Indian Head, Maryland
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Indian Head is a town in Charles 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 3,894 at the 2020 U.S. Census. It has been the site of a naval base specializing in gun and rocket propellants since 1890. Production of
nitrocellulose Nitrocellulose (also known as cellulose nitrate, flash paper, flash cotton, guncotton, pyroxylin and flash string, depending on form) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through exposure to a mixture of nitric acid and ...
and
smokeless powder Finnish smokeless powder Smokeless powder is a type of propellant used in firearms and artillery that produces less smoke and less fouling when fired compared to black powder. Because of their similar use, both the original black powder formula ...
began at the Indian Head Powder Factory in 1900. The name of the base has varied over the years from Indian Head Proving Ground, to Naval Powder Factory, to Naval Propellant Plant, to Naval Ordnance Station, to the present Naval Support Facility Indian Head. The facility's main tenant activity is the Indian Head Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC/IH). Advanced research in energetic systems takes place at NSWC/IH. NSWC/IH absorbed the function of the closed
Naval Ordnance Laboratory The Naval Ordnance Laboratory (NOL) was a facility in the White Oak, Maryland, White Oak area of Montgomery County, Maryland. The location is now used as the headquarters of the Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Or ...
, formerly in
White Oak ''Quercus'' subgenus ''Quercus'' is one of the two subgenera into which the genus ''Quercus'' was divided in a 2017 classification (the other being subgenus ''Cerris''). It contains about 190 species divided among five sections. It may be calle ...
. The base currently employs 3,700 people.


History

The peninsula, a "head" of land overlooking the
Potomac River The Potomac River () is in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands in West Virginia to Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography D ...
, had been long occupied by various cultures of
indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...
. The historic Algonquian-speaking Native American tribe was the Mattawoman (likely a band of the Piscataway) encountered by the first English settlers; the latter called the land "Indian Head", meaning "Indian Peninsula". According to research published by the historical society of Charles County, "Indian Head" is a shortened form of "Indian Headlands". A newspaper article mentions another explanation of the name, that "an unfortunate young brave" from a foreign tribe was beheaded for falling in love with an " Algonquin princess", although Edward W. Rice (the town's mayor at that time) dismissed the story as a "fairy tale".


American Civil War

During the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, Union Brigadier General
Joseph Hooker Joseph Hooker (November 13, 1814 – October 31, 1879) was an American Civil War general for the Union, chiefly remembered for his decisive defeat by Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863. Hooker had serv ...
commanded the Third Brigade near Budd's Ferry in August 1861. The site was a gathering spot for volunteers, including the 5th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry under Colonel Samuel H. Starr. The site was also used by the Union Army Balloon Corps for
reconnaissance In military operations, military reconnaissance () or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, the terrain, and civil activities in the area of operations. In military jargon, reconnai ...
of
Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...
troop movements across the Potomac.


