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Prince George's County MDGenWeb is a free genealogical site about the history of the county. We hope you find helpful clues for your research of ancestors of Prince George's county.

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County Coordinator: Rae Hebron raehebgen@gmail.com

COUNTY FORMATION

When the first European settlers arrived, the people of the Piscataway Indian Nation lived in this area.

Prince George's County was formed on St. George's Day, April 23, 1696, from parts of Calvert and Charles Counties. The county was named in honor of Prince George of Denmark, husband of England's Queen Anne.

The county seat is Upper Marlboro.

The Patuxent River marks the county's eastern border with Howard, Anne Arundel, and Calvert counties. Montgomery County, District of Columbia, and Fairfax County, Virginia, lie along the western border. Charles County is at the southern border.

In 1748, a large area was used to form Frederick County, which was subsequently divided to form the present Allegany, Garrett, Montgomery, and Washington counties. In 1791, additional parts of Prince George's County were lost to form parts of the new District of Columbia. (Prince George's County is now included in the Washington metropolitan area.) In 1997, the Prince George's County section of the city of Takoma Park was surrendered to Montgomery County.

During the War of 1812, "the greatest disgrace ever dealt to American arms," occurred at The Battle of Bladensburg, when the British marched through the county to burn the White House.

Prince George's County had the highest population of slaves within the state of Maryland. These enslaved Africans engaged in forced labor on tobacco farms and plantations throughout Prince George's County. During the Civil War, hundreds of enslaved Black men in Prince George's County were given freedom in exchange for joining the Union Army and fighting in Colored units against Confederate Forces. In 1864, the citizens of Maryland voted to end slavery.