Ellicott City

Images of America: Maryland

by Marsha Wight Wise

Ellicott City, the seat of Howard County, began its life as a mill town before the American Revolution. Quaker brothers Joseph, Andrew, and John Ellicott built their first mill in 1772. The Patapsco Valley and River provided the brothers with the fertile land and power necessary to make the finest wheat flour. Ellicotts Mills, as the town was first known, grew steadily, becoming home to mill workers and merchants. Maryland founding families such as the Carrolls, Dorseys, and Warfields kept their family fortunes in Ellicott City because of the brothers' agricultural expertise. Thus a town rich in history, tradition, and architectural gems was born. Highlighted in Images of America: Ellicott City are many long-gone local landmarks, including the Patapsco Female Institute and Rock Hill and St. Charles Colleges. Featured as well are the monuments to bygone days that have endured time, progress, floods, and fires, and are still standing today.

Genres: History

128 pages, Paperback

First published June 26, 2006

Reviews

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt like this book did a much better job of weaving a series of narratives with its photos than the Silver Spring one. It felt more organized.

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

My old home town. I love the Images of America series. Wish I had thought of it when I was getting a history degree. I especially loved this book because when I was in High School I volunteered with the Howard County Historical Society (based in Ellicott City) and I was in charge of filing and computerizing all the photos. Many of them I was seeing for the first time again but it was special handling the originals. It's unfortunate there were no photos regarding the trolley system and the the last day the trolley ran. It was an important part of the history and today the trolley lines are bike and walking trails.