The HISTORICAL SOCIETY of HARFORD COUNTY, Inc.
Harford County Chronology of Events
1900 to the Present
Prehistory to 1799      1800 to 1899

1901The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad (Ma & Pa) was organized on February 2, 1901. The railway ran from Baltimore, Maryland, through Towson, Bel Air, Delta, Red Lion, Dallastown and then on to York, Pennsylvania with stations throughout Harford County. (Rhine C.S., The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad, Part II. The MA & PA Railroad in Harford County , Harford Historical Bulletin, Number 69, page 75, Summer 1996.)
1902Maryland enacted a compulsory school attendance law for children from 6 to 16. (Washington Policy Center, Seattle, Washington, www.washingtonpolicy.org, 1998.)
1904*The mean life expectancy was 47 years in the U.S.
The percentage of U.S. homes with a bathtub was 14%, and 8% had a telephone.
There were 8,000 cars and 144 miles of paved roads in the U.S.
The average wage was 22 cents an hour.
Over 95% of women gave birth at home, and most women washed their hair once a month. (http://www.ancestry.com/)
*John Dallum Worthington, educator and lawyer, bought The Aegis. The Worthington family would own it for the next 82 years. (The Aegis 150th Celebration The Aegis, May 10, 2006, page 4)
1905The Malcom Mitchell House was constructed. It now serves as the Aberdeen Proving Ground Cultural and Natural Resource Visitor/Learning Center.
1907The Conowingo Bridge burned but was rebuilt. ( The Aegis, March 22, 2006, page A4)
1908The first Ford Model T rolled out of a plant in Detroit, Michigan. The automobile changed the American way of life, and the concept of the assembly line soon made America into an industrial powerhouse.
1909The Kenmore Inn was established by Colonel H.D. Hanway in the town of Bel Air, at the southwest corner of Main Street and Route 1. For those traveling between Baltimore and Philadephia, Bel Air was an important stop.
1910There was a major ice jam on the Susquehanna River. ( The Aegis, March 22, 2006, page A4)
1912*The Havre de Grace Racetrack and the Harford Memorial Hospital opened.
*The Harford County Library Association was established under leadership of Helene Bradshaw Lee, wife of Confederate Veteran, Col. Otho Scott Lee. The library provided the first free library service to Harford Countians. (Bowers, D., A One-Hundred Year History of Libraries from 1885 , Harford Historical Bulletin, No. 67, Winter 1996.)
1914*World War I began in Europe, war spread in area and intensity, and ended in 1919. President Woodrow Wilson tried to maintain neutrality for the U.S.
*Route #1 was paved.
1915*World War I continued, and the war became nightmarish as 3870 tons of chemical warfare gas was used. (Haldane, J.B.S., Callinicus: A Defense of Chemical Warfare, B.P. Dutton, New York, NY, 1926.)
*In spite of the fact that President Wilson kept the nation out of the war, Secretary of State William Jennings Bryan, a pacifist, resigned to protest the administration's drift toward war. Bryan, a very influential political figure, devoted the rest of his life to prohibition, women's rights, and fighting the teaching of evolution to children. (Kazin, M., A GODLY HERO, The Life of William Jennings Bryan, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY, 2006.)
*The Lt. General A. Milton Reckord Armory in Bel Air was built. (6)
*Baltimore's sewer system was built replacing back yard outhouses. Sewer systems and septic systems slowly supplanted the outhouses in the counties, suburbs, and rural areas over the next several decades. (The Sun, Baltimore, November 29, 2005, page 3C.)
*In February 1915, in response to the British Naval Blockade of Germany, Germany declared the entire ocean around the British Isles as a war zone and warned that any British or British ally ship in this zone may be sunk without warning.
*The British passenger ship, the Lusitania, left New York on May 1, 1915 with a large consignment of artillery shells stored in the forward hold. It was torpedoed by a German U-boat near Southern Ireland on May 7, 1915 killing 1201 men, women, and children of whom 128 were Americans.
*Fawn Grove Light and Power Company bought Eden Mill to convert it into a water powered, electric generating plant. (The Harford County Sun, Baltimore, March 15, 1992, page 1)
1916  *Martin G. Kurtz, of Jarrettsville, and William B. Marye investigated some Native American rock carvings in the Susquehanna River near Bald Frair. Some of the Native American rock carvings have found a home at the Historical Society of Harford County. (Wright, C.M., Our Harford Heritage, a History of Harford County, Maryland, French-Bray Printing Company, Glen Burnie, Maryland, page 15, 1980.)
*World War I continued, 16,535 tons of chemical warfare gas was used (a 427% increase over 1915), and Wilson continued to keep the nation neutral. (Haldane, J.B.S., Callinicus: A Defense of Chemical Warfare, B.P. Dutton, New York, NY, 1926.)
1917*The United States formally entered World War I when Congress overwhelmingly passed a War Resolution on April 6, 1917 at the urging of President Woodrow Wilson. (Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University, www.lib.byu.ed)
*In late 1917 and 1918, The Aberdeen Proving Grounds and Edgewood Arsenal were established. The former was for ordnance testing and the latter was for chemical testing and production. Many of the farmers were reluctant to leave homes that were occupied by their families for generations. An Act of Congress and two Presidential Proclamations from President Woodrow Wilson were required to persuade the farmers to leave. The Congressional Act provided them $200 per acre and assistance in moving. Many thousands of persons and tens of thousands horses, mules, and other farm animals were required to hastily vacate the areas. Even the family graveyards were relocated. Information on graveyards left at APG can be found in the Historical Society of Harford County Cemetery Records (Aberdeen Proving Ground, History, www.apg.army.mil/apghome/sites/about/history.asp)
*Major William Lloyd Evans, professor of chemistry at Ohio State University, was the first director of the Chemical Laboratories at Edgewood Arsenal. Later he was America's first collegiate instructor to teach ceramic chemistry and President of the American Chemical Society, (William Lloyd Evans, America's First Collegiate Instructor in Ceramic Chemistry, Journal of the American Ceramic Society, Vol. 8 (2), pages 56-58, 1925.) (Gould, R.F., Eminent Chemists of Maryland, Maryland Historical Magazine, The Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, MD, Vol. 80, No. 1, page 44, Spring 1985.)
