. In December 2011,

6400-576: Was part of the large Algonquian language family. Jesuit missionary Father Andrew White translated the Catholic catechism into Piscataway in 1640, and other English missionaries compiled Piscataway-language materials. The Piscataway by 1600 were on primarily the north bank of the Potomac River in what is now Charles , southern Prince George's , and probably some of western St. Mary's counties in southern Maryland, according to John Smith 's 1608 map, "wooded; near many waterways". This also notes

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