OK, so I was a little early for the start date, but this will do. Here's a short history of Ellicott City In 1772, three Quaker brothers from Bucks County, Pennsylvania chose the picturesque wilderness up river from Elk Ridge Landing to establish a flour mill. John, Andrew and Joseph Ellicott founded Ellicott City which became one of the greatest milling and manufacturing towns in the East. The Ellicott brothers helped revolutionize the area farming. They persuaded farmers to plant wheat instead of tobacco and introduced fertilizer to revitalize the depleted soil. Charles Carroll, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was an early influential convert from tobacco to wheat. The Ellicotts made significant contributions to the area and the era. They built roads, bridges and a wharf in Baltimore, introduced the wagon brake and plaster as a fertilizer, erected iron works, a furnace, rolling mills, schools, a meeting house, stores and houses made from beautiful granite. In 1791, Andrew Ellicott was commissioned to survey the boundaries for the nation's new capital, Washington, D.C. He was joined by a free black man and family friend named Benjamin Banneker. Banneker worked closely with the city designer, L'Enfant. When the Frenchman abandoned the project and returned home, Banneker was able to recreate the designer's plans from memory. By 1861, Ellicott's Mills was a prosperous farming and manufacturing area, one of the greatest milling and manufacturing towns in the east. In 1867, a city charter was secured and the name was changed to Ellicott City. The only chartered city in the county, Ellicott City lost its charter in 1935 and was designated an historic district by the county in 1973 and today serves as the county seat. Howard County was very active during the Civil War. The B&O Railroad and the National Road, which ran through the middle of Ellicott City, transported goods for both sides! The railroad and its bridges became prime targets of the Confederate Army. A contingent of Union soldiers were strategically stationed in the Elkridge area to guard the Thomas Viaduct. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Kathi Jones-Hudson" <mdcat.geo@yahoo.com> To: <BALTGEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Tuesday, October 15, 2002 5:19 PM Subject: [BALTGEN-L] Ellicott City / Howard Co. > --- timothy robinson <trobinson42@comcast.net> wrote: > ... Howard County to the West of Catonsville, which > > is definately where Ellicott City is, and has been > > since the later 1600's. > > Actually Tim, Howard Co. wasn't formed until 1851 > --out of parts of Anne Arundel and Baltimore Co.'s. It > is one of the later formed counties. Probably why it > can be confusing to research that area - depending on > when it was and where it was exactly it could be AA or > BA Co. records that researchers need to check. > > > ===== > Kathi Jones-Hudson > MD Tombstone Transcription Project Manager > http://www.rootsweb.com/~cemetery/maryland.html > > __________________________________________________ > Do you Yahoo!? > Faith Hill - Exclusive Performances, Videos & More > http://faith.yahoo.com > > > ==== BALTGEN Mailing List ==== > The Baltgen-L list focuses on GENEALOGY research for > Baltimore, Anne Arundel, Harford, and Howard Cos. MD > >

My grandmother ran off to Ellicott City (from DC, I believe) and eloped. Why that town? Sue Baldwin > -----Original Message----- > From: timothy robinson [mailto:trobinson42@comcast.net] > Sent: Tuesday, October 15, 2002 7:58 PM > To: BALTGEN-L@rootsweb.com > Subject: Re: [BALTGEN-L] Ellicott City / Howard Co. > > > OK, so I was a little early for the start date, but this will > do. Here's a short history of > > Ellicott City > > In 1772, three Quaker brothers from Bucks County, > Pennsylvania chose the picturesque wilderness up river from > Elk Ridge Landing to establish a flour mill. John, Andrew and > Joseph Ellicott founded Ellicott City which became one of the > greatest milling and manufacturing towns in the East. > > >