*Col. William Hultz Walker was the first Commander of Edgewood Arsenal. Walker was a professor at MIT where he was the senior author of the first chemical engineering textbook. Scriven wrote that "The transformation of chemical engineering that William Walker launched was remarkably successful, and he is widely regarded as the "father of chemical engineering." Testimony of the success . . ." was that the United States "had come out of World War I" with "the world's most powerful economy." (Gould, R.F., Eminent Chemists of Maryland, Maryland Historical Magazine, The Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, MD, Vol. 80, No. 1, page 44, Spring 1985.) (Scriven, L.E., When Chemical Reactors Were Admitted and Earlier Roots of Chemical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, pages 11-18, 2003.)
1918*The deadliest plaque in world history began -- the influenza is estimated to have killed 100 million people. The military was hit very hard. Efforts by the unprepared doctors appeared to inflame the problem. (Barry, J.M., The Great Influenza, Viking Penguin, New York, NY, 2004.)
*World War I ended.
1919*For the nation, this was a turbulent year with fears of Bolshevism (communism), racial unrest, riots, deportations, anti German reactions, lynchings, attacks on constitutional rights, and bomb threats.
*The Treaty of Versailles formally ended World War I, but it laid the foundation for World War II.
*The U.S. Senate rejected the Treaty of Versailles and League of Nations
*A business boom began that lasted through most of the "twenties." (Hagedorn, A., Savage Peace: Hope and Fear in America, 1919, Simon and Schuster, 2007. )
1920*The first commercial Radio station, KDKA, went on the air in 1920 in Pittsburgh. Kaufman’s department store, began selling the first kits for $20.00 for consumers to build their own Radio receivers. Marylanders could pick up the station.
*Women obtained the right to vote.
*National prohibition began -- Federal police were called on to enforce the alcohol laws. While cirrhoses of the liver did decline, organized crime grew. Home brewing, home stills, speakeasies, prescribed alcohol, and illegal bootlegging were common during prohibition.
*The Ordnance Museum began in the years immediately following World War I with foreign artifacts shipped from France. (Aberdeen Proving Ground, History, www.apg.army.mil/apghome/sites/about/history.asp)
*Ebenezer Emmet Reid, a very colorful professor of chemistry at Johns Hopkins University, was hired as a consultant by Edgewood Arsenal, a position he held the rest of his lengthy career. He was the author of a six-volume treatise titled Organic Chemistry of Bivalent Sulfur and organic textbooks. He received many honors for his research and visited Edgewood regularly, at times weekly. He died in 1973, at age 101, and his last book was titled My First Hundred Years. (Gould, R.F., Eminent Chemists of Maryland, Maryland Historical Magazine, The Maryland Historical Society, Baltimore, MD, Vol. 80, No. 1, page 30-31, Spring 1985.)
1922*Harford County was hit with a twenty two-inch snowstorm. (The Aegis, February 19, 2003, page A16)
*Fort Hoyle was created from a large section of Edgewood Arsenal. It was used by horse-mounted field artillery. (Smart, J.K., Fort Hoyle: A Short History of the Field Artillery's Post on Gunpowder Neck, APG, MD)
*Mary Risteau began service as the first elected woman in the Maryland House of Delegates. At that time she was a Harford County farmer. (Pohmer, T.T., Mary Eliza Watters Risteau . . ., Harford Historical Bulletin, No 100, Winter/Spring 2005.)
*Joseph Stalin became General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee until his death in 1953. (Joseph Stalin, WikipediaDecember 2007.)
1924*Bel Air Volunteer Fire Company was first incorporated.
*The Klu Klux Klan reaches its peak membership, 9 million.(Pohmer, T.T., Mary Eliza Watters Risteau . . ., Harford Historical Bulletin, No 100, Winter/Spring 2005.)
1925Route 7 was paved.
1926Millard E. Tydings of Havre de Grace elected U.S. Senator. He served until 1951.
1927Conowingo Dam opened.
1929*Harvey Smith Ladew purchased the Pleasant Valley House and began work on what would later be known as the Ladew Topiary Gardens.
*A crash occurred in the stock market that was the largest in United States history. This started the "Great Depression" which lasted for over a decade. According to economist, Milton Friedman, the Federal Reserve increased the length and severity of the Depression by inflating the money supply in the 1920s and reducing the money supply drastically in the 1930s. During the Depression, the hard struggle to obtain the basic necessities dominated most people's lives resulting in a willingness to tolerate bigger government and higher taxes. (Friedman, M., and Schwartz, A.J., Monetary History of the United States, 1867-1960 , Princeton University Press, 1971)
1930The first public high school for African-American students was established in Havre de Grace. (Washburn, D., The Colored Schools of Harford County Separate and Equal? Part 2, Harford Historical Bulletin, Number 102, page 15, Winter/Spring 2006.)
1933*Franklin Delano Roosevelt began serving as President. He is the only president to serve longer than eight years (1933 until 1945). Initially, he worked to reduce unemployment, which was 24.9%, started the Social Security system, improved the regulation of Wall Street, and ended Prohibition.
*When Adolf Hitler became dictator of Germany, replacing a short lived democracy, many Jews were forced to immigrate out of Germany to Palestine and other countries. (O'Brien, P., ed. Oxford Atlas of World History, Oxford University Press, Inc., New York, NY, 2005.)
*Bata Shoe Co., Inc. purchased 2200 acres in Belcamp.(2)
1934Mary Risteau was elected the first woman in the Maryland State Senate. (Pohmer, T.T., Mary Eliza Watters Risteau . . ., Harford Historical Bulletin, No 100, Winter/Spring 2005.)
