Rockville is a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...

that serves as the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

Montgomery County Montgomery County may refer to: Australia * The former name of Montgomery Land District, Tasmania United Kingdom * The historic county of Montgomeryshire, Wales, also called County of Montgomery United States * Montgomery County, Alabama * Mon ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), 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 is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulated Rockville's population at 67,117, making it the fifth-largest community in Montgomery County. Rockville, along with neighboring

Gaithersburg Gaithersburg ( ), officially the City of Gaithersburg, is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, 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. Ga ...

and Bethesda, is at the core of the Interstate 270 Technology Corridor which is home to numerous software and biotechnology companies as well as several federal government institutions. The city, one of the major retail hubs in Montgomery County, also has several upscale regional shopping centers.

History

Early history

Situated in the

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

region and crossed by three creeks (

Rock Creek Rock Creek or Rockcreek may refer to: Streams United States * Rock Creek (California) * Rock Creek (Fountain Creek tributary), Colorado * Rock Creek (Idaho) * Rock Creek (Kankakee River tributary), Illinois * Rock Creek (Wapsipinicon River tribut ...

, Cabin John Creek, and Watts Branch), Rockville provided an excellent refuge for semi-

nomad A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...

ic Native Americans as early as 8000 BC. By the first millennium BC, a few of these groups had settled down into year-round

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

communities that exploited the native flora, including sunflowers and marsh elder. By AD 1200, these early groups (dubbed ''Montgomery Indians'' by later

archaeologists Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

) were increasingly drawn into conflict with the Senecas and

Susquehannock The Susquehannock people, also called the Conestoga by some English settlers or Andastes were Iroquoian Native Americans who lived in areas adjacent to the Susquehanna River and its tributaries, ranging from its upper reaches in the southern ...

s who had migrated south from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

and

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Within the present-day boundaries of the city, six prehistoric sites have been uncovered and documented, along with numerous artifacts several thousand years old. By the year 1700, under pressure from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

an colonists, the majority of these original inhabitants had been driven away. The indigenous population carved a path on the high ground, known as Sinequa Trail, which is now downtown Rockville. Later, the Maryland Assembly set the standard of 20 feet for main thoroughfares and designated the Rock Creek Main Road or Great Road to be built to this standard. In the mid-18th century, Lawrence Owen opened a small inn on the road. The place, known as Owen's Ordinary, took on greater prominence when, on April 14, 1755, Major General

Edward Braddock Major-General Edward Braddock (January 1695 – 13 July 1755) was a British officer and commander-in-chief for the Thirteen Colonies during the start of the French and Indian War (1754–1763), the North American front of what is known in Europ ...

stopped at Owen's Ordinary on a start of a mission from George Town (now Washington, D.C.) to press British claims of the western frontier. The location of the road, near the present Rockville Pike, was strategically located on higher ground making it dry year-round.

18th century

The first

land patent A land patent is a form of letters patent assigning official ownership of a particular tract of land that has gone through various legally-prescribed processes like surveying and documentation, followed by the letter's signing, sealing, and publi ...

s in the Rockville area were obtained by Arthur Nelson between 1717 and 1735. Within three decades, the first permanent buildings in what would become the center of Rockville were established on this land. Still a part of

Prince George's County ) , demonym = Prince Georgian , ZIP codes = 20607–20774 , area codes = 240, 301 , founded date = April 23 , founded year = 1696 , named for = Prince George of Denmark , leader_title = Executive , leader_name = Angela D. Alsobrooks ...

