Gaithersburg, Maryland
Encyclopedia
Gaithersburg is a city in Montgomery County
, Maryland
, United States
. The city had a population of 59,933 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth largest incorporated city in the state, behind Baltimore
, Frederick
, and Rockville
. Gaithersburg is located at 39°8' North, 77°13' West, to the northwest of Washington, D.C.
, and is considered a suburb and a primary city within the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. Gaithersburg was incorporated in 1878. The Greater Gaithersburg Area swells to over 200,000 people when the northeastern suburb Montgomery Village and the southwestern suburb North Potomac are factored in.
Gaithersburg is divided into east and west sections, separated by Interstate 270
. The eastern section of the city is older and is the original portion of the town before more recent growth. Landmarks and buildings from that time can still be seen in many places but especially in the historic central business district of Gaithersburg called "Olde Town". The east side also includes Lake Forest Mall, City Hall, and the Montgomery County Fair grounds. The west side of the city has many wealthier neighborhoods that were designed with smart growth techniques and embrace New Urbanism
. These include the award-winning Kentlands community, the Lakelands community, and the Washingtonian Center(better known as The Rio), a popular shopping/business didtrict. Three New Urbanism communities are under construction, including Crown Farm, Watkins Mill Town Center (Casey East and West), and the massive "Science City". The state has a light rail
line, Corridor Cities Transitway or "CCT", planned for the western portion of the city starting at Shady Grove Metro Station and connecting all the high density western Gaithersburg neighborhoods with a total of eight stops planned in the city.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) is headquartered in Gaithersburg directly west of I-270. Other major employers in the city include IBM
, Lockheed Martin
Information Systems and Global Services business area headquarters, MedImmune
(recently purchased by AstraZeneca
), and Sodexo.
The city is also the location of the 220th Military Police Brigade
of the United States Army Reserve
.
, inherited a portion of that land, and by the 1850s the area had ceased to be called log town and was known to inhabitants as Gaitherburg.
The Forest Oak Post Office, named for a large tree in the town, was located in Gaither's store in 1851. However, when the railroad was built through town the new station was called Gaithersburg, an officially recognized name for the community for the first time. The town incorporated under its current name in 1878. 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 1873 the B&O 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 City of Gaithersburg.
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. The Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory
is (as of 2007) the only National Historic Landmark
in the City of Gaithersburg. The observatory and five others in Japan
, Italy
, Russia
, and the United States
gathered information that is still used by scientists today, along with information from satellites, 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.
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 last 20 years (1990–2010), it has become one of the most economically and ethnically diverse areas in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical 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 and Watkins Mill High having two of the most diverse populations in the Washington, D.C. area.
On July 16, 2010, Gaithersburg was hit by a 3.6 magnitude earthquake, one of the strongest to occur in Maryland.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 10.2 square miles (26.4 km²), of which 10.1 square miles (26.2 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 0.69%, is water.
lists "Gaithersburg" among the many words and proper names of English origin in which non-initial TH is soft, as in "bathe" and "whether." However, Merriam-Webster.com shows a hard TH, as in "thing" and "both." Since Benjamin Gaither lived during the 18th century, it's probable that his name was pronounced with a soft TH as in most native English names and words in which it occurs in the middle, and this would have been carried over into the city name. However, as the population of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area mushroomed after World War II, and especially after the construction of the Washington Beltway and the D.C. Metro lured affluent government employees and other professionals into the suburbs, the population of Gaithersburg swelled and the influence of the original settlers has waned. Pronunciation has shifted to a hard TH, consistent with the consonant's pronunciation in the multitude of words of Greek origin assimilated into English by scholars during the Enlightenment and invented by scientists and engineers during the scientific and technological boom of the 20th century.
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 people per square mile (2,013.3/km²). There were 20,674 housing units at an average density of 2,049.7 per square mile (791.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 39.7% White, 15.5% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 16.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 8.6% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. 24.4% 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.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,883 and the median income for a family was $56,422 as of a 2007 estimate. Males had a median income of $41,231 versus $35,861 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $27,323. 10.1% of the population and 6.9% of families were below the poverty line. 7.2% of those under the age of 18 and 11.4% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
, currently Angel Jones.
Its current mayor is Sidney A. Katz
. (1998-). Previous mayors include:
The departments of the city of Gaithersburg and their directors include:
, Rockville
and Washington, DC. The most important east-west cross streets are Diamond Avenue and Quince Orchard Road.
