Gaithersburg ( ), officially the City of Gaithersburg, is a city in
Montgomery County,
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 ...
, United States. At the time of the
2020 U.S. Census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657,
making it the ninth-largest location in the state. Gaithersburg is located to the northwest of
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
, and is considered a suburb and a primary city within the
Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. Gaithersburg was incorporated as a town in 1878 and as a city in 1968.
Gaithersburg is located east and west of
Interstate 270. The eastern section includes the historic area of the town. 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 Towne". The east side also includes
Lakeforest Mall, City Hall, and the Montgomery County Fair grounds, and Bohrer Park (a well-known joint community recreation center and outdoor water park for kids and families). The west side of the city has many wealthier neighborhoods that were designed with smart growth techniques and embrace
New Urbanism
New Urbanism is an urban design movement which promotes environmentally friendly habits by creating walkable neighbourhoods containing a wide range of housing and job types. It arose in the United States in the early 1980s, and has gradually i ...
. These include the
Kentlands
Kentlands is a neighborhood of the U.S. city of Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Kentlands was one of the first attempts to develop a community using Traditional Neighborhood Design planning techniques (also known as 'neo-traditional new town planning') ...
community, the Lakelands community, and the Washingtonian Center (better known as Rio), a shopping/business district. Consumers often come to this area during Black Friday and other shopping holidays for the deals and variety of huge brand name stores like Target and Dick's Sporting Goods, and smaller stores like Francesca's and Blue Mercury. Two New Urbanism communities are under construction, including
Watkins Mill Town Center
Watkins Mill Town Center is a transit-oriented development proposed in Gaithersburg, Maryland, United States. It is located on the north side of the Metropolitan Grove MARC Marc or MARC may refer to:
People
* Marc (given name), people with the f ...
(Casey East and West), and the massive "Science City". The state has a
bus rapid transit 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
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is an agency of the United States Department of Commerce whose mission is to promote American innovation and industrial competitiveness. NIST's activities are organized into physical s ...
(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,
AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc () is a British-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with its headquarters at the Cambridge Biomedical Campus in Cambridge, England. It has a portfolio of products for major diseases in areas includi ...
, and the French
multinational corporation
A multinational company (MNC), also referred to as a multinational enterprise (MNE), a transnational enterprise (TNE), a transnational corporation (TNC), an international corporation or a stateless corporation with subtle but contrasting senses, i ...
,
Sodexo. Gaithersburg is also the location of the garrison of the
United States Army Reserve Legal Command
United States Army Reserve Legal Command (USARLC) is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and was activated on 16 September 2009. It is part of United States Army Reserve Command.
Mission and support
The U.S. Army Reserve Legal Command is ...
.
Gaithersburg is noted for its ethnic and economic diversity; it was ranked second for ethnic diversity among the 501 largest U.S. cities, and first among smaller U.S. cities, by
WalletHub
WalletHub (formerly CardHub.com) is a personal finance website that was launched in August 2013. It is based in Miami and owned by Evolution Finance, Inc.
WalletHub offers free consumer tools, such as its WalletLiteracy Quiz and its Financial ...
in 2021.
History
![Summit Avenue, Gaithersburg, Maryland (1900)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Summit_Avenue%2C_Gaithersburg%2C_Maryland_%281900%29.jpg)
Gaithersburg was settled in 1765 as a small
agricultural settlement known as Log Town near the present day Summit Hall on Ralph Crabb's 1725 land grant "Deer Park".
The northern portion of the land grant was purchased by Henry Brookes, and he built his brick home "Montpelier" there, starting first with a log cabin in 1780/3. This 1,000-acre tract became part of the landmark IBM Headquarters complex built on the then-new I-270 Interstate "Industrial", now "Technology", Corridor in the late 1960s to the 1970s.
Benjamin Gaither married Henry's daughter Margaret, and Benjamin and Margaret inherited a portion of Henry's land prior to Henry's death in 1807. Gaither built his home on the land in 1802. By the 1850s the area had ceased to be called Log Town and was known to inhabitants as Gaithersburg.