at this time, the growth of Daniel Dulaney's Frederick Town prompted the separation of the western portion of the county, including Rockville, into Frederick County in 1748. Being a small, unincorporated town, early Rockville was known by a variety of names, including Owen's Ordinary, Hungerford's Tavern, and Daley's Tavern. The first recorded mention of the settlement which would later become known as Rockville dates to the Braddock Expedition in 1755. On April 14, one of the approximately two thousand men who were accompanying General Braddock through wrote the following: "we marched to larance Owings or Owings Oardianary, a Single House, it being 18 miles and very dirty." Owen's Ordinary was a small rest stop on Rock Creek Main Road (later the Rockville Pike), which stretched from George Town to Frederick Town, and was then one of the largest thoroughfares in the colony of Maryland. On September 6, 1776, the Maryland Constitutional Convention agreed to a proposal introduced by Thomas Sprigg Wootton wherein Frederick County, the largest and most populous county in Maryland, would be divided into three smaller units. The southern portion of the county, of which Rockville was a part, was named Montgomery County. The most populous and prosperous urban center in this new county was George Town, but its location at the far southern edge rendered it worthless as a seat of local government. Rockville, a small, but centrally located and well-traveled town, was chosen as the seat of the county's government. At the time, Rockville did not have a name; it was generally called Hungerford's Tavern, after the well-known tavern in it. After being named the county seat, the village was referred to by all as Montgomery Court House. The tavern served as the county courthouse, and it held its first such proceedings on May 20, 1777. In 1784, William Prather Williams, a local landowner, hired a surveyor to lay out much of the town. In his honor, many took to calling the town Williamsburg. In practice, however, Williamsburg and Montgomery Court House were used interchangeably. Rockville came to greater prominence when Montgomery county was created and later when George Town was ceded to the federal government to create the

District of Columbia ) , 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 ...

19th century

It was first considered to officially name the town Wattsville, after the nearby Watts Branch, but the stream was later considered too small to give its name to the town. On July 16, 1803, when the area was officially entered into the county land records with the name "Rockville," derived from Rock Creek. Nevertheless, the name Montgomery Court House continued to appear on maps and other documents through the 1820s. By petition of Rockville's citizens, the

Maryland General Assembly The Maryland General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland that convenes within the State House in Annapolis. It is a bicameral body: the upper chamber, the Maryland Senate, has 47 representatives and the lower cham ...

incorporated the village on March 10, 1860. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by state ...

, General George B. McClellan stayed at the Beall Dawson house in 1862. In addition, General J.E.B. Stuart and an army of 8,000 Confederate cavalrymen marched through and occupied Rockville on June 28, 1863, while on their way to Gettysburg and stayed at the Prettyman house.

Jubal Anderson Early Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a Virginia lawyer and politician who became a Confederate general during the American Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early resigned his U.S. Army commissi ...

had also crossed through Maryland on his way to and from his attack on Washington. In 1913, on the birthday of Jefferson Davis, the

United Daughters of the Confederacy The United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC) is an American neo-Confederate hereditary association for female descendants of Confederate Civil War soldiers engaging in the commemoration of these ancestors, the funding of monuments to them, ...

erected a statue near the Rockville courthouse dedicated to Confederate soldiers from Montgomery County. The monument was removed in 2017 as part of a wave of removals of Confederate monuments and memorials in response to the 2015

Charleston church shooting On June 17, 2015, a mass shooting occurred in Charleston, South Carolina, in which nine African Americans were killed during a Bible study at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church. Among those people who were killed was the senior past ...

, and is now located in White's Ferry. In 1873, the

Baltimore and Ohio 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 ...

arrived, making Rockville easily accessible from Washington, D.C. (''See Metropolitan Branch.'') In July 1891, the

Tennallytown and Rockville Railway A trio of streetcar companies provided service along a single 10-mile line from the Washington, D.C., neighborhood of Georgetown northward and ultimately to Rockville, Maryland, in the early decades of the 20th century. In 1890, the Georgetown an ...

inaugurated Rockville's first

trolley Trolley may refer to: Vehicles and components * Tram, or trolley or streetcar, a rail vehicle that runs on tramway tracks * Trolleybus, or trolley, an electric bus drawing power from overhead wires using trolley poles ** Trolleytruck, a trolleyb ...

service connecting to the Georgetown and Tennallytown Railway terminus at Western Avenue and Wisconsin Avenue.

Twentieth century to today

The newly opened railroad provided service from Georgetown to Rockville, connecting Rockville to Washington, D.C., by trolley. Trolley service operated for four decades, until, eclipsed by the growing popularity of the

automobile A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded ...

, service was halted in August 1935. The Blue Ridge Transportation Company provided bus service for Rockville and Montgomery County from 1924 through 1955. After 1955, Rockville would not see a concerted effort to develop a

public transportation Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...

infrastructure until the 1970s, when the

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority 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 Co ...

