Hyattsville, Maryland

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Hyattsville, Maryland
Official seal of Hyattsville, Maryland
Seal
Location in Maryland
Location in Maryland
Coordinates: 38°57′25″N 76°57′5″W / 38.95694, -76.95139
Country United States
State Maryland
County Prince George's
Incorporated 1886
Government
 - Mayor William F. Gardiner
Area
 - Total 2.5 sq mi (6.4 km²)
 - Land 2.43 sq mi (6.3 km²)
 - Water 0.04 sq mi (0.1 km²)  1.38%
Elevation 105 ft (32 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 14,733
 - Density 6,885.9/sq mi (2,658.2/km²)
Time zone Eastern (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) Eastern (UTC-4)
Area code(s) 301
FIPS code 24-41250
GNIS feature ID 0597595
Website: www.hyattsville.org

Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States.

Contents

[edit] History

The city was named for its founder, Christopher Clark Hyatt. He purchased his first parcel of land in the area in March 1845. He thought the proximity to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad tracks and the telegraph lines made the area a good site for a town, and the surrounding farmlands were soon subdivided into housing lots. The name Hyattsville was being used for the settlement by 1859.

As a community inside the Capital Beltway, Hyattsville enjoys easy access to Washington and Baltimore by the West Hyattsville and Prince George's Plaza stops on the Metro subway system's Green Line or by MARC commuter rail trains on the Camden Line in the neighboring town of Riverdale Park.

The historic district of the city is home to a number of Victorian houses built in the late 1880s and Sears bungalows and Arts & Crafts houses built between the wars (late 1910s and early 1940s).

In 1982, a portion of the city was placed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Hyattsville Historic District; the district was extended in late 2004.

The city was involved in a minor controversy in April 2006. In the episode airing April 27, the Geena Davis television series Commander in Chief depicted Hyattsville as having the highest murder rate in the United States; it also indirectly depicted the town as being an urban ghetto dominated by poor minorities. The city and Prince George's County were very upset at ABC. On May 1, ABC formally apologized to both the city and county.

The National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Department of Health and Human Services, is headquartered in Hyattsville.

[edit] Geography

Hyattsville is located at 38°57′25″N, 76°57′5″W (38.956910, -76.951270).[1]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 2.5 square miles (6.4 km²), of which, 2.43 square miles (6.3 km²) of it is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (1.38%) is water.

[edit] Bordering Areas

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 14,733 people, 5,540 households, and 3,368 families residing in the city. The population density was 6,885.9 people per square mile (2,658.2/km²). There were 5,795 housing units at an average density of 2,708.5/sq mi (1,045.5/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 39.53% White, 41.03% African American, 0.50% Native American, 4.02% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 10.91% from other races, and 3.98% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 18.14% of the population.

There were 5,540 households out of which 31.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.3% were married couples living together, 17.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.2% were non-families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.24.

In the city the population was spread out with 24.2% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 34.0% from 25 to 44, 20.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 91.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.7 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $45,355, and the median income for a family was $51,625. Males had a median income of $33,163 versus $31,088 for females. The per capita income for the city was $20,152. About 7.9% of families and 10.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.4% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Government

When first incorporated, Hyattsville was run by a Board of Commissioners; in May 1900, it switched to a mayor and common council system. Today, the city government consists of a popularly elected mayor and a ten-person city council. Each of the five wards in the city are represented by two popularly elected councilmen.

[edit] Presidents of the Board of Commissioners

  • Richard P. Evans (1886–87)
  • Francis H. Smith (1887–89)
  • Francis J. Gramlick (1889–90)
  • Jackson H. Ralston (1890–91)
  • Frederic A. Holden (1891–92)
  • Jackson H. Ralston (1892–93)
  • Francis H. Smith (1893–97)
  • Michael V. Tierney (1897–98)
  • L. K. Miller (1898–99)
  • Charles E. Postley (1899–1900)

[edit] Mayors

  • Michael V. Tierney (1900–02)
  • Charles A. Wells (1902–06)
  • Joseph R. Owens (1906–08)
  • John J. Fainter (acting mayor) (1908–09)
  • William P. Magruder (1909–11)
  • Roger Bellis (1911–12)
  • Harry W. Shepherd (1912–14)
  • Oswald A. Greagor (1914–15)
  • Edward Devlin (1915–16)
  • John G. Holden (1916–17)
  • William A. Brooks (1917–19)
  • Matthew F. Halloran (1919–20)
  • T. Hammond Welsh (1920–21)
  • J. Frank Rushe (1921–25)
  • Irvin Owings (1925–27)
  • Hillary T. Willis (1927–31)
  • Lemuel L. Gray (1931–33)
  • Hillary T. Willis (1933–38)
  • E. Murray Gover (1938–46)
  • R. T. Plitt (acting mayor) (1946–47)
  • Caesar L. Aiello (1947–51)
  • Jesse S. Baggett (1951–54)
  • Thomas E. Arnold (acting mayor) (1954–55)
  • George J. O'Hare (1955–59)
  • Joseph F. Lilly (1959–67)
  • Charles L. Armentrout (1967–75)
  • George C. Harrison (1975–76)
  • Jeremiah Harrington (1976–79)
  • Thomas L. Bass (1979–95)
  • Mary K. Prangley (1995–99)
  • Robert W. Armentrout (1999–2003)
  • William F. Gardiner (2003– )

[edit] Education

[edit] Primary and secondary schools

[edit] Public schools

The city is served by Prince George's County Public Schools.

Hyattsville is zoned to the following elementary school(s):

  • Lewisdale Elementary
  • Hyattsville Elementary
  • Rosa Parks Elementary

Northwestern High School

[edit] Private schools

Concordia Lutheran School (Pre-K - 8)

St. Mark the Evangelist Catholic School (Pre-K - 8)

St. Jerome Catholic School (Pre-K - 8)

St. Matthew's Episcopal School (Pre-K - K)

DeMatha Catholic High School

[edit] References

  1. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ^ American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

[edit] External links