History of Maryland Timeline

(1632 – Present)

Maryland's history spans from its founding in 1632 as a proprietary English colony granted to Cecil Calvert, Lord Baltimore, as a haven for Catholics, through its role as one of the thirteen original colonies, its pivotal position during the American Revolution and the Civil War, to its growth into a diverse modern state known for its Chesapeake Bay culture and proximity to the nation's capital. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Colonial Era

Captain John Smith explores the Chesapeake Bay

Jun 2, 1608

English explorer Captain John Smith sailed up the Chesapeake Bay, mapping its shores and documenting the Indigenous peoples of the region. His detailed maps and accounts later proved invaluable to English colonizers planning settlements in the area that would become Maryland.

Image source: Chesapeake Bay

Captain John Smith explores the Chesapeake Bay

King Charles I grants charter to Cecilius Calvert for Maryland

Jun 20, 1632

King Charles I of England granted a proprietary charter to Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, establishing the Province of Maryland. The charter gave the Calvert family nearly feudal powers over the colony and named it in honor of Queen Henrietta Maria.

Image source: Maryland Toleration Act

Founding of St. Mary's City, first Maryland settlement

Mar 25, 1634

The ships Ark and Dove arrived with about 140 colonists who founded St. Mary's City on the Potomac River, the first permanent English settlement in Maryland. The settlers purchased land from the Yaocomico people and established the colony's first capital.

Image source: St. Mary's City, Maryland

Maryland Toleration Act passed

Apr 21, 1649

The Maryland General Assembly passed the Toleration Act, granting freedom of worship to all Trinitarian Christians. It was one of the earliest laws promoting religious tolerance in colonial America, reflecting founder Cecil Calvert's vision of a haven for persecuted Catholics.

Battle of the Severn fought near Annapolis

Mar 25, 1655

Puritan forces from Providence defeated Lord Baltimore's Catholic-aligned supporters in the only battle of the English Civil War fought in North America. The victory temporarily ended Calvert rule over Maryland until the monarchy was restored in England.

Image source: Battle of the Severn

Annapolis becomes capital of Maryland

1694

The colonial capital was moved from St. Mary's City to Anne Arundel's Towne, renamed Annapolis after Princess Anne. Its central location and deep harbor made it a growing hub of commerce and political life in the colony.

Image source: Annapolis, Maryland

Tobacco economy and enslaved labor expand in the Chesapeake

1700 - 1770

Throughout the early 18th century, tobacco plantations dominated Maryland's economy, driving demand for enslaved African labor. The plantation system shaped the colony's social hierarchy, wealth distribution, and legal codes governing bondage.

Image source: History of slavery in Maryland

Baltimore town founded

1729

The town of Baltimore was laid out on the Patapsco River and quickly grew into a flourishing port. By the late colonial period it rivaled Philadelphia and New York as a center of shipping, flour milling, and trade.

Image source: Baltimore

Mason–Dixon Line survey completed

1763 - Oct 1767

Surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon resolved the long-running border dispute between the Penn and Calvert families by drawing the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland. The line later became symbolic of the division between North and South.

Image source: Mason–Dixon line

Revolution and Early Statehood

Stamp Act protests erupt in Annapolis

1765

Marylanders vigorously resisted Britain's Stamp Act, with merchants signing non-importation agreements and protesters burning effigies of stamp distributors. The resistance helped unite the colonies against British taxation policies.

Image source: Stamp Act 1765

Burning of the Peggy Stewart in Annapolis

Oct 19, 1774

Annapolitans forced the owner of the brig Peggy Stewart to burn his own ship and cargo of tea in retaliation for paying the hated British tea tax. The dramatic protest demonstrated revolutionary fervor in Maryland.

Image source: Peggy Stewart (ship)

Battle of Brooklyn features heroic 'Maryland 400'

Aug 27, 1776

At the Battle of Long Island, a contingent of Maryland soldiers under Lord Stirling made repeated desperate charges against British lines to cover the American retreat. Their sacrifice earned them the enduring title of 'Maryland's 400 Heroes.'

Image source: Maryland 400

Annapolis hosts the surrender of Cornwallis ceremony

Nov 25, 1781

After the decisive American victory at Yorktown, captured British standards were ceremonially presented at the State House in Annapolis, which briefly served as the national capital where the Treaty of Paris was ratified in 1784.

Image source: Siege of Yorktown

Washington resigns his commission in Annapolis

Dec 23, 1783

General George Washington famously resigned his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army before the Continental Congress meeting in the Maryland State House in Annapolis, a defining act of republican virtue.

Image source: George Washington's resignation as commander-in-chief

Maryland ratifies the United States Constitution

Apr 28, 1788

Maryland became the seventh state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, providing crucial momentum toward adoption of the new federal government. Delegates voted overwhelmingly in favor at the state convention in Annapolis.

Image source: Maryland

District of Columbia ceded from Maryland land

Jul 16, 1790

Maryland ceded land along the Potomac River to form the new federal District of Columbia, including the port towns of Georgetown and Alexandria. The Compromise of 1790 placed the nation's capital on Maryland soil.

Image source: District of Columbia retrocession

Baltimore incorporates as a city

1796

Baltimore was officially incorporated as a city, cementing its rapid rise as one of America's most important ports. Shipbuilding, flour milling, and international trade fueled explosive growth through the early 19th century.

Fort McHenry bombarded during War of 1812

Sep 13, 1814 - Sep 14, 1814

British warships subjected Fort McHenry to a 25-hour bombardment in an attempt to take Baltimore. The fort's successful defense inspired Francis Scott Key to write 'Defence of Fort M'Henry,' later adopted as 'The Star-Spangled Banner.'