(WMATA) began work to extend the

Washington Metro The Washington Metro (or simply Metro), formally the Metrorail,Google Books search/preview

into Rockville and extended Metrobus service into Montgomery County. The

Rockville station Rockville station is an intermodal train station located in downtown Rockville, Maryland, United States. It is served by the Washington Metro Red Line, MARC Brunswick Line commuter trains, and Amtrak '' Capitol Limited'' intercity trains. ...

of Washington Metro began service on July 25, 1984, and the

Twinbrook station Twinbrook is a rapid transit station on the Red Line of the Washington Metro attached to the Twinbrook neighborhood of Rockville, Maryland. One of a number of stations on the Rockville Pike corridor, it primarily acts as a commuter station. L ...

began service on December 15, 1984. Metrobus service was supplemented by Montgomery County's own Ride On bus service starting in 1979. MARC, Maryland's Rail Commuter service, serves Rockville with its Brunswick line. From Rockville MARC provides service to

Union Station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

in Washington D.C. (southbound) and, Frederick and

Martinsburg, West Virginia Martinsburg is a city in and the seat of Berkeley County, West Virginia, in the tip of the state's Eastern Panhandle region in the lower Shenandoah Valley. Its population was 18,835 in the 2021 census estimate, making it the largest city in the ...

(northbound), as well as intermediate points.

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 ...

, the national passenger rail system, provides service from Rockville to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

and Washington D.C. The mid-20th century saw substantial growth in Rockville, especially with the annexation of the Twinbrook subdivision in 1949, which added hundreds of new homes and thousands of new residents to the city. In 1954, Congressional Airport closed, and its land was sold to developers to build residences and a commercial shopping center. The shopping center, named Congressional Plaza, opened in 1958. These new areas provided affordable housing and grew quickly with young families eager to start their lives following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. During the Cold War, it was considered safer to remain in Rockville than to evacuate during a hypothetical nuclear attack on Washington, D.C. Bomb shelters were built, including the largest one at

Glenview Mansion Glenview Mansion, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the John Bond Trevor House, is located on Warburton Avenue in Yonkers, New York, United States. It is a stone house erected during the 1870s in an eclectic Late Victorian ar ...

and 15 other locations. The I-270 highway was designated as an emergency aircraft landing strip. Two Nike missile launcher sites were located on Muddy Branch and Snouffer School Roads until the mid-1970s. From the 1960s, Rockville's town center, formerly one of the area's commercial centers, suffered from a period of decline. Rockville soon became the first city in Maryland to enter into a government funded

urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of bligh ...

program. This resulted in the demolition of most of the original business district. Included in the plan was the unsuccessful Rockville Mall, which failed to attract either major

retailers Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and ...

or customers and was demolished in 1994, various government buildings such as the new Montgomery County Judicial Center, and a reorganization of the road plan near the Courthouse. Unfortunately, the once-promising plan was for the most part a disappointment. Although efforts to restore the town center continue, the majority of the city's economic activity has since relocated along Rockville Pike (MD Route 355/Wisconsin Avenue). In 2004, Rockville Mayor

Larry Giammo Larry Giammo is the former mayor of Rockville, Maryland. He was first elected on November 6, 2001, and was reelected in 2003 and 2005. On March 2, 2007, he announced that he would not be seeking a fourth term as mayor in the November 2007 electio ...

announced plans to renovate the Rockville Town Square, including building new stores and housing and relocating the city's library. In the past year, the new Rockville Town Center has been transformed and includes a number of boutique-like stores, restaurants, condominiums and apartments, as well as stages, fountains and the Rockville Library. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's headquarters is just south of the city's corporate limits. The city is closely associated with the neighboring towns of Kensington and the unincorporated

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, su ...

, North Bethesda. The Music Center at Strathmore, an arts and theater center, opened in February 2005 in the latter of these two areas and is presently the second home of the

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore SO has its principal residence at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where it performs more than 130 concerts a year. In 2005, it bega ...