1935*Harford County Welfare Board was established. (2)
*The land for the Post Office located at l43 North Main Street, Bel Air was sold by Philip H. Close to the United States Postal Service. (Liber 1675 Folio 0770, Harford County Real Estate Records)
*DEPRESSION PRICES: Average Income $1,600 per year; New Car $650; Average Rent $22 per month; Movie Ticket 25 cents; Gasoline 10 cents per gallon; New House $3,400 (1935, Remember When . . ., Seek Publishing, Millersville, TN)
1938*President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act.. This law, among other things, was the first law to put some limitations on child labor and guarantees time and a half for overtime in some jobs.
*Unemployment was still at 19%.
1939 *Bata Shoe started building a factory and a small town with a five story hotel along Route 40.(2)
*Many people date the start of WWII to 1939 when both Germany and Russia invaded Poland. As a result, France and Britain's policies of appeasement were recognized to have failed, and both countries declared war on Germany but not on Russia.
1940*Fort Hoyle was closed, but several of the Fort Hoyle buildings remain. (Smart, J.K., Fort Hoyle: A Short History of the Field Artillery's Post on Gunpowder Neck, APG, MD)
*The new toll bridge over the Susquehanna River and Route 40 were completed. (The Aegis, March 22, 2006, page A4)
*After a Federal Court decision, Harford County increased African-American school teachers' pay to that of white teachers. (Washburn, D., The Colored Schools of Harford County Separate and Equal? Part 2, Harford Historical Bulletin, Number 102, page 15, Winter/Spring 2006.)
1941*On December 7, 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in an surprise attempt to knock out the U.S. Pacific Fleet. This was part of a Japanese plan to create an unassailable Pacific and Asian empire. Thus, the United States was forced to enter World War II. The nation became near totally committed to the War effort. Most healthy young men enlisted or were drafted, and many women helped by enlisting or taking what were traditionally "men's" jobs in factories. Nearly all factories were converted to military production. Production for civilian needs only included necessities. The ages eligible for the draft was increased from 21-35 to 20-45. (1941, Remember When . . ., Seek Publishing, Millersville TN.)
*The Ballistic Research Laboratory building was completed at APG. (Aberdeen Proving Ground, History, www.apg.army.mil/apghome/sites/about/history.asp)
*Larry MacPhail (1890-1975), President of the Brooklyn Dodgers, purchased a farm in Harford County which he renamed Glenangus. Glenangus grew into a 960 acre horse farm, a golf course, and country club. Larry MacPhail was noted for innovation in: management, baseball, and horse raising. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1978. His son Lee MacPhail was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998. (O's MacPhail has Family Roots in Harford, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, June 27, 2007, page A4)
1942*Engineers at Aberdeen Proving Ground initiated work on and obtained funding for the design of the world's first large-scale electronic digital computer, capable of being reprogrammed and solving a variety of practical problems, the ENIAC. At the time, it was world acclaimed as the most complex electronic device ever built. It was dedicated in 1946. It evolved into the first commercial computer, the Remington Rand's "Univac 1." (In a 1973 court decision, it was ruled that Dr. John V. Atanasoff, of Iowa State University, invented the first electronic digital computer in 1942 and that his ideas found their way into the ENIAC. Fortunately for the computer industry and computer users, Atanasoff never patented his computer, and, it was almost forgotten for nearly two decades. The British developed the Colossus, an electronic digital computer, in 1943, but it was kept secret for 30 years. As a result, it had no influence on the development of computer technology.)(Burks, A. R., Who Invented the Computer? Prometheus Books, Amherst, NY, 2003. )
*Edgewood Arsenal produced chemical weapons, protective measures, and treatments. Although the Germans had much superior chemical warfare agents and related technology, Edgewood's efforts acted as a satisfactory deterrent. Thus, Germany and Japan did not initiate the use of chemicals against the United States in World War II. (ABERDEEN, APG - Yesterday and Today ECA & ABCDF Newsletter, APG, MD, page 16, 2006.)
*APG acquired 7000 acres which brought it almost into the town limits of Aberdeen. Wartime personnel grew to a peak strength of 27,185 military and 5,479 civilians as all fields of research, development, and training expanded. (Aberdeen Proving Ground, History, www.apg.army.mil/apghome/sites/about/history.asp)
1943At Camp Sibert, Alabama, a special Army unit, the Technical Escort Unit, was established to safely move hazardous materials. A year later, the unit was moved to Edgewood Arsenal. During WWII they moved 848,000 ton of hazardous materials from many parts of the world and after the war they deposed of many ton of dangerous weapons. In 2004, while still headquartered at the Edgewood Area of APG, they became the 22d Chemical Battalion. (Smart, J., and Kropp, C. Waves of Change . . . Technical Escort Unit, CBAIC Newsletter, Defense Technical Information Center, APG, MD, Vol. 6. No. 1, Winter 2005.)
1944*Between 1943 and 1946 as many as 760 prisoners of war were held at Edgewood Arsenal. Some worked on County farms for which they were paid.
*The Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1944 authorized designation of a 40,000-mile "National System of Interstate Highways," but little work was completed. (Mertz, L., Origins of the Interstate, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, 2006 [www.fhwa.dot.gov].)
1945*World War II ended.
*New materials, created for the War, began to replace slate for roofing.
*The Maryland General Assembly passed the Library Aid Act which began tax support of the Harford County Public Libraries. (Bowers, D., A One-Hundred Year History of Libraries from 1885, Harford Historical Bulletin, No. 67, Winter 1996.)
*Spesutie Island (1800 acres) was acquired in 1945 by the Army. (Aberdeen Proving Ground, History, www.apg.army.mil/apghome/sites/about/history.asp)
1947Truman Doctrine was announced to protect Europe from the spread of Communism by military force, beginning the Cold War. (O'Brien, P., ed. Oxford Atlas of World History, Oxford University Press, Inc., New York, NY, 2005.)
1948The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Most human problems stem from mankind's inability or unwillingness to enforce these resolutions. (All Human Rights for All, General Assembly Resolution 217, United Nations, New York, NY, www.un.org, 1948.)