Interstate 270
, runs approximately parallel to Frederick Avenue and connects Gaithersburg with the Capital Beltway
. Interstate 370 begins in Gaithersburg and is the western terminus of the currently-under-construction Intercounty Connector
, which when complete will provide a direct link to Interstate 95
near Laurel
. The ICC will help move Gaithersburg into position to be a regional hub for the northern D.C. suburbs with two major highways intersecting in the city.
via Shady Grove station
, which is located just outside the city limits and is the north-western terminus of the Red Line
.
The Corridor Cities Transitway light rail line "CCT" from Shady Grove Metro Station to Clarksburg will have 8 of 15 stops in Gaithersburg connecting the entire western part of the city by rail transit. The light rail line will truly turn the western part of the city into a walkable transit-oriented community with stops planned in Washingtonian Center/Crown Farm, four stops in the new "Science City", Kentlands CBD, NIST, and Watkins Mill Town Center.
Maryland's MARC
system operates commuter rail services connecting Gaithersburg to Washington, DC with two stations in the city, at Old Town Gaithersburg
and Metropolitan Grove
, and a third station — Washington Grove
— just outside city limits.
Bus service in Gaithersburg consists of Metrobus
routes operated by WMATA and Ride-On routes operated by Montgomery County
, as well as paratransit
service provided by MetroAccess.
bisects Montgomery County and runs as many as 50 trains a day through the center of Gaithersburg. The MARC trains run on the CSX tracks, as do Amtrak
trains, which go through Gaithersburg but do not stop.
The Montgomery County Airpark
(IATA airport code
: GAI) is a short distance outside Gaithersburg city limits. The airport is the larger of two general aviation airports in the county. For commercial airline service, Gaithersburg residents use Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
, Washington Dulles International Airport
or Baltimore-Washington International Airport
.
.
Elementary schools that serve Gaithersburg include:
Middle schools that serve Gaithersburg include:
High schools that serve Gaithersburg include:
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The city had a population of 59,933 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth largest incorporated city in the state, behind Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Frederick
Frederick, Maryland
Frederick is a city in north-central Maryland. It is the county seat of Frederick County, the largest county by area in the state of Maryland. Frederick is an outlying community of the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of a greater...
, and Rockville
Rockville, Maryland
Rockville is the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a major incorporated city in the central part of Montgomery County and forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2010 U.S...
. Gaithersburg is located at 39°8' North, 77°13' West, to the northwest of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and is considered a suburb and a primary city within the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. Gaithersburg was incorporated in 1878. The Greater Gaithersburg Area swells to over 200,000 people when the northeastern suburb Montgomery Village and the southwestern suburb North Potomac are factored in.
Gaithersburg is divided into east and west sections, separated by Interstate 270
Interstate 270 (Maryland)
Interstate 270 is a auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Maryland that travels between Interstate 495 just north of Bethesda, Montgomery County and Interstate 70 in the city of Frederick in Frederick County. It consists of the mainline as well as a spur that provides access to and...
. The eastern section of the city is older and is the original portion of the town before more recent growth. Landmarks and buildings from that time can still be seen in many places but especially in the historic central business district of Gaithersburg called "Olde Town". The east side also includes Lake Forest Mall, City Hall, and the Montgomery County Fair grounds. The west side of the city has many wealthier neighborhoods that were designed with smart growth techniques and embrace New Urbanism
New urbanism
New Urbanism is an urban design movement, which promotes walkable neighborhoods that contain a range of housing and job types. It arose in the United States in the early 1980s, and has gradually continued to reform many aspects of real estate development, urban planning, and municipal land-use...
. These include the award-winning Kentlands community, the Lakelands community, and the Washingtonian Center(better known as The Rio), a popular shopping/business didtrict. Three New Urbanism communities are under construction, including Crown Farm, Watkins Mill Town Center (Casey East and West), and the massive "Science City". The state has a light rail
Light rail
Light rail or light rail transit is a form of urban rail public transportation that generally has a lower capacity and lower speed than heavy rail and metro systems, but higher capacity and higher speed than traditional street-running tram systems...
line, Corridor Cities Transitway or "CCT", planned for the western portion of the city starting at Shady Grove Metro Station and connecting all the high density western Gaithersburg neighborhoods with a total of eight stops planned in the city.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...