19th century
The Forest Oak Post Office, named for a large tree in the town, was located in Gaither's store in 1851.
On July 10 1864, using the route of present-day 355, over 10,000 Confederate troops camped overnight in the area, including the present Bohrer Park, after a one-day march from
Frederick Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Nobility
Anhalt-Harzgerode
*Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
Austria
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198
* Frederick ...
after the
Battle of Monocacy
The Battle of Monocacy (also known as Monocacy Junction) was fought on July 9, 1864, about from Frederick, Maryland, as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864 during the American Civil War. Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. Jubal A. Early defe ...
. The next day the troops continued towards Washington in an unsuccessful attempt to take the city.
When the railroad was built through town in 1873, the new station was called Gaithersburg, an officially recognized name for the community for the first time. Also in 1873 the
B&O Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the first common carrier railroad and the oldest railroad in the United States, with its first section opening in 1830. Merchants from Baltimore, which had benefited to some extent from the construction of ...
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 Town of Gaithersburg.
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 1899, Gaithersburg was selected as one of six global locations for the construction of an
International Latitude Observatory
__NOTOC__
The International Latitude Service was created by the International Geodetic Association in 1899 to study variations in latitude caused by polar motion, precession, or "wobble" of the Earth's axis.
The original ''International Latitu ...
as part of a project to measure the Earth's wobble on its polar axis. The
Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory
The Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory is a historic astronomical observatory on DeSellum Avenue in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It was established in 1899 as part of a system of six International Latitude Observatories to precisely measure the wo ...
is (as of 2007) the only
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in the City of Gaithersburg. The observatory and five others in
Japan,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
, and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
gathered information that is still used by scientists today, along with information from
satellites, to determine
polar motion
Polar motion of the Earth is the motion of the Earth's rotational axis relative to its crust. This is measured with respect to a reference frame in which the solid Earth is fixed (a so-called ''Earth-centered, Earth-fixed'' or ECEF reference ...
; 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.
Late 20th century
In 1968, Gaithersburg was upgraded from a town to a city.
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 late 1990s and 2000s, it had become one of the most economically and ethnically diverse areas in the
Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area
The Washington metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the National Capital Region, is the metropolitan area centered on Washington, D.C. The metropolitan area includes all of Washington, D.C. and parts of the states of Maryland, Virgi ...
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 School and
Watkins Mill High School having two of the most diverse student bodies in the region.
During a 1997 rainstorm, the 295-year-old forest oak tree that gave its name to the Forest Oak Post Office crashed down.
The tree served as the inspiration for the city's logo,
[ which is also featured prominently on the city's flag.][
]
21st century
In 2007, parts of the film '' Body of Lies'' were filmed in the city, at a building on 100 Edison Park Drive. The film was released in 2008 and the building is now the Montgomery County Police Department
The Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD), officially the Montgomery County Department of Police (MCP), is a nationally accredited agency and the primary law enforcement agency of Montgomery County, Maryland, providing the full spectrum ...
's headquarters.
On July 16, 2010, Gaithersburg was part of the area where a 3.6 magnitude earthquake was felt, one of the strongest to occur in Maryland.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...
, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water.
Demographics
2010 census
As of the census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2010, there were 59,933 people, 22,000 households, and 14,548 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
was . There were 23,337 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 31.9% non-Hispanic White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 16.3% African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.5% Native American, 16.9% Asian (6.01 Chinese, 4.77% Indian, 2.03% Korean, 1.69% Filipino, 1.02% Vietnamese, 0.62% Burmese), 0.1% Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 10.7% from other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 4.8% from two or more races. Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
of any race were 24.2% of the population (8.3% Salvadoran, 2% Honduran, 1.9% Mexican, 1.9% Peruvian, 1.7% Guatemalan).
There were 22,000 households, of which 37.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.3% were married couples living together, 12.7% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.9% were non-families. 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.70 and the average family size was 3.24.
The median age in the city was 35.1 years. 24.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 33.8% were from 25 to 44; 24.6% were from 45 to 64; and 9.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 48.6% male and 51.4% females.
2000 census
As of the census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
of 2000, there were 52,613 people, 19,621 households, and 12,577 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...