1949 Several years after the war, most individual struggles started to ease. Higher wages and modern conveniences made it possible for the average person to spend much less time feeding, clothing, housing, and transporting themselves and their families. They were able to stop activities like feeding the horse, canning vegetables, making clothing, etc. Increasingly, people had more time for other goals like promoting equality, pleasure, self fulfillment, environmental improvement, historical preservation, travel, education, starting a business, and obtaining luxuries. (Lindsey, B., The Age of Abundance, Collins, New York, NY, 2007.)
1950Korean War began when communist North Korea invaded South Korea. President Harry Truman introduced American troops. President Dwight Eisenhower's administration ended the war by signing a peace agreement in 1953. (O'Brien, P., ed. Oxford Atlas of World History, Oxford University Press, Inc., New York, NY, 2005.)
*The last major mustard production occurred at Edgewood Arsenal. Thereafter, Edgewood Arsenal's focus shifted to research and development. (ABERDEEN, APG - Yesterday and Today ECA & ABCDF Newsletter, APG, MD, page 16, 2006.)
*Havre de Grace Racetrack closed. It was a celebrated track in its prime attracting champion horses like Man O' War, War Admiral, Seabiscuit, Citation, and Equipoise. Citation ran three times in its Triple Crown year. (The Sun , Baltimore, August 8, 2006, page 1G)
1952Tuition at the University of Maryland, College Park was $95.00 per year.
1954*Vietnam War began. The United States became involved during the President Kennedy administration in 1961 and President Nixon withdrew the last United States troops in 1973. The war ended in 1975.
*Hurricane Hazel
*The last Ma & Pa passenger train stopped in Bel Air on August 31, 1954. (Rhine C.S., The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad, Part II. The MA & PA Railroad in Harford County , Harford Historical Bulletin, Number 69, page 115, Summer, 1996)
1955Half (285 miles) of Harford County's county maintained roads (570 miles) had been paved. This does not include 275 miles of paved State roads. The other half were gravel or slate. (The Aegis, Oct. 5, 2005, page AA2)
1956*The Dwight D. Eisenhower System of Interstate and Defense Highways began. It was "the Greatest Public Works Project in History," the beginning of superhighways, and "an economic . . . and democratizing force as well." Thus, Interstate 95 was built through Harford County. (J. Richard Capka Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, 2006 [www.fhwa.dot.gov]) (Sciolla, A., Celebrating 50 Years of the Interstate Highway System, AAA World, page 62, July/August 2006 ) (Mertz, W.L. and Ritter, J., Building the Interstate, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, 2006 [www.fhwa.dot.gov].)
*A Navy Patrol Craft was named the USS Bel Air in February 1956. The ship was launched in 1942, served as convoy escort during World War II under the designation Navy Patrol Craft USS PC-1191, and it was disposed of in January 1961. (Hathaway, P., Newsletter of the Historical Society of Harford County, Inc., page 1, May/June 2007), (Bel Air (PC 1191), NavSource Submarine Chaser Photo Archive ,www.navsource.org/archives/12/011191.htm)
1957*The Soviets launched the first small satellite into orbit. This kicked off a land slide of emphasis on education and research in the United States.
*Harford Community College was founded.
1958* The Ma & Pa Railroad petition to the Interstate Commerce Commision to abandon 49.9 miles of track, 5 miles of siding, and hundreds of bridges between Baltimore and Whiteford was tentatively approved. This valuable right-of-way reverted to the adjacent land owners. (Vought, A., 50 Years Ago, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 30, 2008, page AA4.)
* The Ma & Pa Railroad discontinued freight traffic to Bel Air. (Rhine C.S., The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad, Part II. The MA & PA Railroad in Harford County, Harford Historical Bulletin, Number 69, page 118, Summer, 1996. )
*The first high school wrestling match in Harford County was held between St. Paul and Edgewood High Schools before 175 people. (Vought, A., 50 Years Ago, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, February 6, 2008, page AA2.)
1960*Work began on moving the Hays House from its foundations on Main Street to its present location on Kenmore Avenue.
*In the decade between 1960 and 1970, the County population increased rapidly from 76,000 to 113,000 or 49%. (The Aegis 150th Celebration, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 10, 2006, page 19.)
1961Panitz and Company began to redevelop Joppa Town and three historic acres were set aside at the old St. John's site for a church.
1963*Interstate 95 opened in Harford County -- dedicated by President John F. Kennedy. This probably was the largest public works project in Harford County history. Initially people did not use it. There was controversy over the tolls and the toll machines at Harford County exits, which rang alarms after one paid. The local tolls were quickly eliminated. In a few years, I-95 had a major impact on the County. In 2005, traffic volume between Route 152 and White Marsh was 165,000 vehicles a day. Many businesses along Route 40 died. Cheap oil and the development of bigger and better highways, cars, and trucks took considerable business from the more energy efficient railroads. ( The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 5, 2006, page A4) ( Sciolla, A., Celebrating 50 Years of the Interstate Highway System, AAA World, page 62, July/August 2006 )( Harford I-95 Changes on Way The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, June 29, 2007, page A13.)
*Days later after the dedication of I-95, President Kennedy was assassinated in Texas by Lee Harvey Oswald, a dedicated self-availed Communist. President Kennedy and his family set such a high standard of glamour and public relations that made Presidents before him and after look unworthy. (The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 5, 2006, page A4.) (Piereson, J., Camelot and the Cultural Revolution: How the Assassination of John F. Kennedy Shattered American Liberalism, Encounter Books, www.EncounterBooks.com, 2007)
1964*Harford County Department of Parks and Recreation was formed, and Eden Mill was acquired.
* Joseph Tydings of Havre de Grace was elected U.S. Senator. He served one term.
*The 88th Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 on July 2, 1964. It included voting, accommodations, housing, public and Federal facilities, equal employment opportunities, and education. (USINFO.STATE.GOV, U.S. Department of State, International Information Programs, April 8, 2006)
* Full nonviolent desegregation of Harford County Public Schools was accomplished.