, and the Fitzgerald Theatre in Rockville Civic Center Park has provided diverse entertainment since 1960. In 1998, Regal Cinemas opened in Town Center and the city annexed 900 acres of land. The city also has a brass band in the British style. The R.E.M. song " (Don't Go Back To) Rockville", released in 1984, was written by

Mike Mills Michael Edward Mills (born December 17, 1958) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and composer who was a founding member of the alternative rock band R.E.M. Though known primarily as the bass guitarist and backing vocalist of R.E.M., ...

about not wanting his girlfriend Ingrid Schorr to return to Rockville, Maryland.Black, Johnny (2004). ''Reveal: The Story of R.E.M.'' Backbeat Books. . In 1975,

F. Scott Fitzgerald Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940) was an American novelist, essayist, and short story writer. He is best known for his novels depicting the flamboyance and excess of the Jazz Age—a term he popularize ...

and

Zelda Fitzgerald Zelda Fitzgerald (; July 24, 1900 – March 10, 1948) was an American novelist, painter, dancer, and socialite. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, she was noted for her beauty and high spirits, and was dubbed by her husband F. Scott Fitzgerald a ...

's caskets were reinterred at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Rockville, Maryland where his father, Edward, and a number of Key family members had been buried.

Historic places

Historic structures on the Register in and around downtown Rockville are: *

Beall–Dawson House The Beall–Dawson House is a historic home located at Rockville, Maryland, Rockville, Montgomery County, Maryland, Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a -story Federal architecture, Federal house, three Bay (architecture), bays wi ...

(1815) *

Bingham-Brewer House The Bingham-Brewer House is a historic home located at Rockville, Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a two-story, Federal style brick house, with a Flemish Bond front facade, dating to 1821. Also on the property is a late-19th ...

(1821) *

Dawson Farm Dawson Farm, also known as "Rocky Glen," is a historic property with two homes located at Rockville, Montgomery County, Maryland. The property contains two dwellings: the 1874, -story, frame Dawson Farmhouse and a large -story hip-roofed frame ...

(1874) *

(1926) *

Montgomery County Courthouse Historic District The Montgomery County Circuit Courthouses are part of the Montgomery County Judicial Center located in downtown Rockville, Maryland. The Red Brick Courthouse, located at 29 Courthouse Square, houses the refurbished Grand Courtroom; the newer Ci ...

(1939) *

New Mark Commons New Mark Commons is a historic planned development in Rockville, Maryland Rockville is a city that serves as the county seat of Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of the Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area. The 2020 census tabulat ...

(1967) * Old St. Mary's Church (1817) * Rockville Park Historic District (1884) *

Rockville Railroad Station Rockville may refer to: Places Australia *Rockville, Queensland, a suburb in the city of Toowoomba Canada *Rockville, Nova Scotia * Rockville, Ontario, a community in Northeastern Ontario Iceland * Rockville Air Station (Iceland), a f ...

(1873) *

West Montgomery Avenue Historic District The West Montgomery Avenue Historic District is a national Historic district (United States), historic district located at Rockville, Maryland, Rockville, Montgomery County, Maryland. It is a residential area with single-family homes predominati ...

(1880)

Rockville vicinity

* Montrose Schoolhouse (1909)

Geography

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 An economy is an area of th ...

, the city has a total area of , of which is land and 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, nota ...

system Rockville has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps. According to the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

, Rockville is in

hardiness zone A hardiness zone is a geographic area defined as having a certain average annual minimum temperature, a factor relevant to the survival of many plants. In some systems other statistics are included in the calculations. The original and most wide ...

7a, meaning that the average annual minimum winter temperature is . The average first

frost Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor in an above- freezing atmosphere coming in contact with a solid surface whose temperature is below freezing, and resulting in a phase change from water vapor (a g ...

occurs on October 21, and the average final frost occurs on April 16.

Demographics

Income

The median income for a household in the city as of 2020 was $111,797. As of 2007, the median income for a family was $98,257. Males had a median income of $53,764 versus $38,788 for females. In 2015, 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 city was $49,399. 7.8% of the population and 5.6% of families 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 ...

. Out of the total population, 8.9% of those under the age of 18 and 7.9% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

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 61,209 people, 23,686 households, and 15,524 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 25,199 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 60.4%

White White is the lightness, 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 diffuse reflection, reflect and scattering, scatter all the ...

(52.8% non-Hispanic white), 9.6%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

, 0.3% Native American, 20.6% Asian, 5.3% from other races, and 3.8% 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 for ...

or Latino of any race were 14.3% of the population. There were 23,686 households, of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 9.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.5% were non-families. 27.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.54 and the average family size was 3.08. The median age in the city was 38.7 years. And 21.5% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.2% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 31.1% were from 25 to 44; 26.3% were from 45 to 64; and 14% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 47.9% male and 52.1% female.