Image source: Fort McHenry

Fort McHenry bombarded during War of 1812

Industrialization and Modern Maryland

First passenger railroad in America opens in Baltimore

May 22, 1830

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad began regular passenger service between Baltimore and Ellicott's Mills, launching America's railroad era. The B&O became a model for rail transportation across the young nation.

Image source: Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

Johns Hopkins University founded in Baltimore

1876

Founded with a record $7 million bequest from financier Johns Hopkins, the university pioneered the German research university model in America. Johns Hopkins Hospital opened in 1889 and revolutionized American medical education.

Image source: Johns Hopkins University

Great Baltimore Fire devastates downtown

Feb 7, 1904

A catastrophic fire destroyed over 1,500 buildings in Baltimore's business district, one of the worst urban fires in American history. The disaster prompted modernized building codes and improved fire-fighting standards nationwide.

Image source: Great Baltimore Fire

Thurgood Marshall born in Baltimore

Jul 2, 1908

Born in segregated Baltimore, Thurgood Marshall rose from local roots to become the NAACP's chief counsel, winning Brown v. Board of Education, and ultimately serving as the first African American justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Image source: Thurgood Marshall

Chesapeake Bay Bridge opens connecting Eastern Shore

Jul 30, 1952

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge linked Maryland's Western and Eastern Shores for the first time, transforming travel and tourism. A parallel span opened in 1973 to accommodate ever-growing traffic across the bay.

Image source: Chesapeake Bay Bridge

Spiro Agnew of Maryland elected Vice President

Nov 5, 1968

Former Maryland Governor Spiro Agnew won election as Vice President alongside Richard Nixon. His tenure ended in scandal when he resigned in October 1973 after pleading no contest to corruption charges stemming partly from his time as Baltimore County executive.

Image source: Spiro Agnew

Barbara Mikulski elected first Democratic woman U.S. Senator from Maryland

Nov 4, 1986

Barbara Mikulski, a former Baltimore social worker and congresswoman, won election to the U.S. Senate. She served five terms, becoming the longest-serving female senator in history and a champion of women in politics.

Image source: Barbara Mikulski

Hubble Space Telescope launched, managed from Maryland

Apr 24, 1990

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope was launched into orbit, with science operations run from the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore. The telescope revolutionized astronomy and anchored Maryland's role in space science research.

Image source: Hubble Space Telescope

Hubble Space Telescope launched, managed from Maryland

Wes Moore sworn in as Maryland's first Black governor

Jan 18, 2023

Wes Moore took office as Maryland's 63rd governor, becoming the state's first African American governor. A decorated Army veteran and author, he campaigned on economic mobility, education, and public safety reforms.

Image source: Wes Moore

Civil War Era

Frederick Douglass escapes slavery from Baltimore

Sep 3, 1838

Frederick Douglass escaped from enslavement in Baltimore aboard a train heading north, eventually becoming the nation's foremost abolitionist orator and writer. His experiences in Maryland's shipyards shaped his powerful testimony against slavery.

Image source: Frederick Douglass

Union occupies Baltimore and suspends civil liberties

1861 - 1865

Federal authorities declared martial law in parts of Maryland, arresting suspected Confederate sympathizers, including Baltimore mayor George William Brown. The occupation secured the capital's approaches but curtailed civil rights during the war.

Image source: Maryland in the American Civil War

Pratt Street Riot marks first bloodshed of Civil War

Apr 19, 1861

A pro-Confederate mob attacked Union troops marching through Baltimore, leaving the first combat fatalities of the Civil War. The riot highlighted Maryland's divided loyalties between North and South.

Image source: Baltimore riot of 1861

Battle of Antietam, bloodiest single day in American history

Sep 17, 1862

Union forces under George McClellan clashed with Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia near Sharpsburg, Maryland. With roughly 23,000 casualties, Antietam halted Lee's invasion and enabled Lincoln to issue the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation.

Image source: Battle of Antietam

Battle of Monocacy delays Jubal Early's advance on Washington

Jul 9, 1864

Confederate General Jubal Early defeated a smaller Union force under Lew Wallace near Frederick, Maryland. Though a tactical defeat, the Union delay allowed reinforcements to reach Washington, D.C., saving the capital from capture.

Image source: Battle of Monocacy

Maryland adopts new constitution abolishing slavery

Oct 12, 1864

Maryland voters narrowly approved a new constitution that abolished slavery in the state, more than a year before the Thirteenth Amendment. The vote followed fierce campaigning by emancipation advocates and Union soldiers.

Cambridge riots during civil rights movement

Jul 1963 - 1967

The Cambridge movement, led by Gloria Richardson, staged protests against segregation on Maryland's Eastern Shore, drawing national attention. Violent clashes and the arrival of the National Guard made Cambridge a flashpoint of the civil rights era.

Key Facts

Maryland was founded in 1632 when King Charles I granted the land to Cecilius Calvert, Lord Baltimore, as a safe haven for English Catholics.
The Maryland Toleration Act of 1649 was one of the first laws in colonial America mandating religious tolerance for Christians.
Maryland was the seventh state to ratify the U.S. Constitution, doing so on April 28, 1788.
Although a slaveholding border state, Maryland remained in the Union during the Civil War, and the Battle of Antietam in 1862 was the bloodiest single day in American military history.
Francis Scott Key wrote 'The Star-Spangled Banner' in 1814 after witnessing the British attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor during the War of 1812.

Source

This History of Maryland timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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