*William O. Whiteford, served as director of administration of Harford County from 1964 until 1980. He was born in Harford County in 1915, grew up on a farm, and died March 30, 2008. (Robbins, L., and Vought, A. William Whiteford, Harford Official for Decades, Dies at 92 , The Aegis, April 2, 2008, page A10.)
1967The Secretary of Defense ordered that sanctions be placed on all apartments that discriminated against Afro-Americans within 3.5 miles of four Army posts including Edgewood Arsenal and Aberdeen Proving Ground. These sanctions, which proved to be effective, required that no military personnel rent from discriminating landlords. This was the beginning of integrated private housing in the Nation. (MacGregor Jr., M.J., Integration of the Armed Forces, 1940-1965, United States Army, Washington, D.C., p 605, 1981.)
1968*Temple Adas Shalom, the County's first Jewish community center, was dedicated. ( Temple Adas Shalom, Harford County Jewish Community Center, Harford Historical Bulletin, The Historical Society of Harford County, Inc., Bel Air, MD, Number 20, Spring 1984. )
*Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the widely admired and foremost civil rights leader in the country, was assassinated by James Earl Ray. Ray was a small-time criminal and confessed to the assassination.
*Senator from New York, Robert F. Kennedy, a very popular Presidential Candidate, former U.S. Attorney General, and brother of President John F. Kennedy was assassinated by Sirhan Bishara Sirhan, a Palestinian Arab. (Ayton, M., The Forgotten Terrorist - Sirhan Sirhan and the Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, Washington DC, Potomac Books, 2007)
*A plan was prepared for ARPAnet, which was the world's first operational packet switching network and the predecessor of the global Internet. The plan was prepared for the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) of the US Department of Defense. ARPA was trying to improve access to the inadequate number of expensive, powerful research computers in the country for the numerous research scientists and engineers who were not close to one. (Salus, P.H., Casting the Net: From ARPANET to INTERNET and Beyond , Addison-Wesley Professional, Boston, MA, 1995)
1970*The County Courthouse was spared when a bomb believed to be intended for the Courthouse accidentally killed the bomb deliverers near the intersection of Tollgate Road and current Business Route 1. Rap Brown was to be tried in the Courthouse at that time.
*President Richard Nixon unilaterally stopped the United States research, development and production of unitary chemical munitions. (Smart, J., and Kropp, C. Waves of Change . . . Technical Escort Unit, CBAIC Newsletter, Defense Technical Information Center, APG-EA, MD, Vol. 6. No. 1, Winter 2005.)
*For decades, business schools at universities taught that a good manager could manage any company without detailed technical expertise. The professors usually added that a manager could hire plenty of experts. In the 1970's, this was proven dead wrong. Generally, high level managers will approve the best sales pitch, ignore the best ideas, and laugh at lowly experts. At the beginning of the 1970s, big companies like IBM, Burroughs Corporation, RCA, Honeywell, Digital Equipment Corporation, General Electric, AT&T, UNIVAC, Xerox, Control Data Corporation, and Westinghouse were the leaders in computers and software. They had the best experts, minicomputers, supercomputers, outstanding hardware, wonderful patents, and great software, but they pathetically and literally gave away their companys' technology, which their managers did not understand, to eager young college dropouts and hackers who had technical expertise and a vision. Soon these youngsters were the richest men in the world and a revolution in productivity began. Business empires and unions crumbled as globalization and technology exploded. Those with vision and able to keep up with technology prospered, but millions of jobs became obsolete. (Lindsey, B., The Age of Abundance, Collins, New York, NY, 2007.)
1971*Edgewood Arsenal became part Aberdeen Proving Ground and, thereafter, has been called the Edgewood Area. (ABERDEEN, APG - Yesterday and Today ECA & ABCDF Newsletter, APG, MD, page 16, 2006.)
1972*A major fire in the Town of Bel Air occurred on February 2. Six businesses were destroyed along with the apartment complex in the old Vaughn Hotel.
*Home rule began for Harford County when a charter was enacted.
*Harford Mall opened. (The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 5, 2006, page A4)
*Voters approved liquor sales in the northern end of County. This was the last dry area in the County. (The Aegis 150th Celebration, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 10, 2006, page 19.)
*Hurricane Agnes
*The first Harford Historical Bulletin was published by the Archives Committee of the Historical Society of Harford County, Inc. (Harford Historical Bulletin, No 1, Fall 1972.)
*The U.S. Army Environmental Center was created in the Edgewood Area of APG. (BRAC will change APG, Miltary Appreciation Week Guide, The Aegis, The Record, and APG News, Bel Air, MD, May 11, 2006, page 9.)
1973*Egypt and Syria attacked Israel on Yom Kippur, starting the Yom Kipper Arab-Israeli War which Egypt and Syria quickly lost.
*In retaliation, Saudi Arabia, Libya and other Arab states proclaimed an embargo on oil exports to the supporters of Israel, including the United States.
*The United States suffered through a severe gasoline shortage with long lines at the pumps. (The Aegis 150th Celebration, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 10, 2006, page 19.) As a result of such energy crises, in 1977, Harford County enacted a $1000 tax credit for home owners who installed solar energy systems. (Editorial: A Green Step, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, December 12, 2007, page A14)
1974*Fallston General Hospital opened.
*Charles B. Anderson, Jr. became the first Harford County Executive after serving two years on the county commissioner's board. He set up the new charter government with a County Executive and County Council.(Robbins, L., Harford's Six County Execs, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, March 28, 2008, page AA1)
1975*The Concord Point Light house was decommissioned by the Coast Guard.