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 34.7% White
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...
, 19.5% Black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...
or African American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
, 0.2% Native American, 13.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...
, 3.6% from other races
Other often refers to:
* Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy
Other or The Other may also refer to:
Film and television
* ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack
* ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...
, and 3.2% from two or more races. 24.8% of the population were Hispanic
The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad.
The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...
or Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
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.
Economy
According to the city's 2020 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:
Gaithersburg also receives significant income from its conference organization platform including prominent conferences such as the CHI 84 conference.
RIO Washingtonian Center RIO Washingtonian Center, stylized as rio, is a hybrid power center and lifestyle center with shopping, restaurants, and entertainment in Gaithersburg, Maryland located immediately south of the interchange between Interstate 270 and 370. The or ...
a.k.a. rio a.k.a. Rio Lakefront, is a 760,000-square-foot complex of retail, restaurant and entertainment including AMC/Loews rio Cinemas, Target, LOFT, Barnes & Noble, Dave & Buster's, and Dick's Sporting Goods, built along an artificial lake.
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 manager. Gaithersburg is also the location of the United States Army Reserve Legal Command
United States Army Reserve Legal Command (USARLC) is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and was activated on 16 September 2009. It is part of United States Army Reserve Command.
Mission and support
The U.S. Army Reserve Legal Command is ...
.
The city's current mayor is Jud Ashman, who has held the office since 2014. On October 6, 2014, the Gaithersburg City Council selected city council member Jud Ashman to serve as mayor until the next City of Gaithersburg election in November 2015, replacing resigning mayor Sidney Katz. Ashman was re-elected in November 2015 and would be re-elected to full terms in 2017 and 2021.
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 – 2014
# Jud Ashman, November 2014 – Present
The departments of the city of Gaithersburg and their directors include:
* Office of the City Manager, Tanisha R. Briley
* Finance and Administration, Kimberly Francisco
* Planning and Code Administration, John Schlichting
* Community and Public Relations, Britta Monaco
* Human Resources, Kimberly Yocklin
* Information Technology, Peter Cottrell
* Parks, Recreation, and Culture, Carolyn Muller
* Chief of Police, Mark Sroka
* Public Works, Anthony Berger
Education
The following Montgomery County Public Schools are located in Gaithersburg:
Elementary schools
* Brown Station
* Rachel Carson
* Darnestown
* Diamond
* DuFief
* Fields Road
* Flower Hill
* Gaithersburg
* Goshen
* Jones Lane
* Laytonsville
* Thurgood Marshall
* Judith A. Resnik
* Rosemont
* South Lake
* Stedwick
* Strawberry Knoll
* Summit Hall
* Washington Grove
* Watkins Mill
* Whetstone
* Woodfield
Middle schools
* Forest Oak
* Gaithersburg
* Lakelands Park
* Ridgeview
* Shady Grove
High schools
* Gaithersburg High School
* Quince Orchard High School
Quince Orchard High School (QOHS), also known as Q.O. High School, is a secondary school located on Quince Orchard Road in the Quince Orchard neighborhood of Gaithersburg in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States.
Academics
According to ma ...
* Watkins Mill High School
Media
Gaithersburg is primarily served by the 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, ...
media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area (DMA), television market area, or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same (or similar) television and radio station offerings, and may also incl ...
.
Newspapers
* '' The Town Courier'' newspaper is based in Kentlands
Kentlands is a neighborhood of the U.S. city of Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Kentlands was one of the first attempts to develop a community using Traditional Neighborhood Design planning techniques (also known as 'neo-traditional new town planning') ...
and focuses on Gaithersburg's west side neighborhoods, in addition to publishing Rockville and Urbana editions.
Infrastructure
Police
Being a city, Gaithersburg also has its own police department, which was created in 1963.
Transportation
Roads and highways
The most prominent highways serving Gaithersburg are Interstate 270 and Interstate 370
Interstate 370 (I-370) is a Interstate Highway spur route off I-270 in Gaithersburg, Maryland, to the western end of the Maryland Route 200 (MD 200, Intercounty Connector) toll road at an interchange that provides access to the p ...