(NIST) is headquartered in Gaithersburg directly west of I-270. Other major employers in the city include IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
, Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin
Lockheed Martin is an American global aerospace, defense, security, and advanced technology company with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, in the Washington Metropolitan Area....
Information Systems and Global Services business area headquarters, MedImmune
MedImmune
MedImmune, LLC, headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, became a wholly owned subsidiary of AstraZeneca in 2007. Since being acquired, MedImmune has remained a Maryland-based biotechnology development enterprise...
(recently purchased by AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...
), and Sodexo.
The city is also the location of the 220th Military Police Brigade
220th Military Police Brigade (United States)
The 220th Military Police Brigade is a military police brigade of the United States Army, headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It is an Active Component/Reserve Component formation of the Army reserve....
of the United States Army Reserve
United States Army Reserve
The United States Army Reserve is the federal reserve force of the United States Army. Together, the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard constitute the reserve components of the United States Army....
.
History
Gaithersburg began in 1765 as a small agricultural settlement known as Log Town near the present day Summitee Hall on Ralph Crabb's 1725 land grant "Deer Park", gaining the name Gaithersburg a few years later. The northern portion of the land grant was purchased by Henry Brookes, and he built his home 'Montpelier' there in the late 1780s or early 1790s. His son-in-law, Benjamin GaitherBenjamin Gaither
Benjamin Gaither was the founder of Gaithersburg, a city located in Montgomery county, Maryland....
, inherited a portion of that land, and by the 1850s the area had ceased to be called log town and was known to inhabitants as Gaitherburg.
The Forest Oak Post Office, named for a large tree in the town, was located in Gaither's store in 1851. However, when the railroad was built through town the new station was called Gaithersburg, an officially recognized name for the community for the first time. The town incorporated under its current name in 1878. 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 1873 the B&O Railroad constructed a station at Gaithersburg, designed by Ephraim Francis Baldwin
Ephraim Francis Baldwin
Ephraim Francis Baldwin was an American architect, best known for his work for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and for the Roman Catholic Church.-Personal life:...
as part of his well-known series of Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
stations in Maryland. Rapid growth occurred shortly thereafter, and on April 5, 1878 the town was officially incorporated as the City of Gaithersburg.
In 1899, Gaithersburg was selected as one of six global locations for the construction of an International Latitude Observatory
International Latitude Observatory
The International Latitude Observatories were a system of six observatories located near the parallel of 39° 08' north latitude. They were used to measure the variation in latitude that occurs as a result of the "wobble" of the Earth on its polar axis.The original six observatories were located...
as part of a project to measure the Earth's wobble on its polar axis. The Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory
Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory
The Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory, in Gaithersburg, Maryland is one of the system of six International Latitude Observatories and the only National Historic Landmark in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The building is in the National Register of Historic Places. The GLO was constructed by Edwin Smith,...
is (as of 2007) the only National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in the City of Gaithersburg. The observatory and five others in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
gathered information that is still used by scientists today, along with information from satellites, to determine polar motion
Polar motion
Polar motion of the earth is the movement of Earth's rotational axis across its surface. This is measured with respect to a reference frame in which the solid Earth is fixed...
; 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.
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 last 20 years (1990–2010), it has become one of the most economically and ethnically diverse areas in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the state of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
, with people from all walks of life calling Gaithersburg home. This can be seen in the local schools, with Gaithersburg High and Watkins Mill High having two of the most diverse populations in the Washington, D.C. area.
On July 16, 2010, Gaithersburg was hit by a 3.6 magnitude earthquake, one of the strongest to occur in Maryland.
Geography
Gaithersburg is located at 39°7'55" North, 77°13'35" West (39.131974, -77.226428).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 10.2 square miles (26.4 km²), of which 10.1 square miles (26.2 km²) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.258998811 km²), or 0.69%, is water.
