Benedict is an

unincorporated Unincorporated may refer to: * Unincorporated area, land not governed by a local municipality * Unincorporated entity, a type of organization * Unincorporated territories of the United States, territories under U.S. jurisdiction, to which Congress ...

town and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

Charles County Charles County is a county in Southern Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 166,617. The county seat is La Plata. The county was named for Charles Calvert (1637–1715), third Baron Baltimore. Charles County is part of the Washi ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to it ...

, United States, located on the Patuxent River in

southern Maryland Southern Maryland is a geographical, cultural and historic region in Maryland composed of the state's southernmost counties on the Western Shore of the Chesapeake Bay. According to the state of Maryland, the region includes all of Calvert, Ch ...

. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 261.

Demographics

History

Originally a fishing village along the Patuxent River in the southern

Province of Maryland The Province of Maryland was an English and later British colony in North America that existed from 1632 until 1776, when it joined the other twelve of the Thirteen Colonies in rebellion against Great Britain and became the U.S. state of Maryla ...

in the late 17th century, it was named Benedict-Leonardtown for

Benedict Leonard Calvert Benedict Leonard Calvert (September 20, 1700 – June 1, 1732) was the 15th Proprietary Governor of Maryland from 1727 through 1731, appointed by his older brother, Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore (1699–1751). He was named after his fath ...

, (1700-1732), 15th Proprietary Governor of Maryland, serving under his older brother, Charles Calvert, 5th Baron and Lord Baltimore, (1699-1751).

War of 1812

In the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...

, Benedict was the location where the British Army led by General Robert Ross landed on August 18, 1814, after having fought fierce naval battles with American naval forces in the Patuxent. From Benedict, the British began their march to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...

, routing a larger American force at the

Battle of Bladensburg The Battle of Bladensburg was a battle of the Chesapeake campaign of the War of 1812, fought on 24 August 1814 at Bladensburg, Maryland, northeast of Washington, D.C. Called "the greatest disgrace ever dealt to American arms," a British force ...

before ultimately burning the capital. Following this, they failed to capture

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...

in the

Battle of Baltimore The Battle of Baltimore (September 12–15, 1814) was a sea/land battle fought between British invaders and American defenders in the War of 1812. American forces repulsed sea and land invasions off the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland ...

Civil War

Benedict was the site of Camp Stanton, constructed in October 1863 for the Maryland 7th Regiment. Camp Stanton was also the location where the Maryland 19th Regiment of the

United States Colored Troops The United States Colored Troops (USCT) were regiments in the United States Army composed primarily of African-American ( colored) soldiers, although members of other minority groups also served within the units. They were first recruited durin ...

was formed on December 19, 1863, with freed slaves who were purchased for their freedom by the United States Government to serve as soldiers. This unit distinguished itself at the

Battle of the Wilderness The Battle of the Wilderness was fought on May 5–7, 1864, during the American Civil War. It was the first battle of Lieutenant general (United States), Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against General (C ...

. Some of its members included the Rev.

William Saunders Crowdy William Saunders Crowdy (August 11, 1847 – August 4, 1908) was an American soldier, preacher, entrepreneur, theologian, and pastor. As one of the earliest Black Hebrew Israelites in the United States, he established the '' Church of God an ...

and his brother Daniel, of a plantation in St. Mary's County. A school was established on the site to educate the black soldiers, most of whom had received no education when they were slaves. The school was run by Samuel C. Armstrong.

Benedict today

Adjacent to the town is the

Benedict Bridge Maryland Route 231 (MD 231) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from Olivers Shop Road near Hughesville east to MD 765 in Prince Frederick. MD 231 crosses the Patuxent River on ...

, a bridge where

Maryland Route 231 Maryland Route 231 (MD 231) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from Olivers Shop Road near Hughesville east to MD 765 in Prince Frederick. MD 231 crosses the Patuxent River on ...

crosses the Patuxent River from

into

Calvert County Calvert County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,783. Its county seat is Prince Frederick. The county's name is derived from the family name of the Barons of Baltimore, the proprietors of t ...

. The town also has one or two seafood restaurants, and a Catholic church, St. Francis de Sales, that celebrates mass in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Maryland Census-designated places in Charles County, Maryland Maryland populated places on the Chesapeake Bay