Glen Burnie is an
unincorporated town
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
and
census-designated place
A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), 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 count ...
(CDP) in
Anne Arundel County
Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, whi ...
,
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. It is a suburb of
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
. The population of Glen Burnie was 67,639 at the 2010 census.
History
In 1812,
Elias Glenn, a district attorney, established a county seat near what is currently known as
Brooklyn Park. He named his property "Glennsburne".
The name was changed to "Glennsbourne Farm", and eventually "Glenburnie", as the property was passed through Glenn's descendants. Records also show the name as "Tracey's Station" and "Myrtle", after local postmaster Samuel Sewell Tracey and one of Tracey's boarders, before the final decision was made.
In 1854,
William Wilkins Glenn, Elias Glenn's grandson, incorporated the Curtis Creek Mining, Furnace and Manufacturing Company into his family's property.
The business flourished during the 19th century, and with it came several thousand acres of land in northern Anne Arundel County.
Upon the death of William Wilkins Glenn, his son, brother and nephew began to manage the family's business affairs, and Glenburnie became an official state subdivision in 1888.
The Glenn family contracted George T. Melvin and Henry S. Mancha to lay out and promote the town. It would not be until 1930 that postmaster Louis J. DeAlba decided two words were better than one, and gave the town a final name change to the current Glen Burnie.
Buildings
![Courthouse Glen Burnie MD May 2013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Courthouse_Glen_Burnie_MD_May_2013.jpg)
Among the earliest Glen Burnie schools was
First Avenue Elementary, built in 1899. The oldest area church is St. Alban's Episcopal, which was built in 1904, with many of its bricks dating back to Marley Chapel, an early Maryland parish from the 1730s. Crain Highway, one of Glen Burnie's main thoroughfares (named after
Robert Crain
Robert S. Crain (February 12, 1865 – August 26, 1928) was a lawyer and farmer from Maryland who was active with the Democratic Party. He was the namesake of the Crain Highway.
Early life
Robert S. Crain was born on February 12, 1865, at the ...
), opened in 1927 and Ritchie Highway (
Maryland Route 2, named for ex-Governor
Albert C. Ritchie) followed in 1939.
Ritchie Highway carried nearly all
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
-area traffic headed for
Annapolis and the
Chesapeake Bay Bridge
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge (also known locally as the Bay Bridge) is a major dual-span bridge in the U.S. state of Maryland. Spanning the Chesapeake Bay, it connects the state's rural Eastern Shore region with the urban Western Shore, between ...
until an alternate bypass road,
Interstate 97
Interstate 97 (I-97) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs entirely within Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The Interstate runs from U.S. Route 50 (US 50)/US 301 in Parole near Annapolis north to I-695 and I-895 in Brookly ...
, opened in the 1980s.
Until 1950 the
Baltimore and Annapolis Railroad
The Baltimore & Annapolis Railroad was an American railroad of central Maryland built in the 19th century. The railroad, the second to serve Annapolis, ran between Annapolis and Clifford along the north shore of the Severn River. From Clifford ...
provided passenger and freight service through Glen Burnie from Annapolis to Baltimore; passenger service ended in February 1950 due to increased competition from buses and private automobiles, but freight service continued until
Hurricane Agnes
Hurricane Agnes in 1972 was the costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, from the Caribbean to Canada, ...
did so much damage to a trestle crossing the
Severn River in Annapolis that the trestle was condemned for use by trains by the Army Corps of Engineers in the late 1960s. (The trestle remained as a haven for fishermen and crabbers until it was dismantled.) North Glen Burnie is now served by the
Baltimore Light Rail
Baltimore Light RailLink (formerly Baltimore Light Rail, and also known simply as the "Light Rail") is a light rail system serving Baltimore, Maryland, United States, as well as its surrounding suburbs. It is operated by the Maryland Transit ...
system's
Cromwell/Glen Burnie station.
Schools and churches were built in the ensuing decades, and construction was completed on
Harundale Mall
Harundale Mall, in Glen Burnie, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States at the intersection of Ritchie Highway and Aquahart Road, was the first enclosed, air-conditioned mall built east of the Mississippi River.
Originally built in 1958, ...
, the first enclosed
shopping center east of the
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...
, in 1958.
