Wincopia Farms is a historic farm located at

North Laurel North Laurel is a census-designated place (CDP) in Howard County, Maryland, United States. The published population was 4,474 at the 2010 census. This population was substantially less than the CDP's population in 2000, and was the result of an er ...

, Howard 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 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 territorie ...

. Wincopia farms was one of three large farms in the area. Overlook Farm and Fairlands remain well preserved, but the 124 acre Wincopia Farms was purchased for development. The Hearn family operated it until 2010. While some sources claim the Hearn family owned the farm for over 200 years, the title history shows the family purchased the farm in 1880. They raised

poinsettia The poinsettia ( or ) (''Euphorbia pulcherrima'') is a commercially important flowering plant species of the diverse spurge family Euphorbiaceae. Indigenous to Mexico and Central America, the poinsettia was first described by Europeans in 1834 ...

s with customers that included the White House and Kennedy Center. On September 8, 1992, a man and a teenager attempted a series of failed

carjacking Carjacking is a robbery in which the item taken over is a motor vehicle.Michael Cherbonneau, "Carjacking," in ''Encyclopedia of Social Problems'', Vol. 1 (SAGE, 2008: ed. Vincent N. Parrillo), pp. 110-11. In contrast to car theft, carjacking is ...

s starting at the southbound I-95 rest stop on Wincopin property leased by the Hearn Family through the Bolling Brook subdivisions. The men carjacked the vehicle of

Dr. Pam Basu The murder of Pam Basu, resulting from a carjacking, occurred on September 8, 1992, in Savage, Maryland. Her death prompted the United States Congress and several states to enact tougher carjacking laws. Carjacking and murder Pam Basu, age 34 ...

and her 22-month-old daughter at a stop at Horsham and Knights Bridge Road. Basu attempted to retrieve her daughter, and was dragged to death along Gorman Road, with the carjackers leaving her body entangled at the fenced entrance to Wincopia Farms. As a direct result of the violent incident, the

Federal Anti-Car Theft Act of 1992 Carjacking is a robbery in which the item taken over is a motor vehicle.Michael Cherbonneau, "Carjacking," in ''Encyclopedia of Social Problems'', Vol. 1 (SAGE, 2008: ed. Vincent N. Parrillo), pp. 110-11. In contrast to car theft, carjacking is ...

(FACTA) was created, the first federal carjacking law. The 1992 act, codified at 18 U.S.C. § 2119, took effect on October 25, 1992.Mike Folks
Carjacking Law Getting Little Use: Few Prosecutions Occur Despite Increase in Number of Cases
''Sun-Sentinel'' (January 17, 1994). Around 2002, the Hearn family took out a $4.5 million loan from Gourley and Gourley LLC, a private lending group, secured by the 124 acre property. The Gourley and Gourley loan was provided to the Hearn family to refinance existing financial institution debt already on the property that was in default and awaiting foreclosure. By the

Great Recession in the United States The Great Recession in the United States was a severe financial crisis combined with a deep recession. While the recession officially lasted from December 2007 to June 2009, it took many years for the economy to recover to pre-crisis levels of ...

in 2007, and after multiple loan extensions (each one increasing the loan amount to add an interest carry reserve to the loan), the Gourley and Gourly debt increased to $10 million. Despite efforts by the Gourley group to encourage the Hearn family to sell the property to a developer, payoff the $10 million loan, and keep the family wealthy, the Hearn family instead insisted on maintaining a struggling nursery. After a long, drawn out bankruptcy by the Hearn group, Gourley and Gourley LLC foreclosed on the property and evicted the Hearn family from the property. Gourley and Gourley then went on to develop the property, obtain preliminary plat approval for 220 home sites, and sell the property for $41 million. Howard County designated the main access, Gorman Road, a scenic road but offered the developer exemptions to reduce setbacks, widen the road, add a tunnel, and cut down the 300-year-old trees that bordered the road.

References

{{reflist Houses completed in 1771 Houses in Howard County, Maryland Howard County, Maryland landmarks

See also

References