Incorporation

The town of Indian Head was incorporated in 1920. It is located between the Potomac River and Mattawoman Creek on Mattawoman/Cornwallis Neck, named for the 1654 grant of by
Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore (8 August 1605 – 30 November 1675) was an English politician and lawyer who was the first List of Proprietors of Maryland, proprietor of Maryland. Born in Kent, England in 1605, he inherited the proprietorsh ...
, to Capt. Thomas Cornwallis of St. Mary's County. This land grant included the Cornwallis Manor on the Potomac, presumably the Indian Head site, with St. Elizabeth's Manor of "nearby but detached". The Town of Indian Head occupies land that was once part of the territory of the Algonquin Indians. The origin of the name Indian Head originates from the term "Indian Headlands", as the entire lower end of the peninsula was occupied by Native Americans and was an Indian Reservation. The name Indian Head first appears in the Census of 1800. In 1850, the Washington Fruit Growers Association purchased a parcel of land, which included Indian Head and "Glymont". Charles Pye offered for sale, a parcel of land (664 acres) known as Glymont, On December 2, 1834. The same 664 acres was put up for sale again on July 22, 1843, after the death of Charles Pye. The two tracts of land were purchased by The Glymont Improvement Company and recorded on March 20, 1887. The land (540 acres) was owned by B.D. Tubman and was known as "Glymont". The second tract was called “Cornwallis Neck”, and was sometimes known as “Pye’s Wharf Estate”. It adjoined the lands of S. H. Cox and R. A. Chapman, the first-mentioned tract and others containing 480 acres of land, more or less. Glymont, with Pye's Wharf and Leonard Marbury's Wharf, were the largest river port in Charles County. The name "Indian Head" applies to the land west of Glymont. During the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Indian Head thrived, with economic prosperity lasting until the late 1960s. The construction of the planned community of St. Charles, south of Waldorf, brought with it retail chains and big-box stores. This resulted in the downfall of Indian Head businesses as Indian Head residents began spending their income in St. Charles. Indian Head lacks many basic retail and service businesses. Many remedies for this situation have been attempted, but the desired growth has been slow in coming. Indian Head is bisected by
Maryland Route 210 Maryland Route 210 (MD 210) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Indian Head Highway, the highway runs from Potomac Avenue in Indian Head, Maryland, Indian Head north to the District of Columbia boundary in Forest Height ...
, generally known as Indian Head Highway. It goes directly into the middle of town at the entrance to Indian Head Naval Support Facility. Because of this, the town cannot benefit from through-traffic, but must be a destination in its own right. Private plans to build a massive "Chapman's Landing" housing development a few miles to the north were thwarted in the 1990s when the state government purchased the land to preserve it as green space under its "smart growth" program. The preserved land includes an old growth Shell-Marl Ravine Forest ecosystem. In 2004, the town opened a "black box" stage theater, the Indian Head Center for the Arts, and is exploring other efforts to revitalize the town. A section of the
railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
to the naval facility, built in 1918, was converted to a 13-mile paved hiking/biking trail in 2008. A year-round swimming pool is at the nearby Henry E. Lackey High School. In 2018 the long-abandoned Elys' store was demolished, and a technology education center called the "Velocity Center" completed in 2020, linked to the Naval base (but with opening delayed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
). The indigenous Piscataway Conoy Tribe of Maryland consider the name of the town offensive and have petitioned to have the name changed.


Youngest mayor

In 2015, Brandon Paulin was elected mayor of Indian Head. Brandon was 19 years of age when he was elected, making him the youngest mayor of any Maryland municipality in state history. As Vice Mayor, Kiran (Ron) Sitoula is the first Nepali to be elected to a public position outside of Nepal and the first non-US-born official in the history of the Town of Indian Head. Brandon was elected on May 5, 2015, and sworn into office on May 12, 2015.


Geography

Indian Head is located at (38.597781, -77.156926). 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 town has a total area of , all land.


Transportation

The main method of transportation to and from Indian Head is by road. The only highway serving the town is
Maryland Route 210 Maryland Route 210 (MD 210) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. Known as Indian Head Highway, the highway runs from Potomac Avenue in Indian Head, Maryland, Indian Head north to the District of Columbia boundary in Forest Height ...
, the aptly named Indian Head Highway, which connects the town to
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, and
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 ...
/ Interstate 495 (the Capital Beltway).


Demographics


2020 Census


2010 census

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2010, there were 3,844 people, 1,391 households, and 995 families residing in the town. The
population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...
was . There were 1,554 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 35.9%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 55.5%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 1.3% Native American, 2.6% Asian, 0.1%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.8% from other races, and 3.8% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 3.0% of the population. There were 1,391 households, of which 44.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.6% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 25.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 5.3% had a male householder with no wife present, and 28.5% were non-families. 22.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.24. The median age in the town was 33.2 years. 28.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.5% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 30.4% were from 25 to 44; 23.6% were from 45 to 64; and 7.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 47.3% male and 52.7% female.


2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 3,422 people, 1,222 households, and 888 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,311 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 55.64%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 38.08%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 1.78% Native American, 1.43% Asian, 0.03%
Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.47% from other races, and 2.57% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 1.69% of the population. There were 1,222 households, out of which 44.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.5% were married couples living together, 22.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.3% were non-families. 21.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.26. In the town, the age distribution of the population shows 33.0% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 16.7% from 45 to 64, and 7.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males. The median income for a household in the town was $42,702, and the median income for a family was $48,375. Males had a median income of $35,625 versus $31,451 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the town was $18,778. About 9.9% of families and 11.5% 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 ...
, including 13.9% of those under age 18 and 11.8% of those age 65 or over.


References

*


External links


Town of Indian Head official website

Indian Head Rail Trail at Everytrail.com
* {{authority control Towns in Maryland Towns in Charles County, Maryland Maryland populated places on the Potomac River Populated places established in 1920 1920 establishments in Maryland