Perry Hall, Maryland

Perry Hall is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 28,474 at the 2010 census. It is a suburb of Baltimore.

Geography

Perry Hall is located at .

According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all land.

Education

Elementary schools

* Perry Hall Elementary
* Gunpowder Elementary
* Seven Oaks Elementary
* Joppa View Elementary
* Chapel Hill Elementary
* Honeygo Elementary
* Rossville Elementary

Middle schools

* Perry Hall Middle
Perry Hall Middle School is the largest middle school in Baltimore County. Current enrollment is 1851 students. The state rated school capacity is 1643. Enrollment projections released by Baltimore County Public Schools on Feb 20, 2017, indicate Perry Hall Middle School will have 2075 students in the 2018–19 school year. As of Feb 25, 2017, The Baltimore County Board of Education has not released any information on a plan to alleviate the overcapacity situation. http://www.bcps.org/schools/profile.aspx?OrgID=103, https://www.boarddocs.com/mabe/bcps/Board.nsf/files/AJDM3R56FD9D/$file/SC2016%20FINAL%20020217.pdf

Some students are zoned to attend Pine Grove Middle in Carney.

High schools

* Perry Hall High School

Private schools

* Perry Hall Christian School

Demographics

American Community Survey estimates, there were people and households. The population density was . There were housing units at an average density of .To calculate density we use the land area figure from the places file in The racial makeup of the city was 62.8% White, 16.3% Black or African American, 14.5% Asian, and 1.5% some other race, with 4.9% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 5.6% of the population.

Of the households, 32.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.0% had seniors 65 years or older living with them, 53.4% were married couples living together, 5.0% were couples cohabitating, 16.3% had a male householder with no partner present, and 25.3% had a female householder with no partner present. The median household size was and the median family size was .

The age distribution was 21.7% under 18, 8.7% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 27.5% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was years.

The median income for a household was $, with family households having a median income of $ and non-family households $. The per capita income was $. Out of the people with a determined poverty status, 7.9% were below the poverty line. Further, 15.3% of minors and 4.6% of seniors were below the poverty line.

In the survey, residents self-identified with various ethnic ancestries. People of German descent make up 20.8% of the population of the town, followed by Irish at 16.0%, Italian at 9.1%, English at 7.5%, Polish at 5.0%, American at 2.0%, Sub-Saharan African at 1.5%, French at 1.3%, Scottish at 1.0%, Greek at 0.9%, Welsh at 0.8%, Scotch-Irish at 0.7%, Norwegian at 0.5%, and Russian at 0.5%.

Perry Hall Improvement Association

The Perry Hall Improvement Association (PHIA) is the oldest and largest civic organization in northeastern Baltimore County, Maryland. Since Perry Hall is not incorporated, the PHIA is the dominant communitywide coalition in the area.

An early version of the PHIA operated during the Second World War when Perry Hall residents organized a Health Committee to help veterans purchase wheelchairs, crutches, and other equipment. After the war ended, many of these leaders decided to create a permanent organization. The first meeting of the Perry Hall Improvement Association was held on July 31, 1945.

After World War II, there was a wave of growth in northeastern Baltimore County. The PHIA defeated plans for a cemetery on the South Farm, a racetrack on Forge Road, and a drive-in movie theater near St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church. The PHIA also lobbied for lights along Joppa, Forge, and Cross Roads and Schroeder and Bauer Avenues. The PHIA pressured Baltimore County officials to fund road improvements and build new schools. Its most significant accomplishment came on September 8, 1963, when Baltimore County Executive Spiro Agnew and other officials dedicated the new Perry Hall library on Belair Road.

The PHIA worked on civic activities as well, starting a Community Christmas Party in 1946 and a Halloween Parade in 1949. In 1976, the PHIA helped form a Bicentennial Committee that hosted events at the old Perry Hall School. By the 1970s and 1980s, however, leaders spent much of their time dealing with development. The most symbolic loss for the community was the development of Lassahn Field, long used for soccer games, carnivals, and Easter egg hunts.

By the early 1990s, the community celebrated the opening of the Seven Oaks Senior Center and two new elementary schools, Seven Oaks and Joppa View. In 1994, the PHIA provided critical local support for the Honeygo Plan, a blueprint for developing Perry Hall's rural northeast.

With the Honeygo Plan adopted and much of the community now built-out, the PHIA focused in the late 1990s on some of the civic activities that had been abandoned years earlier. In 2000, Perry Hall celebrated its 225th birthday. The PHIA worked with other groups to restart the Halloween Parade and begin a summer concert series, the centerpiece of which was a performance by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. Also, that year, the PHIA worked with other groups and elected officials to preserve the Perry Hall Mansion. The mansion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. In November 2001, Baltimore County leaders announced plans to purchase the property.

Between 1996 and 2009, the PHIA membership grew from 200 members to more than 2,000. Recently, the PHIA has focused on construction of a new Perry Hall Schools, completion of several new parks, stopping overdevelopment, and strategies to reduce school overcrowding.

The PHIA is governed by an executive board that includes Jack Amrhein, president; Kevin Leary, vice-president; Tom Benisch, treasurer; Renee Papavasiliou, secretary; and several members-at-large members.

Notable people

* Pete Caringi III (born 1992) – soccer player
* Don Dohler (1946–2006) – film director who also created a movie, Nightbeast, set in Perry Hall
* Donna M. Felling (born 1950) – Maryland state politician
* Johnny Klausmeier (born 1981) – NASCAR crew chief
* Kathy Klausmeier (born 1950) – Maryland state politician
* Alfred W. Redmer Jr. (born 1956) – Maryland state politician
* Billy Ronson (1957–2015) – English soccer player who settled in Perry Hall
* Greg Schaum (1954-2021) – National Football League (NFL) player
* John R. Schneider (1937–2002) – Maryland state politician
* Kathy Szeliga (born 1961) – Maryland state politician

References

Sources

*"Crossroads: The History of Perry Hall," by David Marks

External links

Perry Hall Improvement AssociationPerry Hall Improvement Association (PHIA) records, 1945-1986
at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Friends of the Perry Hall MansionOld photo looking south on Belair Rd at Silver Spring Rd

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Census-designated places in Baltimore County, Maryland
Census-designated places in Maryland