Economy

Choice Hotels, Westat, and Bethesda Softworks/ ZeniMax Media are headquartered in Rockville. RockvilleMaryland-TowerBuilding

Largest employers

According to the city's 2018 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city are:

Sports

* Rockville Express, a Cal Ripken, Sr. Collegiate Baseball League team, 2007 CRSCBL League Champions * The city is also home to the Rockville Baseball Association, a youth baseball and softball organization that has offered programing every year since its founding in 1954.

Government

Rockville has a council-manager form of government. In November 2019, Rockville voted in the 66th election for Mayor and Council. Rockville voters re-elected Bridget Donnell Newton as mayor. Four councilmembers were also elected: Monique Ashton, Beryl L. Feinberg, David Myles and Mark Pierzchala.

Mayor

The current mayor of Rockville is Bridget Donnell Newton. Rockville was incorporated in 1860, but its early records were destroyed by Confederate soldiers in July 1864. Rockville's mayors include:

Representative body

Rockville has a four-member

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

, whose members, along with the mayor, serve as the governing body of the city. The four councilmembers are Monique Ashton, Beryl L. Feinberg, David Myles and Mark Pierzchala. Rockville has 26 boards and commissions: Animal Matters Board, Board of Appeals, Board of Supervisors of Elections, Charter Review Commission, Community Policing Advisory Board, Compensation Commission, Cultural Arts Commission, Environment Commission, Ethics Commission, Financial Advisory Board, Historic District Commission, Human Rights Commission, Human Services Advisory Commission, Landlord-Tenant Affairs Commission, Personnel Appeals Board, Planning Commission, Recreation and Park Advisory Board, Retirement Board, Rockville Economic Development Inc. (REDI), Rockville Housing Enterprises, Rockville Recreation and Parks Foundation, Rockville Seniors Inc. (RSI), Rockville Sister City Corporation, Senior Citizens Commission, Sign Review Board, and Traffic and Transportation Commission. Boards and commissions allows members of the community to partner with city staff to shape Rockville's future by sharing expertise and advising the Mayor and Council.

Education

Rockville is served by the

Montgomery County Public Schools Montgomery County Public Schools may refer to: *Montgomery County Public Schools (Maryland) *Montgomery County Public Schools (Virginia) Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) is the school district serving Montgomery County, Virginia. Schools P ...

system. Public high schools in Rockville include Thomas S. Wootton High School, Richard Montgomery High School, and Rockville High School. Prior to integration in 1961, black students were educated at George Washington Carver High School in Rockville. The John L. Gildner Regional Institute for Children and Adolescents provides education for children with special educational needs. St. Elizabeth Catholic School of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington The Archdiocese of Washington is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in the United States. Its territorial remit encompasses the District of Columbia and the counties of Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, ...

is in Rockville. Private schools located near Rockville (with Rockville postal addresses) include: * Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School ( North Bethesda) * Melvin J. Berman Hebrew Academy ( Aspen Hill)

Montrose Christian School Montrose Christian School was a private Christian school in North Bethesda, Maryland, with a Rockville postal address. It was formerly operated by the Montrose Baptist Church, Maryland's second largest Southern Baptist church. It educated around ...

in North Bethesda has closed.

Higher Education

The Montgomery College (MC), main campus is located within Rockville and enrolls more than 15,000 students as of March 2019. The college is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools. Additional Institutions of higher education in Rockville include the University of Maryland Global Campus (main campus is in

Adelphi, Maryland Adelphi is an unincorporated area 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 othe ...

), The

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hemisphere. It consiste ...

Montgomery County Campus (main campus is in

Baltimore, Maryland 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 the Universities at Shady Grove, a collaboration of nine Maryland public degree-granting institutions, all have Rockville addresses, but are just outside the city limits.

Public Library

The Rockville Memorial Library is available to the residents of Rockville. The Rockville Memorial Library offers services for residents and visitors to access books, databases, newspapers, magazines, and internet access.

Transportation

Roads and highways

The most prominent highway directly serving Rockville is Interstate 270. 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.

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 cont ...

was the precursor to I-270 and follows a parallel route, and now serves as the main commercial roadway through Rockville and neighboring communities. Other state highways serving Rockville directly include

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 ...