Pronunciation
The Wikipedia page on Pronunciation of English thPronunciation of English th
In English, the digraph ⟨th⟩ represents in most cases one of two different phonemes: the voiced dental fricative and the voiceless dental fricative...
lists "Gaithersburg" among the many words and proper names of English origin in which non-initial TH is soft, as in "bathe" and "whether." However, Merriam-Webster.com shows a hard TH, as in "thing" and "both." Since Benjamin Gaither lived during the 18th century, it's probable that his name was pronounced with a soft TH as in most native English names and words in which it occurs in the middle, and this would have been carried over into the city name. However, as the population of the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area mushroomed after World War II, and especially after the construction of the Washington Beltway and the D.C. Metro lured affluent government employees and other professionals into the suburbs, the population of Gaithersburg swelled and the influence of the original settlers has waned. Pronunciation has shifted to a hard TH, consistent with the consonant's pronunciation in the multitude of words of Greek origin assimilated into English by scholars during the Enlightenment and invented by scientists and engineers during the scientific and technological boom of the 20th century.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 52,613 people, 19,621 households, and 12,577 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 5,216.2 people per square mile (2,013.3/km²). There were 20,674 housing units at an average density of 2,049.7 per square mile (791.1/km²). The racial makeup of the city is 39.7% White, 15.5% Black or African American, 0.2% Native American, 16.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 8.6% from other races, and 3.2% from two or more races. 24.4% 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.
The median income for a household in the city was $44,883 and the median income for a family was $56,422 as of a 2007 estimate. Males had a median income of $41,231 versus $35,861 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $27,323. 10.1% of the population and 6.9% of families were below the poverty line. 7.2% of those under the age of 18 and 11.4% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
Economy
According to the City's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:| # | Employer | # of Employees |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Institute of Standards and Technology National Institute of Standards and Technology The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce... |
2,115 |
| 2 | IBM IBM International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas... |
1,100 |
| 3 | MedImmune MedImmune MedImmune, LLC, headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, became a wholly owned subsidiary of AstraZeneca in 2007. Since being acquired, MedImmune has remained a Maryland-based biotechnology development enterprise... |
1,027 |
| 4 | Sodexo USA | 1,000 |
| 5 | Asbury Methodist Village | 867 |
| 6 | The Gazette The Gazette (Maryland) The Gazette publishes weekly community newspapers serving Montgomery, Frederick, Prince George's and Carroll counties in Maryland, including a subscription-based weekend edition covering business and politics throughout the state. The group of papers consistently wins awards from the Suburban... |
428 |
| 7 | Gene Logic | 362 |
| 8 | BroadSoft | 200 |
| 9 | Qiagen Qiagen Qiagen is a provider of sample and assay technologies for molecular diagnostics, applied testing, academic and pharmaceutical research. Consolidated under the Dutch holding Qiagen N.V., the company operates more than 30 subsidiaries in over 18 countries. Qiagen’s shares are listed at the... |
280 |
| 10 | Airline Foods | 185 |
Government
Gaithersburg has an elected, five-member City Council, which serves as the legislative body of the city. The Mayor, who is also elected, serves as president of the council. The day-to-day administration of the City is overseen by a career City ManagerCity manager
A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a council-manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief executive officer or chief administrative officer in some municipalities...
, currently Angel Jones.
Its current mayor is Sidney A. Katz
Sidney A. Katz
Sidney A. Katz is the 18th and current mayor of Gaithersburg, Maryland. He has held this position since 1998.Katz attended the University of Maryland where the he received his Bachelor's Degree in Public Administration...
. (1998-). Previous mayors include:
- George W. Meem 1898–1904
- Carson Ward 1904–1906
- John W. Walker 1906–1908
- E. D. Kingsley 1908–1912
- Richard H. Miles 1912–1918
- John W. Walker 1918–1924
- Walter M. Magruder 1924–1926
- William McBain 1926–1948
- Harry C. Perry, Sr. 1948–1954
- Merton F. Duvall 1954–1966
- John W. Griffith 1966–1967
- Harold C. Morris 1967–1974
- Susan E. Nicholson, May–September 1974
- Milton M. Walker 1974–1976
- B. Daniel Walder 1976–1978
- Bruce A. Goldensohn 1978–1986
- W. Edward Bohrer, Jr. 1986–1998
- Sidney A. Katz 1998 -
The departments of the city of Gaithersburg and their directors include:
- Office of the City Manager, Angel Jones
- Assistant City Manager, Vacant
- Assistant City Manager, Tony Tomasello
- Finance and Administration, Harold Belton
- Planning and Code Administration, Gregory Ossont
- Neighborhood Services, Kevin Roman
- Community Services, Crystal Carr
- Animal Control, Lisa Holland
- Planning Department, Lauren Pruss
- Permits and Inspections, Wesley Burnette
- Information Technology, Peter Cottrell
- Parks, Recreation, and Culture, Michele McGleish
- Police, Mark P. Sroka of the Maryland State Police (temporary)
- Public Works, Jim Arnoult
Roads
The primary spine of Gaithersburg's road network is Frederick Avenue, which runs generally north-south through the middle of the city and connects Gaithersburg to FrederickFrederick, Maryland
Frederick is a city in north-central Maryland. It is the county seat of Frederick County, the largest county by area in the state of Maryland. Frederick is an outlying community of the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is part of a greater...
