Charles County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 166,617. The county seat is La Plata. The county was named for Charles Calvert (1637–1715), third Baron Baltimore. The county is part of the Southern Maryland region of the state. With a median household income of $103,678, Charles County is the 39th-wealthiest county in the United States as of 2020, and the highest-income county in the United States with a Black-majority population.
History
Charles County was created in 1658 by an Order in Council. There was also an earlier Charles County from 1650 to 1654, sometimes referred to in historic documents as Old Charles County, which consisted largely of lands within today's borders but "included parts of St. Mary's, Calvert, present-day Charles, and Prince George's County". John Tayloe I purchased land around Nanjemoy Creek after 1710 from which to mine iron and ship to his furnaces at Bristol Iron Works, Neabsco Iron Works and later Occoquan Ironworks.
In April 1865, John Wilkes Booth made his escape through Charles County after shooting President Abraham Lincoln. He was on his way to Virginia. He stopped briefly in Waldorf (then called Beantown) and had his broken leg set by local Doctor Samuel Mudd, who was later sent to prison for helping him. Booth then proceeded to hide in the Zekiah Swamp in Charles County, avoiding search parties for over a week until he and his accomplice were able to successfully cross the Potomac River.
In 1926, a tornado ripped through the county leaving 17 dead (including 13 schoolchildren). On April 28, 2002, another tornado (rated an F-4) destroyed much of downtown La Plata killing 3 and injuring over 100 people.
The county has numerous properties on the National Register of Historic Places. Among them are Green Park and Pleasant Hill, home of the Green and Spalding Families.
On December 4, 2004, an arson took place in the development of Hunters Brooke, a few miles southeast of Indian Head. The Hunters Brooke Arson was the largest residential arson in Maryland history.
Politics and government
Owing to the considerable voting power of its large number of freedmen following the Civil War, and later its growth as a suburban area, Charles County was for a long time solidly Republican. The only Democrat to carry Charles County until 1960 was Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, although Alf Landon and Wendell Willkie defeated Roosevelt in the next two elections by a combined margin of just 50 votes. Since the turn of the millennium, Charles County has become reliably Democratic, although not as overwhelmingly so as other parts of Maryland's Washington, D.C. suburbs. Charles County is one of only two counties in the nation to have voted for Al Gore in 2000 after voting for Bob Dole in 1996, along with Orange County, Florida.
Voter registration
{| class=wikitable
! colspan = 6 | Voter registration and party enrollment as of March 2024
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| Democratic
| align = center |
| align = center |
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| Unaffiliated
| align = center |
| align = center |
|-
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| Republican
| align = center |
| align = center |
|-
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| Libertarian
| align = center |
| align = center |
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| Other parties
| align = center |
| align = center |
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! colspan = 2 | Total
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Board of Commissioners
Charles County is governed by county commissioners, the traditional form of county government in Maryland. There are five commissioners. , they are:
{| class=wikitable
|-
! colspan=2 align=center valign=bottom | Position
! style="text-align:center;" | Name
! valign=bottom | Affiliation
! valign=bottom align=center | District
|-
| style="background-color:" |
| President
| Reuben Collins
| style="text-align:center;" | Democratic
| style="text-align:center;" | At-Large
|-
| style="background-color:" |
| Commissioner
| Gilbert Bowling
| style="text-align:center;" | Democratic
| style="text-align:center;" | District 1
|-
| style="background-color:" |
| Commissioner
| Thomasina Coates
| style="text-align:center;" | Democratic
| style="text-align:center;" | District 2
|-
| style="background-color:" |
| Commissioner
| Amanda Stewart
| style="text-align:center;" | Democratic
| style="text-align:center;" | District 3
|-
| style="background-color:" |
| Commissioner
| Ralph Patterson
| style="text-align:center;" | Democratic
| style="text-align:center;" | District 4
|-
|}
Charles County is entirely within the 5th Congressional District, which also includes Calvert, St. Mary's, and parts of Anne Arundel and Prince George's counties. The current representative is former Democratic House Majority Leader and former House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (29%) water.
In its western wing, along the southernmost bend in Maryland Route 224, Charles County contains a place due north, east, south, and west of the same state—Virginia.
Adjacent counties
- Prince George's County (north)
- Fairfax County, Virginia (northwest)
- Calvert County (east)
- Stafford County, Virginia (west)
- Prince William County, Virginia (west)
- St. Mary's County (southeast)
- Westmoreland County, Virginia (southeast)
- King George County, Virginia (south)
National protected area
- Thomas Stone National Historic Site
- Mallows Bay–Potomac River National Marine Sanctuary