* General Milton A. Reckord died. He was one of the most notable military heros in Harford County history. He served in the Mexican War, World War I and World War II. (The Aegis, March 2, 2005, page AA1)
* From roughly 1895 until the mid 1970s, scientists warned of an impending ice age. About this time, many scientists refocused on the 20,000 year trend of global warming, emphasizing the human contributions to the trend. (Fire and Ice, Business & Media Institute, www.businessandmedia.org/specialreports/2006/fireandice.asp, 2006)
1978*The MA and PA Railroad ended all rail traffic into Harford County. (Rhine C.S., The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad, Part II. The MA & PA Railroad in Harford County , Harford Historical Bulletin, Number 69, page 115, Summer, 1996 )
* J. Thomas Barringer became the second Harford County Executive.
1980Upon the death of Fritz Kelly, owner of the Liriodendron, the property was turned over to Harford County Parks and Recreation. Dr. Howard Kelly, the first owner, was a pioneer in the medical applications of radium.
1982 Habern W. Freeman became the third Harford County Executive. He initiated the Waste-to-Energy program (see 1988) and tried to slow County growth to a manageable pace. (Robbins, L., Harford's Six County Execs, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, March 28, 2008, page AA1)
1983Deputed Testamony, a horse from Bonita Farms, Harford County won the Preakness Stakes. (Dombroskie, J., Preakness Memories, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 16, 2008, page AA1)
1985President Ronald Reagan visited Fallston High School on December 4, 1985. (The Aegis, Bel Air, April 5, 2006, page A5)
1988*U.S. Army 1st Lt. George W. Williams of Joppatown and 258 others were killed in the aerial explosion of Pan American Flight 103 over Scotland. The blast was caused by Muslim terrorists. (The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 19, 2006, page A4)
*Al Qaeda was founded by Osama Bin Laden who inherited about $300,000,000 dollars and had three wives. (Templeton, T., and Lumley, T., 9/11 in Numbers , Guardian Unlimited, observer.guardian.co.uk, August 18, 2002)
*Harford Waste-to-Energy Facility started operation. Since 1988, Harford County burns most of its municipal solid waste to produce steam heat which is purchased by Aberdeen Proving Ground. Harford County has the highest recycling rate in the state. (Volkmann, K., Harford residents recycle the most in the state The Examiner, 2007) (Berger, J.A., Trash-to-Steam, Steam-to-Army, Waste Age , August 1988, page 97.)
1990*Eileen M. Rehrmann became the first woman and fourth Harford County Executive.
*On November 2, the "Old Post Office," now the Historical Society of Harford County Headquarters, was purchased from the United States Postal Service by Harford County. This was largely due to the vision and efforts of Marlene Magness and the efforts County Executive Rehrmann. (Liber 1675 Folio 0770, Harford County Real Estate Records)
*Harford County's population was 182,132 in 1990. (The Sun, Baltimore, October 27, 2002, page 5T)
*The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed by President George H.W. Bush. Thus, it was made illegal to discriminate against the 20% of Americans with disabilities. (United States Public Law 101-336, 104 Stat. 327 (July 26, 1990), codified at 42 U.S.C. § 12101)
*East and West Germany were united, and Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe ending the Cold War. (O'Brien, P., ed. Oxford Atlas of World History , Oxford University Press, Inc., New York, NY, 2005.)
* The Internet, a revolutionary communication medium, was born when HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) was developed. (Salus, P.H., Casting the Net: From ARPANET to INTERNET and Beyond , Addison-Wesley Professional, Boston, MA, 1995)
1992 President George H. W. Bush visited Riverside in support of the home building industry. (The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 19, 2006, page A4)
1994*President William J. Clinton visited Aberdeen Proving Ground. (The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 19, 2006, page A4)
*The World Wide Web exploded from only 500 known web servers in 1993 to over 10,000.
1995Cal Ripken, Jr., a native of Harford County, broke Lou Gehrig's record of 2130 consecutive Major League baseball games played. He concluded his career with 2632 straight games. (The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, April 19, 2006, page A4) (The Aegis 150th Celebration, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 10, 2006, page 27. )
1996*Thirty-six inches of snow was deposited by a string of snow storms. (The Aegis, February 19, 2003, page A16)
*Ripken Museum opened.
*The Web Site of the Historical Society of Harford County, Inc. was begun.
1997The Anita C. Leight Estuary Center opened at the Otter Point Creek Component of the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.
1998*Harford County purchased Swan Harbor Farm.
*James M. Harkins became the first Republican and fifth Harford County Executive.
*Harford County owned slightly less than 2000 acres of parkland. (The Aegis, Oct. 5, 2005, page A1)
1999Mount Soma, possibly the oldest house in the County, was demolished.
2000*The Aberdeen “Arsenal” started playing professional baseball in Harford County at Harford Community College, but only lasted one season.
*The Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air opened, and Fallston General Hospital closed.
*The Live-Stock Auction in Churchville closed due the lack of cattle in the area. (The Aegis, Feb. 10, 2006, page A18)
*In Aden Harbor, Yemen, a large hole was blown in the USS Cole by Al Qaeda terrorists. Seventeen sailors were killed including Joshua Parlett of Churchville. (The Aegis 150th Celebration, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 10, 2006, page 27. ) (Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org)
2001On September 11 (9/11), Al Qaeda terrorists destroyed the World Trade Center in New York City, part of the Pentagon, and four commercial airliners killing over 3000 people. Two victims were Joseph Maggitti of Bel Air and Willie Troy of Aberdeen. (The Aegis 150th Celebration, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, May 10, 2006, page 27.)
2002*Ripken Baseball brought the Aberdeen “IronBirds” baseball team, a Baltimore Oriole affiliate, to Harford County. The Ripken Stadium was opened for use.
*Many scenes for the movie "Tuck Everlasting" were shot in Harford County, specifically at the King and Queen Seat in Rocks State Park, Kilgore Falls, Bulle Rocke, Christ Church Rock Spring and other locations in Susquehanna State Park. The actors in the movie are Sissy Spacek, Ben Kingsley, William Hurt, Alexis Bledel, and Jonathan Jackson. Scenes from other movies such as "Red Dragon" were also made in Harford County.
