Sykesville, Maryland

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Sykesville, Maryland
Location of Sykesville, Maryland
Location of Sykesville, Maryland
Coordinates: 39°22′16″N 76°58′21″W / 39.37111, -76.9725
Country United States
State Maryland
County Carroll
Area
 - Total 1.6 sq mi (4.1 km²)
 - Land 1.6 sq mi (4.1 km²)
 - Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km²)
Elevation 545 ft (166 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 4,197
 - Density 2,621.1/sq mi (1,012.0/km²)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 21784
Area code(s) 410
FIPS code 24-76550
GNIS feature ID 0591389

Sykesville is a town in Carroll County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,197 at the 2000 census.

Contents

[edit] History

Sykesville is named after James Sykes, who purchased 1,000 acres (4 km²) of land from George Patterson, a wealthy Baltimore shipbuilder. Patterson's daughter, Elizabeth (Betsy), married Napoleon Bonaparte's brother, Jerome, but when she arrived in Europe as Jerome's bride, Napoleon refused to let Betsy Patterson Bonaparte set foot on land.

[edit] Geography

Sykesville is located at 39°22′16″N, 76°58′21″W (39.371020, -76.972630).[1]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²), all of it land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 4,197 people, 1,390 households, and 1,025 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,621.1 people per square mile (1,012.8/km²). There were 1,420 housing units at an average density of 886.8/sq mi (342.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 92.14% White, 4.88% African American, 0.14% Native American, 1.62% Asian, 0.02% from other races, and 1.19% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.33% of the population.

There were 1,390 households out of which 48.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.7% were married couples living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.2% were non-families. 20.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.84 and the average family size was 3.33.

In the town the population was spread out with 32.0% under the age of 18, 5.1% from 18 to 24, 37.8% from 25 to 44, 15.7% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 90.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $66,551, and the median income for a family was $75,758. Males had a median income of $50,146 versus $35,669 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,395. About 2.4% of families and 3.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] To see

The retirement community of Fairhaven is located on the outskirts of Sykesville.

The mental hospital of Springfield Institute

The ex-Baltimore and Ohio Railroad station, designed by E. Francis Baldwin, has been converted to a restaurant, which bears his name 'Baldwin’s Station & Pub'. It was the prototype for a well-known model railroad kit. The Sykesville station was the second stop on the original Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

The 'Historic Colored Schoolhouse Museum', at 518 Schoolhouse Road, served as a school for black children from 1904 to 1938.

The Sykesville 'Gate House Museum', at 7283 Cooper Drive, served as residents for many employees at Maryland's second hospital for the insane. The hospital open in 1896 and the gatehouse was opened in 1904.

Downtown Sykesville is called "Historic Sykesville" because at two separate points in time, Union and Confederate Armies marched through there.

[edit] Notables

Sykesville was the birthplace of Frank Brown, the 42nd Governor of Maryland, on August 8, 1846.

Scenes from the 2003 Chris Rock film Head of State were filmed in Sykesville.

[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

Sykesville, Maryland Town website