List of counties in Maryland

There are 23 counties and one independent city in the U.S. state of Maryland. Many of the counties in Maryland were named for relatives of the Barons Baltimore, who were the proprietors of the Maryland colony from its founding in 1634 through 1771. The Barons Baltimore were Catholic, and George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore, originally intended that the colony be a haven for English Catholics, though for most of its history Maryland has had a majority of Protestants.^[1]

Independent city and counties of Maryland
Location	State of Maryland
Number	23 counties and 1 Independent city
Populations	(Counties only): 19,557 (Kent) – 1,082,273 (Montgomery)
Areas	(Counties only): 254 square miles (660 km2) (Howard) – 983 square miles (2,550 km2) (Dorchester)
Government	County government
Subdivisions	(Counties): cities, towns, unincorporated communities, census-designated places (Independent city): Neighborhoods

Though formally an independent city rather than a county, the City of Baltimore is considered the equal of a county for most purposes and is functionally a county-equivalent in most respects.

History

The most recent county formation in Maryland occurred in 1872 when Garrett County was split from Allegany County.^[2] However, there have been numerous changes to county borders since that time, most recently when portions of the city of Takoma Park that had previously been part of Prince George's County were absorbed into Montgomery County in 1997.^[3]

Within Maryland the county is the default unit of local government. Under Maryland law, counties exercise powers reserved in most other states at the municipal or state levels.^[4] Many of the state's most populous and economically important communities, such as Bethesda, Silver Spring, Columbia, and Towson are unincorporated and receive their municipal services from the county.^[5] In fact, there are no incorporated municipalities at all in Baltimore County or Howard County.^[6][7] The county-equivalent is also the provider of public schools as school districts do not exist as a separate level of government in Maryland.^[8]

The City of Baltimore is an entity nearly surrounded by but separate from the County of Baltimore. The City has been considered on par with the counties within the state since it became an independent city after it separated from Baltimore County in 1851.^[9]

The Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) code, which is used by the United States government to uniquely identify states and counties, is provided with each entry.^[10] Maryland's code is 24, which when combined with any county code would be written as 24XXX.^[11][12] The FIPS code for each county links to census data for that county.

List of counties

County	FIPS code[13]	County seat[2][14]	Est.[2][14]	Origin[2]	Etymology[2]	Flag	Seal	Population (2024)[15]	Area[14][15]	Map
Allegany County	001	Cumberland	1789	Formed from part of Washington County	From Lenape oolikhanna, which means "beautiful stream"			67,097	430 sq mi (1,114 km2)
Anne Arundel County	003	Annapolis	1650	Formed from part of St. Mary's County	Anne Arundell was the maiden name of the wife of Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore. Between 1654 and 1658 it was known as Providence County by Puritan settlers			602,350	588 sq mi (1,523 km2)
Baltimore County	005	Towson	1659	Formed from unorganized territory	Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, first proprietor of the Maryland colony			852,425	682 sq mi (1,766 km2)
Baltimore City	510	Baltimore City	1851	Founded in 1729. Detached in 1851 from Baltimore County	Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore, first proprietor of the Maryland colony			568,271	92 sq mi (238 km2)
Calvert County	009	Prince Frederick	1654	Formed as Patuxent County from unorganized territory. Renamed Calvert County in 1658	The Calvert family; prior to 1658 it was called Patuxent County, after the Patuxent Indians, a branch of the Algonquians			94,913	345 sq mi (894 km2)
Caroline County	011	Denton	1773	From parts of Dorchester County and Queen Anne's County	Lady Caroline Eden, daughter of Charles Calvert, 5th Baron Baltimore			34,248	326 sq mi (844 km2)
Carroll County	013	Westminster	1837	From parts of Baltimore County and Frederick County	Charles Carroll of Carrollton, a representative to the Continental Congress and signatory of the Declaration of Independence			177,108	452 sq mi (1,171 km2)
Cecil County	015	Elkton	1674	From parts of Baltimore County and Kent County	Cecil is an Anglicized form of the first name of Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore			106,305	418 sq mi (1,083 km2)
Charles County	017	La Plata	1658	From unorganized territory	Charles Calvert, 3rd Baron Baltimore, second proprietor of the Maryland colony			174,478	643 sq mi (1,665 km2)
Dorchester County	019	Cambridge	1668	From unorganized territory	Dorchester in Dorset, England; the Earl of Dorset was a friend of the Calvert family			33,138	983 sq mi (2,546 km2)
Frederick County	021	Frederick	1748	From part of Prince George's County	Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore, final proprietor of the Maryland colony			299,317	667 sq mi (1,728 km2)
Garrett County	023	Oakland	1872	From part of Allegany County	John Work Garrett, president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad			28,393	656 sq mi (1,699 km2)
Harford County	025	Bel Air	1773	From part of Baltimore County	Henry Harford, illegitimate son of Frederick Calvert, 6th Baron Baltimore			265,514	527 sq mi (1,365 km2)
Howard County	027	Ellicott City	1851	From parts of Anne Arundel County and Baltimore County	John Eager Howard, an American Revolutionary War officer and governor of Maryland			339,668	254 sq mi (658 km2)
Kent County	029	Chestertown	1642	From unorganized territory	The English county of Kent			19,557	414 sq mi (1,072 km2)
Montgomery County	031	Rockville	1776	From part of Frederick County	Richard Montgomery, an American Revolutionary War general			1,082,273	507 sq mi (1,313 km2)
Prince George's County	033	Upper Marlboro	1696	From parts of Calvert County and Charles County	Prince George of Denmark, the husband of Queen Anne of Great Britain			966,629	498 sq mi (1,290 km2)
Queen Anne's County	035	Centreville	1706	From parts of Talbot County	Anne, Queen of Great Britain			53,688	510 sq mi (1,321 km2)
Somerset County	039	Princess Anne	1666	From unorganized territory.	Mary, Lady Somerset, sister-in-law of Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore			25,241	611 sq mi (1,582 km2)
St. Mary's County	037	Leonardtown	1637	From unorganized territory. Was named Potomac County between 1654 and 1658.	The Virgin Mary, first county named in a colony intended to be a haven for Catholics			116,469	611 sq mi (1,582 km2)
Talbot County	041	Easton	1662	From part of Kent County	Grace, Lady Talbot, sister of Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore			38,244	477 sq mi (1,235 km2)
Washington County	043	Hagerstown	1776	From part of Frederick County	George Washington, first President of the United States			157,228	468 sq mi (1,212 km2)
Wicomico County	045	Salisbury	1867	From parts of Somerset County and Worcester County	The Wicomico River; in Lenape, wicko mekee indicated "a place where houses are built", possibly in reference to a settlement			106,329	400 sq mi (1,036 km2)
Worcester County	047	Snow Hill	1742	From part of Somerset County	Mary Arundell, the wife of Sir John Somerset, son of Henry Somerset, 1st Marquess of Worcester, and sister of Anne Arundell, the wife of Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore			54,337	695 sq mi (1,800 km2)

See also

• List of municipalities in Maryland
• List of census-designated places in Maryland
• Maryland statistical areas
• List of ghost towns in Maryland

Further reading

• "Maryland County Government Overview" (PDF). National Association of Counties (NACo). 2022. Retrieved January 3, 2025.