Frederick, Maryland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Frederick, Maryland
City
Downtown Frederick's City Hall in 2022
Seal
Nickname(s):  "The City of Clustered Spires"
Motto(s):  "Join the Story!"
Location of Frederick in Frederick County, Maryland (left) and of Frederick County in Maryland (right)
Frederick, Maryland Location in Maryland Show map of Maryland Frederick, Maryland Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Country	United States
State	Maryland
County	Frederick
Founded	1745
Area
• City	23.95 sq mi (62.02 km2)
• Land	23.85 sq mi (61.76 km2)
• Water	0.10 sq mi (0.26 km2)
Elevation	341 ft (104 m)
Population  (2020)
• City	78,171
• Estimate  (2021)	79,588
• Rank	US: 452nd MD: 2nd
• Density	3,264.33/sq mi (1,260.35/km2)
• Urban	141,576 (US: 230th)
Demonym(s)	Fredneck (colloquial)
Time zone	UTC−5 (EST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes	21701–21709
Area codes	301, 240
FIPS code	24-30325
GNIS feature ID	2390588
Highways	I-70, I-270, US 15, US 40, US 340, MD 80, MD 144, MD 355

Frederick is a city in Frederick County, Maryland, United States. It is also the county seat, which means it's where the county government is located. In 2020, Frederick had a population of 78,171 people. This makes it the second-largest city in Maryland, right after Baltimore. Frederick is part of the larger Washington metropolitan area.

The city is located at a very important spot. It sits where a major north-south Native American trail met east-west routes. These routes led to the Chesapeake Bay (near Baltimore and what is now Washington, D.C.) and across the Appalachian Mountains to the Ohio River.

Frederick is home to the Frederick Municipal Airport, which is used for smaller planes. It also hosts Fort Detrick, a U.S. Army research center for bioscience and communication. Fort Detrick is the biggest employer in Frederick County.

Frederick's History

Early Times and Native Americans

Catoctin Mountain, north of Frederick

Frederick is located where Catoctin Mountain meets the rolling hills of the Piedmont region. This area was a busy crossroads long before Europeans arrived. Native American hunters used to follow the Monocacy River. They traveled from the Susquehanna River area in Pennsylvania to the Potomac River. This path was known as the Monocacy Trail or even the Great Indian Warpath.

Colonial Era and Founding

Evangelical Lutheran church in Frederick, built in 1752

The first European settlement nearby was in Monocacy, Maryland, before 1730. However, this settlement was later abandoned. Frederick was a better location, with easier access to the Potomac River.

Daniel Dulany, who bought and sold land, planned out what was first called Frederick Town around 1745. The town might have been named after Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore, Frederick, Prince of Wales, or Frederick the Great, King of Prussia.

In 1748, Frederick County was created from a part of Prince George's County. Frederick Town became the county seat. The first house in the town was built by Johann Thomas Schley, a German schoolmaster. Many German settlers, known as Pennsylvania Dutch, moved to Frederick. They bought land from Dulany along Carroll Creek. The oldest house still standing in Frederick is Schifferstadt, built in 1756.

Frederick was an important stop on the Great Wagon Road. This route came from Pennsylvania and continued south through the Great Appalachian Valley. During the French and Indian War in 1755, British General Edward Braddock marched his troops through Frederick. Even young George Washington was with him.

Many different religious groups settled in Frederick. These included Lutherans, Methodists, and Catholics. The town became known for its many churches.

19th Century Frederick

Frederick was an important market town and a center for justice. Famous lawyers like Francis Scott Key and Roger B. Taney practiced law here.

The town was known for its many churches, especially along Church Street. The abolitionist poet John Greenleaf Whittier wrote about Frederick's "clustered spires" in his poem "Barbara Fritchie".

When U.S. President Thomas Jefferson planned the National Road, it ran through Frederick along Patrick Street. This road later became U.S. Route 40. Frederick also became a leading mining county in the early 1800s. It produced gold, copper, and iron.

The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal started operating in 1831, and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) also reached Frederick in 1831. These transportation links helped the city grow.