, Rockville
Rockville, Maryland
Rockville is the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a major incorporated city in the central part of Montgomery County and forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2010 U.S...
and Washington, DC. The most important east-west cross streets are Diamond Avenue and Quince Orchard Road.
Interstate 270
Interstate 270 (Maryland)
Interstate 270 is a auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Maryland that travels between Interstate 495 just north of Bethesda, Montgomery County and Interstate 70 in the city of Frederick in Frederick County. It consists of the mainline as well as a spur that provides access to and...
, runs approximately parallel to Frederick Avenue and connects Gaithersburg with the Capital Beltway
Interstate 495 (Capital Beltway)
Interstate 495 is a Interstate Highway that surrounds the United States' capital of Washington, D.C., and its inner suburbs in adjacent Maryland and Virginia. I-495 is widely known as the Capital Beltway or simply the Beltway, especially when the context of Washington, D.C., is clear...
. Interstate 370 begins in Gaithersburg and is the western terminus of the currently-under-construction Intercounty Connector
Intercounty Connector
Maryland Route 200 , more commonly known as the Intercounty Connector or ICC, is a partially completed toll freeway under construction in Maryland which connects Gaithersburg in Montgomery County and Laurel in Prince George's County. When completed, it will reach the community of Konterra just...
, which when complete will provide a direct link to Interstate 95
Interstate 95
Interstate 95 is the main highway on the East Coast of the United States, running parallel to the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to Florida and serving some of the most populated urban areas in the country, including Boston, Providence, New Haven, New York City, Newark, Philadelphia, Baltimore,...
near Laurel
Laurel, Maryland
Laurel is a city in northern Prince George's County, Anne Arundel County, and Howard County, Maryland, United States, located midway between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. Incorporated in 1870, the city maintains a historic district including its Main Street...
. The ICC will help move Gaithersburg into position to be a regional hub for the northern D.C. suburbs with two major highways intersecting in the city.
Transit
Gaithersburg is connected to the Washington MetroWashington Metro
The Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
via Shady Grove station
Shady Grove (Washington Metro)
Shady Grove is an island platformed Washington Metro station in Derwood, Maryland, United States. The station was opened on December 15, 1984, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority . Serving as the northwestern terminus of the Red Line, it is the station most distant...
, which is located just outside the city limits and is the north-western terminus of the Red Line
Red Line (Washington Metro)
The Red Line of the Washington Metro is a rail rapid transit service operating between 27 stations in Montgomery County, Maryland and the District of Columbia, United States. It is a primary line through downtown Washington, and the oldest and busiest line in the system...
.
The Corridor Cities Transitway light rail line "CCT" from Shady Grove Metro Station to Clarksburg will have 8 of 15 stops in Gaithersburg connecting the entire western part of the city by rail transit. The light rail line will truly turn the western part of the city into a walkable transit-oriented community with stops planned in Washingtonian Center/Crown Farm, four stops in the new "Science City", Kentlands CBD, NIST, and Watkins Mill Town Center.
Maryland's MARC
MARC Train
MARC , known prior to 1984 as Maryland Rail Commuter Service, is a regional rail system comprising three lines in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. MARC is administered by the Maryland Transit Administration , a Maryland Department of Transportation agency, and is operated under contract...
system operates commuter rail services connecting Gaithersburg to Washington, DC with two stations in the city, at Old Town Gaithersburg
Gaithersburg (MARC station)
Gaithersburg is a historic passenger rail station on the MARC Brunswick Line between Washington, D.C. and Martinsburg, WV...
and Metropolitan Grove
Metropolitan Grove (MARC station)
Metropolitan Grove is a passenger rail station on the MARC Brunswick Line between Washington, D.C. and Martinsburg, WV . Metropolitan Grove Station is nearest Browns Station Park. The large Watkins Mill Town Center development is adjacent and still under construction...