It was one of the first shopping centers to be called a "mall" and was developed by
James W. Rouse of the
Rouse Company
The Rouse Company, founded by Hunter Moss and James W. Rouse in 1939, was a publicly held shopping mall and community developer from 1956 until 2004, when General Growth Properties (GGP) purchased the company.
Beginnings - Moss-Rouse Company
T ...
(which also developed nearby
Columbia, Maryland
Columbia is a census-designated place in Howard County, Maryland. It is one of the principal communities of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. It is a planned community consisting of 10 self-contained villages.
Columbia began with ...
). The mall was developed in a joint effort with a local real estate developer, Charles Steffey. The originally planned location was not on Ritchie Highway but on Crain Highway (the main arterial for Glen Burnie). Charlie Steffey and Jim Rouse negotiated unsuccessfully with the "city fathers" of Glen Burnie, offering to regenerate the (then failing) center of town with their revolutionary concept. The "sticking point" was that the intersection of Crain Highway and Quarterfield Road (the proposed location) habitually flooded in even nominal rainstorms, to the point of cars being up to their doors in the river that ensued.
The "city fathers" decided that the advantage of having the "mall" there was overshadowed by the cost of fixing the storm water situation and declined. As a result,
Glen Burnie Mall followed in 1962.
Marley Station
Marley Station Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Glen Burnie, Maryland. Opened in 1987, it was expanded in 1994 and 1996. The mall has 130 stores on 2 floors, a movie theater, and 5 anchor spaces. JCPenney, Macy's, and Golds Gym serve as the m ...
, another large shopping center, opened in February 1987.
The Maryland Motor Vehicle Administration office building employs many people in town. In the 1970s, developers tried to make Glen Burnie more urban by building and funding new projects, projects like Empire Towers in 1974, or Crain Towers in 1990, then with the addition of an
Anne Arundel Community College
Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) is a public community college in Arnold, Maryland. The college was founded in 1961 and is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. The community college offers letters of recognition, 4 ...
branch in the town center. In 1965, North Arundel Hospital opened as a community hospital,
but as it was constantly overflowed with patients, the University of Maryland Medical System bought the hospital in 2000 and renovated it to accommodate more patients and equipment.
Geography
Glen Burnie is a
suburb of
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
. It is located at (39.159982, −76.610588).
The intersection of Central Avenue and Crain Highway forms the boundaries of the NW, SW, NE & SE postal quadrants in the community's center.
According to the
United States 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 t ...
, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 3.95%, is water.
Climate
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the
Köppen Climate Classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
system, Glen Burnie has a
humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.
Education
*
Monsignor Slade Catholic School
The following public schools are in Glen Burnie or serve students who reside in Glen Burnie:
Glen Burnie is also home to a campus of
Anne Arundel Community College
Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) is a public community college in Arnold, Maryland. The college was founded in 1961 and is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education. The community college offers letters of recognition, 4 ...
.
Transportation
Aviation
The
Baltimore–Washington International Airport
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport , commonly referred to as BWI or BWI Marshall, is an international airport in the Eastern United States serving mainly Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C. With Dulles Internat ...
is directly adjacent to the west of Glen Burnie, providing the city access to domestic and international flights.
Public transit
As the southern terminus of the Cromwell Branch of the
Baltimore Light Rail
Baltimore Light RailLink (formerly Baltimore Light Rail, and also known simply as the "Light Rail") is a light rail system serving Baltimore, Maryland, United States, as well as its surrounding suburbs. It is operated by the Maryland Transit ...
, Glen Burnie is home to two light rail stops (
Ferndale and
Cromwell / Glen Burnie. Cromwell Station, located at the intersection of Baltimore-Annapolis Boulevard and Dorsey Road, is equipped with a free park-and-ride for commuters, as well as a bus connection to
MTA Route 14 and bike connection to the
Baltimore & Annapolis Trail
The Baltimore & Annapolis Trail is a rail trail in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The trail starts at Boulter's Way in Arnold and ends near Baltimore Light Rail's Cromwell Station in Glen Burnie. Starting near Annapolis at Jonas Green Park, ...
.
BWI Rail Station
BWI Airport Station is an intermodal passenger station in Linthicum, Maryland near Baltimore–Washington International Airport (BWI). It is served by Amtrak Northeast Corridor intercity trains, MARC Penn Line regional rail trains, and severa ...
located in nearby Linthicum provides regional rail service to Glen Burnie via the
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 ...