2003*The Webster-Fielder Tenant House on Calvary Road in Churchville was demolished. Some believed that it had been built in the 1600s. Thomas Lytfoot patented the 1000-acre tract, called "Best Endeavor" in 1686. (The Aegis, February 7, 2003, page A3 and Weeks, C., An Architectural History of Harford County, Maryland, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, page 298, 1996.)
*Mid February brought the great snows of 2003, totaling upward of 28 inches. The County was declared a disaster area. (The Aegis, February 19, 2003, page A16)
*The median household income was $61,949 in Harford County in 2003. (The Aegis, December 28, 2005, page A1)
*On September 18, Hurricane Isabel visited the County. Baltimore Gas & Electric Co. had its biggest outage in history, mostly due to fallen trees. Fifty five percent of its 88,000 Harford County customers were without electricity. Some lost power for a week. (The Aegis, October 1, 2003, page A14)   Nearly all of Conectiv's 6000 Harford County customers were out.   Many stores, homes, and restaurants were forced to dispose of all of their perishable food. Flooding occurred along the County coast, and waves demolished most of the boardwalk facing open water in Havre de Grace. The State was declared a disaster area. (The [Baltimore] Sun, September 21, 2003, page 1A)
2004*After a January of bitter freezing, snowy and icy weather; ice and winds knocked out the power to 69,500 BG&E customers for several to about 12 hours. (The Aegis, January 30, 2004, page A1)
*The Bata Shoe Factory, the last building of an industrial town, was demolished on October 27, 2004. This Belcamp building opened in 1939. At its peak, Bata employed more than 4000 people at the site. (The Aegis, October 27, 2004, page A1)
*The population of the County reached 232,175, nursery and equine (7300 horses) were the fastest growing agriculture sectors, 94,000 acres were devoted to agriculture, and the average house price was $197,660. (Supplement to the The Daily Record, Harford County, Maryland, June, 2004, page 4)
2004*The Ripken Museum in Aberdeen was temporarily closed for moving to Ripken Stadium. (The Aegis, Dec. 31, 2004, pages A6 - A9)
* Michael Phelps, a former County resident, won 6 gold and 2 bronze medals at the Athens Olympics. (The Aegis, Dec. 31, 2004, pages A6 - A9)
*The County budget reached half a billion dollars and the building boom continued. (The Aegis, Dec. 31, 2004, pages A6 - A9)
*The gasoline additive, MTBE, was found in many County wells. (The Aegis, Dec. 31, 2004, pages A6 - A9)
*The Abingdon Branch of the Public Library opened. (The Aegis, Dec. 31, 2004, pages A6 - A9)
2005*An impact fee of $6000 on new single-family houses was approved by the County Council. Such fees are intended to pay for new public schools and their maintenance. (The [Baltimore] Sun, June 8, 2005, page 7B)
*The Army completed neutralization of all six ton containers of mustard agent at the Edgewood Area of Aberdeen Proving Ground. (Letter from Edgewood Chemical Stockpile Outreach Office, APG-EA, MD, April 2005 )
*James M. Harkins resigned as Harford County Executive to become Director of Maryland Environmental Services.
*David R. Craig, a native and Mayor of Havre de Grace, was appointed by the Harford County Council as the sixth Harford County Executive. (Pennysaver, Book 60, Joppa/..., July 14, 2005, page 1)
*BRAC (Department of Defense Base Realignment and Closure) Commission voted 7 to 1 on August 24th to move operations from Fort Monmouth to Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG). It was decided to create a "beginning-to-end" unique communications-electronics organization at APG in 6 years. (APG Maryland at the Ready, www.MarylandReady.com, Harford County Government, MD, June 2006)
*The U.S. Army Environmental Center was scheduled to move from APG to Fort Sam Houston, Texas in 2010. The U.S. Army Ordnance Center and Schools were scheduled to move to Fort Lee, Virginia in 2010. (BRAC will change APG, Military Appreciation Week Guide, The Aegis, The Record, and APG News, Bel Air, MD, May 11, 2006, page 9.)
*Harford County owned more than 4000 acres of parkland. (The Aegis, Oct. 5, 2005, page A1)
*Harford County and the county municipalities issued building permits for 2200 new housing units in 2005 (1800 units in 2004). Of those Aberdeen accepted 160 (100 in 2004), Bel Air approved 120 (93 in 2004) and Havre de Grace gave out 419 (189 in 2004). (Building Out, An Editorial, The Aegis, March 16, 2006)
*The annual national McDonald's LPGA Championship moved to Bulle Rock Golf Course in Harford County. At this event, the world's best professional women golfers compete for seven days. It may leave Harford County after 2009. (Vought, A., and Konopacki, R., LPGA Swings Past, The Aegis, Bel Air, June 11, 2008, Page A1.)