, and a third station — Washington Grove
Washington Grove (MARC station)
Washington Grove is a passenger rail station on the MARC Brunswick Line, which runs from Washington, D.C. to Martinsburg, WV and Frederick, MD. The station serves a historic community near Washington, D. C...
— just outside city limits.
Bus service in Gaithersburg consists of Metrobus
Metrobus (Washington, D.C.)
Metrobus is a bus service operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority . Its fleet consists of 1,480 buses covering an area of in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. There are over 300 bus routes serving 12,216 stops, including 2,398 bus shelters. In fiscal year 2009,...
routes operated by WMATA and Ride-On routes operated by Montgomery County
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is a county in the U.S. state of Maryland, situated just to the north of Washington, D.C., and southwest of the city of Baltimore. It is one of the most affluent counties in the United States, and has the highest percentage of residents over 25 years of age who hold post-graduate...
, as well as paratransit
Paratransit
Paratransit is an alternative mode of flexible passenger transportation that does not follow fixed routes or schedules. Typically mini-buses are used to provide paratransit service, but also share taxis and jitneys are important providers....
service provided by MetroAccess.
Other
The mainline of CSX TransportationCSX Transportation
CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
bisects Montgomery County and runs as many as 50 trains a day through the center of Gaithersburg. The MARC trains run on the CSX tracks, as do Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
trains, which go through Gaithersburg but do not stop.
The Montgomery County Airpark
Montgomery County Airpark
Montgomery County Airpark is a public airport located three miles northeast of the city of Gaithersburg, in Montgomery County, Maryland, USA.- Runways :Montgomery County Airpark covers and has one runway....
(IATA airport code
IATA airport code
An IATA airport code, also known an IATA location identifier, IATA station code or simply a location identifier, is a three-letter code designating many airports around the world, defined by the International Air Transport Association...
: GAI) is a short distance outside Gaithersburg city limits. The airport is the larger of two general aviation airports in the county. For commercial airline service, Gaithersburg residents use Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport is a public airport located south of downtown Washington, D.C., in Arlington County, Virginia. It is the commercial airport nearest to Washington, D.C. For many decades, it was called Washington National Airport, but this airport was renamed in 1998 to...
, Washington Dulles International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport is a public airport in Dulles, Virginia, 26 miles west of downtown Washington, D.C. The airport serves the Baltimore-Washington-Northern Virginia metropolitan area centered on the District of Columbia. It is named after John Foster Dulles, Secretary of...
or Baltimore-Washington International Airport
Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport is an international airport serving the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area in the United States. It is commonly called BWI, BWI Airport or BWI Marshall, BWI being an initialism for "Baltimore/Washington International" and the...
.
Education
Gaithersburg is served by Montgomery County Public SchoolsMontgomery County Public Schools
Montgomery County Public Schools ' is a school district that serves Montgomery County, Maryland, USA. It is the largest school district in Maryland. As of the 2009–2010 school year, the district had 11,500 FTE teachers serving 141,777 students at 200 schools.Students in the district score among the...
.
Elementary schools that serve Gaithersburg include:
- Brown Station Elementary School
- Diamond Elementary School
- Flower Hill Elementary School
- Gaithersburg Elementary School
- Goshen Elementary School
- Jones Lane Elementary School
- Judith A. Resnik Elementary School
- Laytonsville Elementary School
- Rosemont Elementary School
- Rachel Carson Elementary School
- South Lake Elementary School
- Stedwick Elementary School
- Strawberry Knoll Elementary School
- Summit Hall Elementary School
- Thurgood Marshall Elementary School
- Washington Grove Elementary School
- Watkins Mill Elementary School
- Whetstone Elementary School
Middle schools that serve Gaithersburg include:
- Forest Oak Middle School
- Gaithersburg Middle School
- Lakelands Park Middle SchoolLakelands Park Middle SchoolLakelands Park Middle School is a public middle school located in Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA. Managed by Montgomery County Public Schools, the school educates in grades 6-8. The school was named after Lakelands Park, which is adjacent to the school. It has the largest building among middle schools...