. I-270 is the main highway leading northwest out of metropolitan Washington, D.C., beginning at Interstate 495 (the Capital Beltway) and proceeding northwestward to Interstate 70
Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a park and ride lot just east of I-695 in Baltimore, Maryland, and is the fifth-longest Interstate in the co ...
in Frederick Frederick may refer to:
People
* Frederick (given name), the name
Nobility
Anhalt-Harzgerode
*Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670)
Austria
* Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198
* Frederick ...
. I-370 is a short spur, starting just west of I-270 in Gaithersburg and heading east to its junction with Maryland Route 200
Maryland Route 200 (MD 200), also known as the Intercounty Connector or ICC, is an , six-lane toll road in the U.S. state of Maryland. A controlled-access highway, it connects Gaithersburg in Montgomery County and Laurel in Prince George's Co ...
. Via MD 200, I-370 connects Gaithersburg with Interstate 95 near Laurel
Laurel may refer to:
Plants
* Lauraceae, the laurel family
* Laurel (plant), including a list of trees and plants known as laurel
People
* Laurel (given name), people with the given name
* Laurel (surname), people with the surname
* Laurel (mus ...
.
Maryland Route 355
Maryland Route 355 (MD 355) is a north–south road in western central Maryland in the United States. The southern terminus of the route, Wisconsin Avenue, is located in the Bethesda CDP, at the Washington, D.C. border. It co ...
was the precursor to I-270 and follows a parallel route. It now serves as the main commercial roadway through Gaithersburg and neighboring communities. Other state highways serving Gaithersburg include Maryland Route 117
Maryland Route 117 (MD 117) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The highway runs from MD 28 near Dawsonville east to West Diamond Avenue next to MD 355 in Gaithersburg. MD 117 is an L-shaped highway that connects the rural wes ...
, Maryland Route 119
Maryland Route 119 (MD 119) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Also known as Great Seneca Highway, the highway runs from MD 28 in Rockville north to Middlebrook Road in Germantown. MD 119 is a four- to six-lane divided highway ...
and Maryland Route 124. Maryland Route 28
Maryland Route 28 (MD 28) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from U.S. Route 15 (US 15) in Point of Rocks east to MD 182 in Norwood. The western portion of MD 28 is a rural highway connecting several v ...
passes just outside the Gaithersburg corporate limits.
Transit
Gaithersburg is connected to the Washington Metro 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 is a proposed bus rapid transit line that would have 8 stops in Gaithersburg, generally in the western half of the city.
Maryland's MARC Marc or MARC may refer to:
People
* Marc (given name), people with the first name
* Marc (surname), people with the family name
Acronyms
* MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging,
* MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system o ...
system operates commuter rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Downtown, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter r ...
services connecting Gaithersburg 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, ...
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
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA ), commonly referred to as Metro, is a tri-jurisdictional government agency that operates transit service in the Washington metropolitan area. WMATA was created by the United States Con ...
and Ride-On routes operated by Montgomery County, as well as paratransit
Paratransit is the term used in North America, also known by other names such as community transport ( UK) for transportation services that supplement fixed-route mass transit by providing individualized rides without fixed routes or timetables. ...
service provided by MetroAccess
MetroAccess is a shared-ride public transportation service for individuals in the Washington DC Metropolitan Area who are unable to use fixed-route public transit due to disability. It is managed by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Author ...
.
Airport
Montgomery County Airpark is located 3 miles (5 km) northeast of the city.
Notable people
* Sankar Adhya, member of the National Academy of Sciences
*Utkarsh Ambudkar
Utkarsh Ambudkar ( ; born December 8, 1983), also known by his stage name UTK the INC, is an American actor, rapper, and singer. He is known for his film roles including '' Pitch Perfect'' (2012), ''Game Over, Man!'' (2018), ''Blindspotting'' (20 ...
, actor, rapper
* Lawson Aschenbach, NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...
driver
* Georges C. Benjamin, former secretary of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
* Kimberly J. Brown, actress who starred in '' Halloweentown''
* Mark Bryan, lead guitarist of Hootie & the Blowfish
Hootie & the Blowfish are an American soft rock band that were formed in Columbia, South Carolina, in 1986. The band's lineup for most of its existence has been the quartet of Darius Rucker, Mark Bryan, Dean Felber, and Jim Sonefeld. The band w ...