Penn Line
The Penn Line is a MARC commuter rail service running from Union Station in Washington, D.C., to Perryville, Maryland, along the far southern leg of the Northeast Corridor. However, the great majority of trains terminate at Baltimore's Penn ...
and
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada ...
.
Roads
The Glen Burnie area is served by the following major roadways:
*
MD 2 Governor Ritchie Highway: Glen Burnie's main commercial boulevard running north south.
*
MD 3 Robert Crain Highway: Glen Burnie's main street stemming off of MD 2 towards New Cut Road and Veterans Highway.
*
MD 10 Arundel Expressway: A by-pass expressway running north–south from the Baltimore Beltway to Ritchie Highway in
Pasadena
Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district.
...
.
*
MD 100 Paul T, Pitcher Memorial Highway: Another expressway running east–west connecting Glen Burnie to
Ellicott City
Ellicott City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in, and the county seat of, Howard County, Maryland, United States. Part of the Baltimore metropolitan area, its population was 65,834 at the 2010 census, making it the mo ...
and
Gibson Island.
*
I-97 Glen Burnie Bypass: A major north–south interstate highway connecting Glen Burnie to
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
and
Annapolis.
*
I-695 Baltimore Beltway: Located in north Glen Burnie, the Baltimore Beltway provides circumferential travel throughout Greater Baltimore.
*
Airport Loop A set of highways forming a loop around BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport.
Notable people
*
Jack Andraka, student, inventor
*
Jacob M. Appel, author
[Appel, JM. Phoning Home. Preface to 2nd Edition, 2014]
*
Kevin Barnes
Kevin Lawrence Barnes (born May 30, 1974) is the singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter for the indie rock group of Montreal, part of the Elephant 6 Collective. Barnes started the band and, although providing several stories as to the ...
, Washington Redskins player
*
Hunt Block
Hunt Block (full name Huntington Macdonald Block, born February 16, 1954) is an American actor. Block graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and has enjoyed a successful acting career over many decades.
Career
Blo ...
, actor
*
Toni Braxton
Toni Michele Braxton (born October 7, 1967) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, actress and television personality. She has sold over 70 million records worldwide and is one of the best-selling female artists in history. Braxton has won ...
, singer
*
John A. Cade
John Arnold Cade (July 2, 1929 – November 14, 1996) was a Republican Party (United States), Republican Maryland Senate, State Senator from District 33 in the U.S. state of Maryland.
Background
Cade was first elected to office in 1975 to repr ...
, former state senator
*
Steve Clevenger
Steven Scott Clevenger (born April 5, 1986) is a former American professional baseball catcher. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Baltimore Orioles, and Seattle Mariners.
Early life
Clevenger was raised in Glen ...
, Major League baseball player
*
Bill Currier, football player
*
Bob Eberly
Robert Eberly (born Robert Eberle; July 24, 1916 – November 17, 1981) was an American big band vocalist best known for his association with Jimmy Dorsey and his duets with Helen O'Connell. His younger brother Ray was also a big-band singer, ma ...
, big band singer, died in Glen Burnie
*
James Ellsworth, professional wrestler
*
Mark E. Ferguson III
Mark E. Ferguson III (born October 30, 1956) is a retired United States Navy admiral who last served as Commander, United States Naval Forces Europe, United States Naval Forces Africa and Allied Joint Force Command Naples. Ferguson previously ser ...
, Admiral,
US Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
,
Vice Chief of Naval Operations
The vice chief of naval operations (VCNO) is the second highest-ranking commissioned United States Navy officer in the Department of the Navy and functions as the principal deputy of the chief of naval operations and by statute, the vice chief ...
*
Mary Leona Gage
Mary Leona Gage (April 8, 1939 – October 5, 2010) was an American actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA 1957, the first from Maryland to capture the Miss USA crown. She was stripped of her title when it was rev ...
,
Miss Maryland USA
The Miss Maryland USA competition is the pageant that selects the representative for the state Maryland in the Miss USA pageant. The pageant is directed by D&D Productions.
The first Miss USA winner from Maryland, Mary Leona Gage, won Miss U ...
1957,
Miss USA 1957
Miss USA 1957 was the 6th Miss USA pageant, held at Long Beach Municipal Auditorium, Long Beach, California on July 17, 1957, during the run-up to the year's Miss Universe pageant.
