Harford County, Maryland

Harford County is a in the  of. In 2004, its was estimated to be 233,340. Its is. Harford County forms part of the.

History
Harford County was formed in 1773 from the eastern part of. It contains, birthplace of 's assassin,. Harford County also hosted the signers of the, a precursor document to the.

The county was named for (ca. 1759-1834), illegitimate son of. Harford was the last Proprietary Governor of, but did not inherit his father's title because of his illegitimacy.

, an incorporated city in Harford County, was once under consideration to be the of the  rather than. It was favored for its strategic location at the top of the ; this location would facilitate while being secure in time of war. Today, the waterways around Havre de Grace have been silted, one of the primary environmental issues of Harford County.

Environmental History
Harford County has been a hotbed of environmental issues in three major areas:, /, and /.

The county's past, present, and future population booms and development have created conflicts between and developers/homeowners wishing to create s. The county was one of the first in the country to implement a  plan, in which new development is channeled into specific areas of the county.

Because the county sits at the headwaters of the along the, it plays a key rôle in controlling  and   into the bay as well as fostering  (SAV) regrowth. The county has had to balance the needs of land owners to practice and/or pave land (creating s) with effects of runoff into the bay.

Harford County has been burdened by soil contamination and groundwater contamination since the creation of. The military installation performs research for the and has released various chemical agents into soil and groundwater, including  and. The bordering towns of and  have both been affected by this contamination. Aberdeen Proving Ground contains three priority sites as of 2006. Groundwater contamination by, a mandatory gasoline additive, has also affected.

Law and government
Harford County was granted a form of  in 1772.The Harford County Government includes the Harford County Public Library service and the Harford County Sheriff's Office, which now has precincts in Bel Air, Edgewood and Jarrettsville.

The Harford County Executive is (Republican). The County Council comprises a President (elected at-large) and 6 council members (elected from single-member districts). The current President is Billy Boniface.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,364 (527 ). 1,140 km² (440 sq mi) of it is land and 224 km² (86 sq mi) of it (16.40%) is water.

The terrain rises in elevation and relief from south to north, with flat areas south of U.S. Route 40. The highest elevation, at 805 ft., is located near the Pennsylvania border in the county's northwestern corner. The lowest elevation is sea level along the Chesapeake Bay.

Adjacent counties

 * , (north)
 * (west)
 * (east)

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 218,590 people, 79,667 households, and 60,387 families residing in the county. The was 192/km² (496/sq mi). There were 83,146 housing units at an average density of 73/km² (189/sq mi). The racial makeup of the county was 86.77%, 9.27% or , 0.23% , 1.52% , 0.06% , 0.69% from , and 1.47% from two or more races. 1.91% of the population were or  of any race. 22.5% were of, 13.1% , 9.8% , 9.2% , 8.1% "" and 6.0% ancestry according to Census 2000.

By 2006 the population of Harford County had risen 10.4% to 241,402.

The 2005 report on race and ethnicity indicated the county's population was 82.8% non-Hispanic whites. The proportion of African-Americans in the county had risen to 11.5%. Hispanics were now 2.4% of the total population. In 2000 there were 79,667 households out of which 38.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.90% were living together, 10.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 24.20% were non-families. 19.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.14.

In the county the population was spread out with 27.90% under the age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 31.60% from 25 to 44, 23.70% from 45 to 64, and 10.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 96.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $57,234, and the median income for a family was $63,868. Males had a median income of $43,612 versus $30,741 for females. The for the county was $24,232. About 3.60% of families and 4.90% of the population were below the, including 5.80% of those under age 18 and 6.70% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns
Harford County contains the following incorporated municipalities:


 * two :
 * (incorporated 1892)
 * (incorporated 1785)
 * one :
 * (incorporated 1872)

Unincorporated areas are also considered as towns by many people and listed in many collections of towns, but they lack local government. Various organizations, such as the, the , and local chambers of commerce, define the communities they wish to recognize differently, and since they are not incorporated, their boundaries have no official status outside the organizations in question. The Census Bureau recognizes the following s in the county:



Other unincorporated communities include:



Sports
Though there are not any major league teams in the county, Harford County is home to a minor league baseball team, the. The team was founded by former player and hall of famer, who was raised in. Harford County is also home to, who lives in Bel Air. Meissner competed in in the 2006  and won a gold medal in the 2006  in,.

Major sports facilities include:


 * minor league baseball facility in Aberdeen, capacity of 6,200


 * Athletic fields at hosted the independent league Aberdeen Arsenal baseball team for one season


 * Al Cesky Field for the sports teams, capacity of 3,700


 * Soccer stadium at, capacity of 1,000


 * Gymnasium at, capacity of 1,320

Education
For an entire list of schools see 

Elementary Schools
There are thirty-two elementary schools in Harford County. Homestead-Wakefield, William Paca/Old Post Road and Youth's Benefit Elementary schools are two-building campuses housing primary students (Kindergarten-2nd Grade) in one building and intermediate students (3rd Grade-5th Grade) in the other building.

Middle Schools
There are currently 8 Middle Schools in Harford County, which all run from 8:15 a.m. to 2:45 p.m., except North Harford Middle School which runs from 7:40 to 2:15.

High Schools
There are currently ten high schools in Harford County, along with one technical high school.
 * , located in Aberdeen; school runs from 7:35 a.m. to 2:10 p.m.
 * , located in Bel Air; school runs from 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
 * , located outside of Bel Air; school runs from 7:40 a.m. to 2:10 p.m.
 * , located in Edgewood; school runs from 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
 * , located in Fallston; school runs from 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
 * , located in Havre de Grace; school runs from 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
 * , located in Joppatowne; school runs from 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
 * , located in Pylesville; school runs from 7:40 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
 * , located outside of Bel Air; school runs from 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.
 * ; school runs from 7:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
 * , located in Churchville; school runs from 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.

is an alternative "pre-K to 12th-grade" school in, run under the auspices of the. is a private school in the county.

The school mascots are the Aberdeen Eagles, Bel Air Bobcats, C. Milton Wright Mustangs, Edgewood Rams, Fallston Cougars, Havre de Grace Warriors, Joppatowne Mariners, North Harford Hawks, Patterson Mill Huskies, Restoration Academy Lions and Harford Technical Cobras.

Three of the HCPS high schools also have or are preparing for. hosts the Science and Math Academy, and is in itself a magnet school for academic and technical programs. is in the beginning stages of the, in which the school will offer college-preparatory courses for its students, who will graduate with an internationally recognized high school diploma.

Colleges
There are no 4-year universities in Harford County. Harford Community College, located in Churchville, offers 2-year Associates degrees and vocational programs.

Employment
The single largest employer in Harford County is, with over 11,000 civilian employees. Following the recommendations of the of 2005, approximately 5,300 jobs will be moved to Aberdeen Proving Ground within the following decade.

Miscellaneous
The newspaper of record is .

The is on the eastern border of Harford County; the dam operations and offices are on the Harford County side of the river.

Many scenes from the films and  were filmed in various places around Harford County.