* Isabel McNeill Carley, published music teacher, lived in Gaithersburg from 2004 until her death in 2011
* Justin Carter (born 1987), basketball player for Maccabi Kiryat Gat of the Israeli Premier League
The Israeli Premier League ( he, ליגת העל, ''Ligat Ha`Al'', ), is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Israeli Football League – the state's league of Israel. The league is contested b ...
* Kiran Chetry
Kiran Carrie Chetry ( ne, किरण क्षेत्री, born August 26, 1974) is a former American television broadcast journalist who, until 2011, was a cable news anchor for CNN's ''American Morning''. From 2001 to 2007 she reported ...
, CNN anchor
* Jeanine Cummins
Jeanine Cummins (born December 6, 1974) is an American author, of Irish and Puerto Rican heritage. She has written four books: a memoir titled ''A Rip in Heaven'' and three novels, ''The Outside Boy,'' ''The Crooked Branch'', and ''American Dir ...
, author
* Dominique Dawes
Dominique Margaux Dawes (born November 20, 1976) is a retired American artistic gymnast. Known in the gymnastics community as 'Awesome Dawesome', she was a 10-year member of the U.S. national gymnastics team, the 1994 U.S. all-around senior Nati ...
, three-time women's Olympic gymnastics team member, member of the Magnificent Seven
* Stefon Diggs
Stefon Marsean Diggs (born November 29, 1993) is an American football wide receiver for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Maryland, and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the fifth round ...
, professional football player for the Buffalo Bills
* Trevon Diggs
Trevon De'Sean Diggs (born September 20, 1998) is an American football cornerback for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Alabama and was drafted by the Cowboys in the second round of the 202 ...
, professional football player for the Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...
* Brandon Victor Dixon
Brandon Victor Dixon (born September 23, 1981) is an American actor, singer and theatrical producer. As a musical theatre actor, he is known for Tony Award-nominated Broadway performances as Harpo in the 2005 musical ''The Color Purple'' and Eub ...
, American actor, singer and theatrical producer
* Astrid Ellena, Miss Indonesia 2011
* Hank Fraley, former football player in the NFL
* Judah Friedlander
Judah Friedlander (born March 16, 1969) is an American actor and comedian, known for playing the role of writer Frank Rossitano on the NBC sitcom ''30 Rock''. Friedlander is also known for his role as Toby Radloff in the film '' American Splendo ...
, actor, most notably from the television show '' 30 Rock''
* Jake Funk
Jake Funk (born January 11, 1998) is an American football running back for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Maryland. In Maryland's four games during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season, ...
, professional football player for the Los Angeles Rams and Super Bowl LVI champion
* Joshua Harris, Author and former Christian pastor
* Kelela
Kelela Mizanekristos ( am, ከለላ ሚዛነክርስቶስ; born June 3, 1983) is an American singer. She made her debut in the music industry with the release of her 2013 mixtape ''Cut 4 Me.'' In 2015, she released ''Hallucinogen'', an EP ...
, R&B singer
* Matt Holt
Matthew Francis Holt (May 28, 1977 – April 15, 2017) was an American singer, formerly of alternative/nu metal band Nothingface and Kingdom of Snakes.
Biography
Matt Holt was raised in the suburbs of Gaithersburg, Maryland, and Germantown, ...
, former singer of Nothingface and Kingdom of Snakes
* Paul James, actor, most notably from the television show ''Greek''
* Courtney Kupets, 2004 Olympic gymnast and three-time NCAA champion
* Tim Kurkjian
Tim Kurkjian (; born December 10, 1956) is a Major League Baseball (MLB) analyst on ESPN's '' Baseball Tonight'' and ''SportsCenter''. He is also a contributor to '' ESPN The Magazine'' and ''ESPN.com''.
On December 7, 2021, Kurkjian was named ...