Frederick During the Civil War

Confederate troops marching through Frederick in 1862

Frederick was a very important place during the American Civil War. Both Union and Confederate troops marched through the city. Many hospitals were set up here to care for wounded soldiers. Today, you can learn about this at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine.

A famous story tells of Barbara Fritchie, a woman from Frederick. She supposedly waved a Union flag at Confederate General Stonewall Jackson as his troops marched through in 1862. This happened before the battles of South Mountain and Antietam.

President Abraham Lincoln giving a speech in Frederick on October 4, 1862

President Abraham Lincoln visited Frederick in October 1862. He gave a short speech at the B&O Railroad depot.

In July 1864, Confederate troops led by Jubal Early took over Frederick. They demanded $200,000 from the citizens to prevent the city from being destroyed. Union troops fought a battle nearby, known as the Battle of Monocacy. This battle helped slow down the Confederates and is sometimes called the "Battle that Saved Washington." The Monocacy National Battlefield is just southeast of the city.

The rebuilt home of Barbara Fritchie is on West Patrick Street. She is buried in Frederick's Mount Olivet Cemetery.

Late 19th Century and Beyond

West Patrick Street in Frederick, May 1912

Aerial view of Frederick, 1930

Admiral Winfield Scott Schley was a famous naval commander from Frederick. He led American ships during the Spanish–American War in 1898.

The Frederick and Pennsylvania Line railroad opened in 1872, connecting Frederick to Pennsylvania. This railroad line is still partly used today.

Jewish immigrants formed the Frederick Hebrew Congregation in 1858. Later, it became Beth Sholom Congregation. After the Civil War, Maryland created separate public facilities for different races. Frederick established a public high school for African Americans in 1921.

Geography and Climate

A bridge over Carroll Creek in Carroll Creek Park

Frederick is in the northern part of Maryland. It's a major crossroads where several important highways meet. These include Interstate 70, Interstate 270, and U.S. Route 15. Frederick is about 46 miles west of Baltimore and 50 miles north of Washington, D.C..

The city covers about 23.96 square miles, mostly land. The Monocacy River runs east of the city. Carroll Creek flows through the city and can sometimes cause floods.

Weather in Frederick

Frederick has hot, humid summers and cool winters. It's located west of the "fall line," which means its temperatures are a bit cooler than places further east. Frederick has a humid subtropical climate. The highest temperature ever recorded in Maryland was in Frederick: 109°F (43°C) on July 10, 1936.

People of Frederick

In 2020, Frederick had 78,171 residents. The city is home to a diverse population.

According to the 2020 census, the population was:

• 48.9% White
• 18.6% Black or African American
• 0.2% Native American
• 5.7% Asian American or Pacific Islander
• 20.9% Hispanic or Latino (of any race)
• About 5% were of two or more races.

The Hispanic population in Frederick grew by 74% between 2010 and 2020. The Asian population increased by 16%, and the Black or African-American population grew by about 20% in the same period.

In 2021, about 30.4% of households in Frederick had children under 18 living with them.

Frederick's Economy

Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research

Frederick's economy is strongly influenced by its closeness to Washington, D.C.. Also, Fort Detrick is a very important employer in the area.

Frederick is home to Riverside Research Park. This is a large center for biomedical research. It includes the main offices of the National Cancer Institute's Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research. Because the federal government continues to invest in this area, Frederick is expected to keep growing.

The Frederick Historic District in downtown Frederick has over 200 shops, restaurants, and antique stores. You can find many different types of food, like Italian, Thai, Vietnamese, and Cuban.

Downtown Frederick also has about 600 businesses and organizations. They employ nearly 5,000 people. A growing number of technology companies are setting up in the historic buildings and new offices along Carroll Creek Park.

Carroll Creek Park

Carroll Creek Park started as a project to control floods in the late 1970s. The goal was to protect downtown Frederick from flooding and help the historic business area grow again. Now, over $150 million has been invested in new buildings and renovations around the park.

The first part of the park improvements cost almost $11 million. It includes brick paths for walking, water features, trees, and pedestrian bridges. There's also a 350-seat amphitheater for outdoor shows. The park helps attract businesses and new homes to the area.