2006*It was announced that probably the indoor portion of the enormous U.S. Army Ordnance Museum was moving to Fort Lee, Virginia as a result of the BRAC realignment. Alternately, the Communications and Electronics Museum will move to APG. (The [Baltimore] Sun, January 8, 2006, page 1G)
*BRAC's many changes were planned to focus APG on research, test/evaluation, chemical/bio defense, homeland security, and communications/electronics. Overall, these realignments should bring 55,000 people to the region. (APG Maryland at the Ready, www.MarylandReady.com, Harford County Government, MD, June 2006)
*Kimmie Meissner, a 16 year old Fallston High School student, won first place at the World Figure Skating Championships in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. (The [Baltimore] Sun, March 26, 2006, page 1A)
*A January survey found 164 eagles and 45 bald eagle nests at Aberdeen Proving Ground. Between 30 and 100 golden eagles winter in Harford County. (Robbins, L., Soaring Eagles, The Aegis, April 28, 2006, page A23)
*The Jarrettsville Public Library was completed and opened. (Robbins, L., Jarrettsville Turns Out . . ., The Aegis, May 26, 2006, page A2)
*A History Channel documentary on Thomas Edison's inventing of the motion picture camera was filmed in Havre de Grace. (The [Baltimore] Sun, Harford Section, July 9, 2006, page 1G)
*Elizabeth Cook, executive director of the Bel Air Downtown Revitalization Alliance, expressed the goal of turning Bel Air into a community like Fells Point. (Silvestri, M., Some say Bel Air is the area's next boom town, The [Baltimore] Examiner, August 28, 2006, page 5)
*At the intersection of Routes 22 and 543, traffic had increased 7 fold in the last 32 years. (Silvestri, M., Some say Bel Air is the area's next boom town, The [Baltimore] Examiner, August 28, 2006, page 5)
*The Board of Education decided unanimously to keep possession of the 0.79-acre parcel of land and demolish the Historic Board of Education Building located next to The Historical Society of Harford County Headquarters (1882). (Woods, A., Board of Education moves to raze its old Gordon St. HQ , The Aegis, November 29, 2006, page A3)
*Mary Wright Barnes (1915-2006) died. Mary assisted her father, C. Milton Wright, in writing the book Our Harford Heritage, a history of Harford County which was published in 1967. She published a revised edition in 1980. Also, she cataloged the artifacts for the Steppingstone Museum and was instrumental in setting up the archives of The Historical Society of Harford County. (Obituaries, Mary W. Barnes, The Aegis, December 1, 2006, page A6)
2007*Sunday, Mother's day, there was a fire in Forest Hill that displaced residents of 24 condo units and injured two firemen. The estimated damage was two million dollars. ( Melamed, K., Fire Destroys 24 Condos, www.theaegis.com, May 16, 2007, page A1)
*Cal Ripken, Jr. was inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame after receiving 98.5 % of the vote. (Malinowski, C., Cal's Long Storied Career , The Aegis, July 27, 2007, page I3.)
*Cal Ripken, Jr. was appointed United States' Baseball Ambassador to the World by the U.S. State Department. (Cal takes World Series-ly , The Aegis, August 15, 2007, page A1.)
* Christopher H. C. Weeks died at age 57. He was a historian and historic preservation planner who wrote several books on Harford County and the Mid-Atlantic region's architectural heritage. (Christopher Weeks, Historian, Author, Dies , The Aegis, August 29, 2007, page A13.)
*On September 26, 2007 the Army Corps of Engineers announced that it has awarded the design and build contract (over $477 million) for the Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance (C4ISR) Army Joint Center of Excellence at Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) in Harford County to develop the technology that will give America's soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines major advantages in the worldwide battle with terrorists.
*To develop a strategy that will reduce the impact of gangs in Harford County, the Sheriff’s Office held a "Harford County Gang Summit" in November at Edgewood High School. (Seawell, R., Taking Aim at the Gangs , The Aegis, October 31, 2007, page A1.)
*Judge Angela Michelle Eaves was appointed Harford County’s first African-American and first woman circuit court judge. (Seawell, R., Judicial History in Harford, The Aegis, December 5, 2007, page A1.)
*Pastor Craig McLaughlin of Mt. Zion United Methodist Church in Fountain Green, met with President George W. Bush as a result of his church running an AIDS orphanage in the southwestern African nation of Namibia. (Seawell, R., Harford Pastor Meets with President Bush, The Aegis, December 5, 2007, page A3.)
* On December 17, Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) and OPUS East, L.L.C. began construction on the Government and Technology Enterprise, a 200-acre developable area of APG for a business and technology campus mainly for government contractors. (Johnson, Y., OPUS East and APG Break Ground for New Development, APG News, APG, MD, Vol. 51, No. 51, December 20, 2007.)
2008* On March 17, The School Board approved a plan to level the portions of the old Central Office of Harford County Board of Education Building, on 45 East Gordon Street, Bel Air, that were built after 1900 and not the whole building. For details see Historic Board of Education Building .
* Westwood Manor, near Churchville, was gutted by a fire believed to be arson. The owners claim it was built in 1780 by Samuel Chase, signer of Declaration of Independence. The house, which was on the National Historic Register, was being preserved by the owners. (Dombroskie, J., Antebellum House in Level Burns, The Aegis, Bel Air, MD, March 21, 2008, page A9.)
5.5  byfn  Our sun is expected to die 5.5 billion years from now (byfn). ( Walborn, N., Life Cycles of Massive Stars, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, April 1, 2008.)
Prehistory to 1799      1800 to 1899
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REFERENCES

  1. The Chemical Warfare Community, Edgewood Arsenal, Md., Vol. I, Number 5, 159 pages, March 1919.
  2. The Harford County Directory, State Directories Publishing Company, (432 pages with illustrations), 1953.
  3. Jay, P.A., Havre de Grace, an Informal History,  Susquehanna Publishing Company, (194 pages with illustrations), 1986.
  4. Jones, E.C., Sr., Recollections . . . , Fairmont, West Virginia, (161 pages with illustrations), 1936.
  5. Jones, F.C., The Village of Darlington in Harford County, Maryland, Darlington, MD, (42 pages with illustrations), 1947.
  6. Larew, M., Bel Air, The Town Through its Buildings, The Town of Bel Air and the Maryland Historical Trust, (151 pages and illustrations, maps, and plans), 1980.
  7. Leslie, W.B., Aberdeen Proving Ground, Harford County, Maryland, Colonial Days, 18 Pages, 1952.
  8. Mason, S., Historical Sketches of Harford County, Maryland, Second Edition, Little Pines Farm, (177 pages with illustrations), 1955.
  9. Mitchell, C.D., Historical and Industrial Edition, 1856-1920, The Aegis Magazine Edition, Bel Air, Maryland, 102 pages,  1920.
  10. Weeks, C., An Architectural History of Harford County, Maryland, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, (385 pages with several hundred photographs) , 1996.
  11. Wright, C.M.,  Our Harford Heritage, a History of Harford County, Maryland, French-Bray Printing Company, Glen Burnie, Maryland, (462 pages with photographs and maps), 1980.
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Most of these books are not in print, but they are available for examination but not borrowing at the Library of the Historical Society of Harford County, Inc.

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