, 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 Lesko
Matthew John Lesko (born May 11, 1943) is an American author known for his publications and infomercials on federal grant funding. He has written over twenty books instructing people how to get money from the United States government. Widely re ...
, author of ''Free Money'' from the government books
* Sir Robert Bryson Hall II (entertainer) better known as Logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
, hip hop musician, rapper, musical engineer
* Lucas and Marcus, dancers and YouTube personalities
* Shane McMahon
Shane Brandon McMahon (; born January 15, 1970) is an American businessman and professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he was a wrestler, producer and minority owner. He is the founder and executive chairman of Idean ...
, WWE wrestler and commissioner of WWE SmackDown Live
* Jim Miklaszewski, chief Pentagon correspondent for ''NBC News''
*Malcolm Miller
The ''Malcolm Miller'' is a sistership of the three-mast schooner ''Sir Winston Churchill'' designed by Camper & Nicholsons. She was built by John Lewis & Sons in Aberdeen and first served as a Sail training ship before being converted into ...
, basketball player and NBA champion for the Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...
* John Papuchis, college football coach
* Andrew Platt, former Maryland House of Delegates member
* Guy Prather, football player
* Paul Rabil
Paul Rabil (born December 14, 1985), is an American former professional lacrosse player and co-founder of the Premier Lacrosse League. He played for the Cannons Lacrosse Club and Atlas Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League, as well as th ...
, lacrosse player (midfield), four-time All-American at Johns Hopkins University, all-star for the MLL's Boston Cannons, co-founder of the Premier Lacrosse League, current midfielder for the Atlas lacrosse club
* Chris Coghlan
Christopher B. Coghlan (pronounced KAHG-lihn; born June 18, 1985) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Florida / Miami Marlins, Oakland Athletics, and Toronto Blue ...
, Major League Baseball player
* Eddie Stubbs
Eddie Stubbs (born November 25, 1961) is an American radio disc jockey. Stubbs is best known for his work and promotion of country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern ...
, country musician, disc jockey, and Grand Ole Opry announcer
* Jodie Turner-Smith
Jodie Turner-Smith (born 7 September 1986) is a British actress and model. She made her feature film debut in ''The Neon Demon'' (2016) and has since acted in ''Queen & Slim'' (2019), '' After Yang'' (2022), and ''White Noise'' (2022). She's als ...
, actress and model
* Wale, hip hop musician and rapper
* Jessica Watkins, NASA astronaut
* David P. Weber, principal in Gaithersburg and Washington, D.C.–based law firm Goodwin Weber LLC and former assistant inspector general for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
* James White, professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...
and Houston Rockets
* 6ix, record producer
* Dwayne Haskins
Dwayne Haskins Jr. (May 3, 1997 – April 9, 2022) was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for three seasons. He played college football at Ohio State, where he set the Big Ten Conference records fo ...
, NFL quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers
* Frederick Yeh, biologist and animal welfare activist
In popular culture
* Part of the 2006 film ''Borat
''Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan'' ( Kazakh / Russian: ''Борат'') (also stylized as ''BORДT'', or simply ''Borat'') is a 2006 mockumentary black comedy film directed by Larry Charle ...
'' was filmed in Gaithersburg in 2005.
* Part of an episode of ''Da Ali G Show
''Da Ali G Show'' is a British satirical television series created by and starring English comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. In the series, Baron Cohen plays three unorthodox journalists: faux-streetwise poseur Ali G, Kazakh reporter Borat Sagdiyev, ...
'' was filmed in Gaithersburg in 2004.
* It is mentioned by character Fox Mulder
Fox William Mulder () is a fictional FBI Special Agent and one of the two protagonists of the Fox science fiction-supernatural television series ''The X-Files'', played by David Duchovny. Mulder's peers dismiss his many theories on extraterre ...
in episodes of ''The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction drama television series created by Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), who ...
'' and as a story location.
Notes
References
Further reading
*
*
*
External links
*
a photographic tour of the city's history
{{authority control
1802 establishments in Maryland
Cities in Maryland
Cities in Montgomery County, Maryland
Cities in the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area
Populated places established in 1802
Washington metropolitan area