- Neelsville Middle School
- Shady Grove Middle School
- Ridegeview Middle School
- Montgomery Village Middle School
High schools that serve Gaithersburg include:
- Gaithersburg High SchoolGaithersburg High SchoolGaithersburg High School is located in Gaithersburg, Maryland, United States. Part of Montgomery County Public Schools, the school was founded in 1904 as "Gaithersburg School" and offered grades K-12. Since 1951, the school resides at 314 South Frederick Avenue and currently offers education for...
- Quince Orchard High SchoolQuince Orchard High SchoolQuince Orchard High School is a secondary school located on Quince Orchard Road in an unincorporated area of Gaithersburg in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Quince Orchard's incoming freshmen come from Lakelands Park and Ridgeview Middle School as well as Roberto Clemente Middle School...
- Watkins Mill High SchoolWatkins Mill High SchoolWatkins Mill High School is located in Gaithersburg, an incorporated city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States.The school is named after the Watkins family who owned a mill on the property. The school's colors are orange and blue. Watkins Mill is home to such programs as the...
Newspapers
- Gaithersburg is home to Gazette NewspapersThe Gazette (Maryland)The Gazette publishes weekly community newspapers serving Montgomery, Frederick, Prince George's and Carroll counties in Maryland, including a subscription-based weekend edition covering business and politics throughout the state. The group of papers consistently wins awards from the Suburban...
, a publisher of weekly community newspapers in suburban Maryland, including the Gaithersburg Gazette. - The Town Courier newspaper is based in Kentlands and focuses on Gaithersburg's west side neighborhoods, in addition to publishing RockvilleRockville, MarylandRockville is the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a major incorporated city in the central part of Montgomery County and forms part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. The 2010 U.S...
and UrbanaUrbana, MarylandUrbana is an unincorporated community located in southern Frederick County, Maryland. It lies at the I-270/MD 80 interchange, about southeast of Frederick.-History:The Urbana area was first settled in 1730....
editions.
Notable people
- Mark BryanMark BryanMark Bryan is the lead guitarist for the band Hootie & the Blowfish. He also plays the mandolin, among numerous other instruments, and helps with background vocals....
, bass player from Hootie & the BlowfishHootie & the BlowfishHootie & the Blowfish is an American rock band that enjoyed popularity in the second half of the 1990s. They were originally formed in 1986 at the University of South Carolina by Darius Rucker, Dean Felber, Jim Sonefeld, and Mark Bryan. The band has recorded five studio albums to date, and has... - Kiran ChetryKiran ChetryKiran Carrie Chetry was a co-anchor of CNN's early morning cable news program, American Morning.-Early life:Kiran means "ray of light". Chetry refers to the large traditional caste of rulers and soldiers among Hindus in the Middle Hills of Nepal. Kiran's father Hom Chetry belongs to this caste...
, CNN anchor - Astrid Ellena, Miss Indonesia 2011
- Hank FraleyHank FraleyHenry "Hank" F. Fraley is an American football offensive lineman who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2000. He played college football at Robert Morris.Fraley has also played for the Philadelphia Eagles, Cleveland Browns, and St...
, football player currently starting at center for the St. Louis RamsSt. Louis RamsThe St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,... - Judah FriedlanderJudah FriedlanderJudah Friedlander is an American actor and comedian, known for his trademark trucker hats, oversized glasses and unkempt appearance, which he retains in many of his screen roles.-Early life:...
, actor, most notably from the television show 30 Rock30 Rock30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live... - Joshua HarrisJoshua HarrisJoshua Eugene Harris is an American pastor and author, perhaps most widely known as the author of I Kissed Dating Goodbye , in which he explains what he believes to be the biblical approach to dating and relationships.He is currently senior pastor of Covenant Life Church, the founding church of...
, Christian pastor and author - Matt HoltMatt HoltMatt Holt is the former vocalist of Nothingface, and Kingdom of Snakes. His vocals include a wide range of very guttural and distinctive growls to ethereal melodies and even the occasional rap-style vocals on early songs like "Lipsdick" and "Breathe Out"...