First Saturday Events

On the first Saturday of every month, Frederick hosts an event called "First Saturday" in the downtown area. Each month has a different theme. Activities are planned around these themes, especially near the Carroll Creek Promenade. This event covers a ten-block area and runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. It brings in large crowds, especially from May to October, with about 11,000 visitors on average.

Top Employers in Frederick County

Here are some of the largest employers in Frederick County:

Frederick's Culture and Arts

City's Look and Feel

A panorama of downtown Frederick along North Court Street.

Frederick is famous for the "clustered spires" of its old downtown churches. These spires are even on the city's seal. Places like Clustered Spires Cemetery and the Clustered Spires Golf Course are named after them.

The older part of the city is very walkable, with narrow streets and sidewalks. It has many shops and restaurants. Forbes magazine even called it one of the United States' "Greatest Neighborhoods" in 2010.

The Community Bridge mural in Frederick

Frederick also has a special bridge called the Community Bridge. It's painted with a realistic mural by artist William Cochran. Thousands of people shared ideas about "community," and he painted them onto the bridge. Locals often call it "the mural" or "mural bridge."

Theatre and Arts Scene

The Frederick Arts Council helps promote and support the arts in Frederick County. Downtown Frederick has over ten art galleries. There are also three theaters very close to each other: the Cultural Arts Center, the Weinberg Center for the Arts, and the Maryland Ensemble Theatre.

The Delaplaine Visual Arts Education Center is a major art non-profit in the area. Frederick is also home to the Maryland Shakespeare Festival.

In 2007, 30 life-size fiberglass keys were placed around Frederick as part of a public art project called "The Keys to Frederick." Artist William Cochran also created a large glass art piece called The Dreaming in the historic theater district.

The Maryland Ensemble Theatre (MET) is a professional theater company. It started performing in 1997. Students at Hood College also have a theater club that puts on shows.

The movie Blair Witch Project (1999) was set in the woods west of Burkittsville in Frederick County, but it was not filmed there.

Music and Dance

Frederick has a community orchestra called the Frederick Symphony Orchestra. They perform classical music five times a year. Other music groups include the Frederick Chorale and the Frederick Children's Chorus. A weekly concert is played on the Joseph Dill Baker Carillon every Sunday.

The Frederick School of Classical Ballet is the official school for Maryland Regional Ballet. Many dance studios in the city perform at the annual DanceFest event.

Baker Park has a large amphitheater that hosts regular music performances, especially in the summer.

The rock band Clutch, formed in 1990, calls Frederick home. They often rehearse here. Their song "50,000 Unstoppable Watts" is about Fort Detrick and Frederick.

The indie-rock band Silent Old Mtns is also from Frederick. Their 2012 music video for Dead All The Time was filmed entirely in Historic Downtown Frederick.

Libraries and Shopping

The main library for Frederick County is located downtown. The city's main shopping mall is the Francis Scott Key Mall. Another shopping center, the Frederick Towne Mall, closed in 2013. However, there are plans to redevelop it as District 40, with new shops and a movie theater called Warehouse Cinemas, which opened in 2020.

Religious Communities

Frederick has many different religious groups. The first churches were started by early Protestant settlers. Later, Irish Catholics and other European Catholics also established churches.

St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church in Urbana is one of the oldest active African-American churches in Frederick County. It was built in 1916. Quinn Chapel, part of the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church, is on East Third Street. The A.M.E. Church was the first independent Black church in the U.S.

Other groups include Brethren and Pentecostal churches. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has four congregations in Frederick.

Beth Sholom Congregation, a conservative synagogue, has been in Frederick since 1917. Congregation Kol Ami, a Reform synagogue, started in 2003. Chabad Lubavitch of Frederick was founded in 2009.

The Sri Bhaktha Anjaneya Temple in Urbana serves Frederick's Hindu community. The Islamic Society of Frederick, founded in the early 1990s, serves the city's Muslim community.

Sports in Frederick

The Frederick Keys are a collegiate summer baseball team. They used to be a minor league team for the Baltimore Orioles. The Keys are named after Francis Scott Key, who lived in Frederick. They play at Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium.

The Spire City Ghost Hounds are an independent baseball team that started playing at Nymeo Field in 2023. They plan to return in 2025.