The 1957 Miss USA pageant is, as of , the only occasion to da ...
*
Rudy Gay
Rudy Carlton Gay Jr. (born August 17, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 6'8" forward played college basketball for the University of Connecticut before being d ...
, basketball player for the
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...
*
Duane Gill
Duane Gill (born July 10, 1959) is an American retired professional wrestler, best known for his appearances in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) during the Attitude Era under the ring name Gillberg, a parody of then-rival promotion World Champ ...
("Gillberg"), professional wrestler and a former
WWF Light Heavyweight Champion
The WWF Light Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE) promotion. The title was challenged by light heavyweights at a maximum weight of 215 lbs (before deactivation, ...
*
Terry R. Gilleland, Jr., elected official
*
Clayton Greene, Jr.
Clayton Greene Jr. (born January 22, 1951) is an American lawyer and former jurist from Annapolis, Maryland. He served as a judge on the Maryland Court of Appeals after being appointed by Governor Robert Ehrlich from January 22, 2004, until his ...
, jurist, born in Glen Burnie
*
Kevin Levrone
Kevin Mark Levrone (born July 16, 1964) is an American IFBB professional bodybuilder, IFBB Hall of Famer, and musician.
During his professional career, Levrone competed in 68 IFBB Professional contests. Considered one of the best bodybuilders ...
,
IFBB champion
bodybuilder
Bodybuilding is the use of progressive resistance exercise to control and develop one's muscles (muscle building) by muscle hypertrophy for aesthetic purposes. It is distinct from similar activities such as powerlifting because it focuses ...
*
C. Edward Middlebrooks, politician
*
Tony Saunders
Anthony Scott Saunders (born April 29, 1974) is a retired American professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1997 to 1999. He was the first player selected by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 1997 MLB expansion ...
,
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
Pitcher 1997-1999
*
Montel Williams
Montel Brian Anthony Williams (born July 3, 1956) is an American television host, actor and motivational speaker. He is known for hosting the long-running daytime tabloid talk show '' The Montel Williams Show'', which ran in syndication from 199 ...
,
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
and
radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmi ...
talk-show host
Demographics
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 38,922 people, 15,210 households, and 9,977 families residing in the CDP. 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 3,182.1 people per square mile (1,228.8/km). There were 15,902 housing units at an average density of 1,300.1 per square mile (502.0/km). The racial makeup of the CDP was 81.11%
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 ...
, 13.52% Black, 0.35%
Native American, 2.40%
Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
, 0.07%
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 ...
, 0.78% 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 1.78% 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 2.46% of the population.
There were 15,210 households, out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.1% were married couples living together, 13.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.4% were non-families. 27.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.07.
In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 23.7% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 32.3% from 25 to 44, 22.1% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.
The median income for a household in the CDP was $45,281, and the median income for a family was $51,845. Males had a median income of $35,957 versus $27,078 for females. The
per capita income
Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population.
Per capita i ...
for the CDP was $20,170. About 5.9% of families and 7.7% of the population were below the
poverty line
The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...
, including 10.2% of those under age 18 and 9.1% of those age 65 or over.
See also
*
Baltimore & Annapolis Trail
The Baltimore & Annapolis Trail is a rail trail in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. The trail starts at Boulter's Way in Arnold and ends near Baltimore Light Rail's Cromwell Station in Glen Burnie. Starting near Annapolis at Jonas Green Park, ...
*
Glen Burnie High School
Glen Burnie High School is a large public high school located in the Baltimore suburb of Glen Burnie, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1923, the school is part of the Anne Arundel County Public Schools system.
Today, Glen Burnie Senior High ...
- football field is featured in the film
''The Replacements''
*
Harundale Mall
Harundale Mall, in Glen Burnie, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States at the intersection of Ritchie Highway and Aquahart Road, was the first enclosed, air-conditioned mall built east of the Mississippi River.
Originally built in 1958, ...
*
Marley Station
Marley Station Mall is an enclosed shopping mall in Glen Burnie, Maryland. Opened in 1987, it was expanded in 1994 and 1996. The mall has 130 stores on 2 floors, a movie theater, and 5 anchor spaces. JCPenney, Macy's, and Golds Gym serve as the m ...
References
External links
{{authority control
Census-designated places in Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Census-designated places in Maryland
Populated places established in 1812
1812 establishments in Maryland