, former singer of NothingfaceNothingfaceNothingface was a four-piece metal band from Washington, D.C. noted for having graphic lyrics and occasionally using political themes in their later works, as well as polyrhythmic songs.-First Run:...
and Kingdom of SnakesKingdom of SnakesKingdom of Snakes is a band formed in spring 2004 from members of Nothingface and Molly McGuire In spring 2004, the band went into Henson Studios to record a five-song EP with producer Bill Kennedy... - Paul JamesPaul James (actor)Paul James is an American actor. He may be best known for his role on the ABC Family television show Greek as Calvin. He also starred in the movie The Architect. James attended the theater program at Montgomery College in Rockville, Maryland where he participated in a variety of musical theater...
, actor, most notably from the television show GrΣΣkGreek (TV series)Greek is an American comedy-drama television series, which follows students of the fictional Cyprus-Rhodes University , located in Ohio, who participate in the school's Greek system... - Tim KurkjianTim KurkjianTim Kurkjian is a Major League Baseball analyst on ESPN's Baseball Tonight and SportsCenter. He is also a contributor to ESPN The Magazine and ESPN.com. He guests on Mike and Mike in the Morning on Thursdays at 7:44 AM, discussing the latest in happenings in Major League Baseball...
, ESPN baseball analyst, appears on SportsCenter and Baseball Tonight, author of America's Game and Is This a Great Game, or What?: From A-Rod's Heart to Zim's Head--My 25 Years in Baseball - Matthew LeskoMatthew LeskoMatthew Lesko is an American author, self-proclaimed federal grant researcher, and infomercial personality. He has authored over 20 reference books telling people how to get "free" money from the United States government...
, author of "Free Money" from the government books - Shane McMahonShane McMahonShane Brandon McMahon is an American executive, currently serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of YOU On Demand. A former executive and professional wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment , he is the son of WWE Chairman and CEO Vince McMahon and former US Senate candidate Linda...
, former "co-GM" of WWE Monday Night Raw - Jim MiklaszewskiJim MiklaszewskiJames Allen Miklaszewski , better known as Jim or "Mik" Miklaszewski, is chief Pentagon correspondent for NBC News. "Mik" was reporting live for the Today Show on September 11, 2001 when a plane hit the Pentagon, where his office is based....
, chief Pentagon correspondent for NBC News - John PapuchisJohn PapuchisJohn Papuchis is the Defensive Line Coach, SpecialTeams Coordinator, and Recruiting Coordinator for the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers football team.-Early life and Education:John Papuchis was born in Gaithersburg, Maryland...
, Defensive EndsDefensive endDefensive end is the name of a defensive position in the sport of American and Canadian football.This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formations have substantially changed how the position is played over the years...
Coach, University of Nebraska Cornhuskers football teamNebraska Cornhuskers footballThe Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. Nebraska is one of only six football programs in NCAA Division I-A... - Guy PratherGuy PratherGuy Prather is a former linebacker in the National Football League. He played five seasons with the Green Bay Packers.-References:...
, football player - Paul RabilPaul RabilPaul Rabil , is a lacrosse player with the Washington Stealth of the National Lacrosse League and the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse...
, lacrosseLacrosseLacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
player (midfield), four-time All-American at Johns Hopkins UniversityJohns Hopkins UniversityThe Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
, all-star for the MLL's Boston CannonsBoston CannonsThe Boston Cannons are a Major League Lacrosse professional men's field lacrosse team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They have played in the MLL since the 2001 season. From 2006 to 2008, they were in the Eastern Conference. From the league's inception in 2001 through 2005, they were in the... - Eddie StubbsEddie StubbsEddie Stubbs is a radio disc jockey broadcasting old-style country music on WSM, a radio station with a nighttime clear channel signal broadcast from Nashville, Tennessee...
, country musician, disc jockey, and Grand Ole OpryGrand Ole OpryThe Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
announcer - James WhiteJames White (basketball)James William White IV is an American professional basketball player. He is a 6'7", 200 lb. guard/forward. He earned the nickname 'Flight 75' due to his leaping ability....
, NBA basketball player with the San Antonio SpursSan Antonio SpursThe San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
and Houston RocketsHouston RocketsThe Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being... - Wale (rapper)Wale (rapper)Wale Victor Folarin , better known by his stage name Wale , is an American rapper from Washington, D.C. Wale was born to Nigerian parents. He rose to prominence in 2006, when his song "Dig Dug " became popular in his hometown. Wale became locally recognized and continued recording music for the...
External links
- City of Gaithersburg official website
- Gaithersburg Local
- Gaithersburg: Then & Now, a photographic tour of the city's history