, Maryland Route 189,

Maryland Route 586 Maryland Route 586 (MD 586) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Veirs Mill Road, the highway runs from MD 28 and MD 911 in Rockville east to MD 97 in Wheaton. MD 586 is a four- to six-lane northwest–southeast h ...

Maryland Route 660 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 i ...

and

Maryland Route 911 Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), 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; ...

. Interstate 370 and Maryland Route 200 do not directly enter the city, but pass just outside the city limits.

Public transportation

The Washington Metro Red Line rail system can be accessed at

and

. The Brunswick Line of the MARC commuter rail system runs to and from Washington, D.C., and can be accessed at Rockville Station.

trains also serve Rockville. Bus service connects Rockville directly to the regional transit hub at

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 ...

, and to downtown Baltimore via the

Maryland Transit Administration The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) is a state-operated mass transit administration in Maryland, and is part of the Maryland Department of Transportation. The MTA operates a comprehensive transit system throughout the Baltimore-Washingto ...

ICC Bus and 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 A ...

Ride On Ride On may refer to: Music * ''Ride On'' (Christy Moore album), an album (and song) by Christy Moore * ''Ride On'' (Izzy Stradlin album), an album by Izzy Stradlin * ''Ride On'' (Texas Hippie Coalition album), an album (and song) by American red d ...

buses provides service within the city and to places within the county like

, Clarksburg and Silver Spring.

Law enforcement

The city is served by the Rockville City Police Department and is aided by the Montgomery County Police Department as directed by the relevant authorities.

Notable people

Tori Amos Tori Amos (born Myra Ellen Amos; August 22, 1963) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She is a classically trained musician with a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Having already begun composing instrumental pieces on piano, Amos won a full ...

, singer-songwriter and pianist *

Jamshid Amouzegar Jamshid Amouzegar ( fa, جمشید آموزگار‎; 25 June 1923 – 27 September 2016) was an Iranian economist and politician who was prime minister of Iran from 7 August 1977 to 27 August 1978 when he resigned. Prior to that, he served as ...

, former Prime Minister of Iran *

Dragoslav Avramović Dragoslav Avramović (14 October 1919, in Skopje – 26 February 2001, in Rockville, Maryland) was a Serbian economist and the governor of the National Bank of Yugoslavia. Biography Born in 1919 in Skopje where he finished high school in 1937. ...

, former Governor of the National Bank of Yugoslavia * BT, musician * Gordy Coleman, Major League Baseball player * Jerome Dyson (born 1987), professional basketball player * Pablo Eisenberg (1932–2022), scholar, social justice advocate, and tennis player * Paul Goldstein (born 1976), tennis player *

Virginia Hall Virginia Hall Goillot DSC, Croix de Guerre, (April 6, 1906 – July 8, 1982), code named Marie and Diane, was an American who worked with the United Kingdom's clandestine Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the American Office of Str ...

, American spy and

OSS OSS or Oss may refer to: Places * Oss, a city and municipality in the Netherlands * Osh Airport, IATA code OSS People with the name * Oss (surname), a surname Arts and entertainment * ''O.S.S.'' (film), a 1946 World War II spy film about ...

operative, died in Rockville * Elden Henson, actor known for ''

The Mighty Ducks ''The Mighty Ducks'' is an American media franchise. It features a trilogy of live-action films released in the 1990s by Walt Disney Pictures, an animated television series, a live-action sequel television series, and a real-world hockey t ...

'' franchise and as Pollux in the '' Hunger Games'' movie series * Spike Jonze, film director *

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 premis ...

, rapper and record producer * Helen Maroulis, Olympic wrestler * Rachel Parsons, figure skater, 2017 junior national champion * Haley Skarupa, professional ice hockey player * Josh Tillman ("Father John Misty"), musician * Frederick Yeh, biologist and animal welfare activist

Sister cities

Rockville has two

sister cities A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inter ...

: * Pinneberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany * Yilan City, Yilan County, Taiwan Although not a sister city, Rockville also has friendly relations with another city: * Jiaxing, Zhejiang Province, China

References

External links

*
Official website

* * {{Authority control Populated places established in 1717 Populated places established in 1803 Populated places established in 1860 Cities in Montgomery County, Maryland County seats in Maryland 1717 establishments in Maryland 1803 establishments in Maryland 1860 establishments in Maryland Cities in Maryland