FC Frederick is a semi-pro soccer team in the National Premier Soccer League. They play home games at Hood College.

The Flying Cows are a professional basketball team that started playing at Hood College in 2024.

Education in Frederick

Alumnae Hall at Hood College

Public Schools

Frederick County Public Schools (FCPS) runs the public schools in the area. FCPS is known for its high performance in Maryland. It has one of the lowest dropout rates in the state (3.84%) and a high graduation rate (93.31%). In 2013, FCPS students scored well above state and national averages on the SAT. Many of its high schools are ranked among the top 10% nationally for encouraging students to take AP classes.

High schools serving Frederick students include:

• Frederick High School
• Governor Thomas Johnson High School
• Tuscarora High School
• Oakdale High School

Other public schools in Frederick County include:

• Middletown High School
• Catoctin High School
• Brunswick High School
• Linganore High School
• Urbana High School
• Walkersville High School

There are also special public schools like the Career and Technology Center and the Outdoor School. Frederick Classical Charter School is a public charter school that also serves students.

Private Schools

• The Banner School
• St. John Regional Catholic School
• Frederick Adventist Academy
• Saint John's Catholic Prep
• New Life Christian School
• Frederick Christian Academy

Schools for All Ages

• Maryland School for the Deaf
• Friends Meeting School

Colleges and Universities

• Frederick Community College
• Hood College
• Mount St. Mary's University, Frederick County, Maryland

Media in Frederick

Frederick has its own television, radio, and print media.

Television

Frederick has one Maryland Public Television station: WFPT 62 (PBS/MPT).

Radio

The city is home to several radio stations:

• WSHE 820 AM and 94.3 FM (The Gamut)
• WFMD 930 AM (news/talk/sports)
• WFRE 99.9 FM (country music)
• WAFY 103.1 FM (pop songs)

Print

Frederick's main newspaper is The Frederick News-Post.

Transportation in Frederick

I-70 and US 40 in Frederick

Frederick's location as a crossroads has made it an important center for moving people and goods. This helps create an efficient network for traffic in and through the city.

Major roads and highways in Frederick include:

• I-70: A main east-west highway connecting Frederick to Baltimore and Hagerstown.
• I-270 Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Highway: Starts at I-70 and goes southeast towards Washington, D.C..
• US 15 Frederick Freeway: Travels north to Gettysburg, PA and south towards Leesburg, Virginia.
• US 40: Runs with I-70 and U.S. 15 North, then becomes West Patrick Street.
• US 340: Runs southwest with U.S. 15, then heads west towards Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

From 1896 to 1961, Frederick had a trolley service called the Hagerstown & Frederick Railway.

Frederick MARC station

The city has MARC commuter rail service to Washington, D.C.. There are also buses operated by TransIT services of Frederick, Maryland. Greyhound Lines also serves the city.

Frederick Municipal Airport has two runways.

Since the 1990s, Frederick has invested in city projects like new bus routes and paths for walking and biking. A circular road, Monocacy Boulevard, helps improve the historic downtown area.

Frederick has been recognized as a "Bicycle Friendly Community" at the bronze level. A committee called the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) helps advise city officials on improving walking and biking in Frederick.

Notable People from Frederick

Images for kids

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  Downtown Frederick's City Hall in 2022

• 

  Seal of Frederick, Maryland

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  Location of Frederick in Frederick County, Maryland (left) and of Frederick County in Maryland (right)

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  Catoctin Mountain, located north of Frederick

• 

  Evangelical Lutheran church in Frederick, built in 1752

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  Confederate troops marching south on North Market Street in Frederick during the American Civil War

• 

  President Abraham Lincoln giving a speech in Frederick on October 4, 1862

• 

  An 1896 print illustrating Barbara Fritchie

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  West Patrick Street in Frederick, May 1912

• 

  Aerial view of Frederick, 1930

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  A bridge crossing over Carroll Creek in Carroll Creek Park

• 

  Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research

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  A panorama of downtown Frederick along North Court Street.

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  The Community Bridge mural in Frederick

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  Barbara Fritchie house

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  Frederick MARC station

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  Alumnae Hall at Hood College

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  I-70 and US 40 in Frederick

See also

In Spanish: Frederick (Maryland) para niños