Ilchester is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

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 counte ...

in Howard County,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, United States. The population was 23,476 at the 2010 census. It was named after the village of

Ilchester Ilchester is a village and civil parish, situated on the River Yeo or Ivel, north of Yeovil, in the English county of Somerset. Originally a Roman town, and later a market town, Ilchester has a rich medieval history and was a notable settleme ...

in the English county of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

History

In 1761, John Cornthwaite founded a wood grist mill called the Dismal Mill, located approximately southeast of Ellicott City on the western shore of the

Patapsco River The Patapsco River ( ) mainstem is a river in central Maryland that flows into the Chesapeake Bay. The river's tidal portion forms the harbor for the city of Baltimore. With its South Branch, the Patapsco forms the northern border of Howar ...

. The Ellicott family (

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

Andrew Andrew is the English form of the given name, common in many countries. The word is derived from the , ''Andreas'', itself related to ''aner/andros'', "man" (as opposed to "woman"), thus meaning "manly" and, as consequence, "brave", "strong", "c ...

, and

Joseph Ellicott Joseph Ellicott (November 1, 1760 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania – August 19, 1826 in New York City) was an American surveyor, city planner, land office agent, lawyer and politician of the Quaker faith. Life Ellicott was born in Bucks C ...

) settled in the area in the late 18th century, buying a two-mile section of the Patapsco in 1772 that included Ilchester and Ellicott Mills. The

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...

(B&O) was built up the Patapsco River valley through Ilchester in 1830 (''see'' Old Main Line Subdivision), and George Ellicott, Jr. (grandson of Andrew) built a tavern and cooper shop along the railroad. The Thistle Manufacturing Company built a factory in 1837. Ilchester did not become a major stop for the B&O due to its steep grades, and the tavern was unsuccessful. In 1842, mail service was started with the station name "Illchester Mills". Ellicott sold his tavern and 110 acres of land to a

Redemptorist The Redemptorists, officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (), abbreviated CSsR, is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brothers). It was founded by Alphonsus Liguori at Scal ...

church order in 1866.Michael Duck
"The Story Beneath The Ruins: A History of St. Mary's College in Ilchester"

''The View from Ellicott City''
(newspaper). October 19, 2000. The church used the Ellicott estate to start a college, initially called Mount Saint Clemens when it opened in 1868. Several additions to the original building were made, and a chapel was constructed. In 1882 it was renamed Saint Mary's College. In 1893 the chapel was established as a parish church dedicated to "Our Lady of Perpetual Help". The parish moved the church to a new facility in 1958. Enrollment at the college declined, and the college was closed in 1972. The State of

purchased a portion of the campus in 1987 and added the land to adjacent

Patapsco Valley State Park Patapsco Valley State Park is a Maryland state park extending along of the Patapsco River south and west of the city of Baltimore, Maryland. The park encompasses multiple developed areas on over acres of land, making it Maryland's largest st ...

. In 1949, the Baltimore Council of the Girl Scouts purchased "Camp Ilchester", which has remained in operation to date as a Girl Scout camp.

Geography

Ilchester is located at (39.2509, −76.7647). It is situated in Howard County, between Ellicott City to the northwest and Elkridge to the southeast. Columbia is to the southwest. The

forms the northeast boundary of the community and serves as the county line, with

Baltimore County Baltimore County ( , locally: or ) is the third-most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland. The county is part of the Central Maryland region of the state. Baltimore County partly surrounds but does not include the independent city ...

and the community of Catonsville across the river. The original mill community of Ilchester is located along the Patapsco River at the junction of Ilchester and Bonnie Branch Roads. However, the current CDP extends southwest to include the suburban terrain of Howard County outside of the Patapsco River valley.

Maryland Route 103 Maryland Route 103 (MD 103) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from St. Johns Lane in Ellicott City, Maryland, Ellicott City east to Parkway Drive South in Hanover, Maryland, Hanover. MD 103 serves as the ...

, Montgomery Road, is the main local road through the CDP.

Maryland Route 100 Maryland Route 100 (MD 100) is a major east–west highway connecting U.S. Route 29 in Maryland, U.S. Route 29 (US 29) in Ellicott City, Maryland, Ellicott City (just north of Columbia, Maryland, Columbia) and Maryland Route 177, MD 177 (M ...

is a freeway that runs through the southern part of Ilchester, serving the community at Exit 4 with Montgomery Road. To the south, Route 100 intersects with

Interstate 95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, north to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the ...

, which forms the southeastern boundary of the Ilchester CDP. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.57%, is water.

Demographics

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Howard County, Maryland Census-designated places in Maryland

History

Geography

Demographics

See also

References