The Patapsco''s influence upon Baltimore, Baltimore''s influence upon Maryland and Maryland''s influence upon the United States is based upon location. In the middle of the thirteen Colonies, Maryland was the meeting place of pre-Revolutionary War leaders. Charles'' Carroll''s home in the Patapsco Valley is the recipient of visits from Washington, Adams Jefferson, Madison, Franklin and others. After the war for Independence Maryland provides land for the Nation''s Capital. During the War of 1812 Maryland becomes the battleground and center of major assaults by British Forces. During the Civil War Lincoln feels Maryland is so important that he gives no popular voice in choosing north or south.
From the American Revolution to the Civil War the history of Baltimore is the most important part of the history of Maryland. It is to Baltimore from Europe, and from Baltimore to the west that many came through the Patapsco Valley. The valley becomes the center for iron activity and flour milling. Elkridge becomes a transfer point for tobacco and wheat. Transportation and industry become the economic keys to the livelihood of the people. The Patapsco River, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the mills and the people are a major part of this early history. All four shaped the lives and communities which exist in the valley today. The artifacts are here. We should preserve for study that which remains.
It is after the Civil War that Maryland''s importance politically and militarily declines. However, what does remain constant throughout are the Patapsco Valley''s contributions to our Nation. It is most notable during war efforts. In the seven major wars and more than two dozen lesser conflicts, the Patapsco River Valley contributes to each. Understanding this history should ensure our future. It is hoped that this study will interest you in our history and that you will take enough of this interest to visit some remnants of the Industrial Revolution. It is further hoped that you will then become involved in their preservation.
A person looking for generals, captains of industry and national political leaders will find little in our valley. The middle class people, working in teams, producing apple-sauce for C-rations, contributing the Manhattan project and surviving floods and fires readily come to the forefront as our heroes.
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INTRODUCTION
The Patapsco flows eastward from Westminister, Hampstead and a group of springs south of Mount Airy. It ends near Fort McHenry flowing into the Chesapeake Bay. These southern and northern branches of the Patapsco River converge at Mc Keldin to form the main Patapsco River. The Patapsco then flows south and gradually eastward through Ellicott City and Elkridge into Baltimore Harbor.
Over the last four hundred years workmen constructed over three-hundred mills along the banks of the Patapsco River. The greatest number of mills existing at one time occurs between the 1780s and 1880s. Of these mills, tanneries, factories, forges, furnaces and kilns few remain. There exists no observable evidence of many, and we are loosing more each year. By the year 2013 we will loose more to progress and carelessness. I hope this study may create enough interest to preserve that which is rapidly diminishing. I hope someone will expand on this research by studying land records, finding additional mills and sources and rechecking that which is done here. The Gunpowder River to the north and the Patuxent River to the south are prime candidates for an equally detailed study.
To get information for this research I have waded through streams, met people with snarling dogs and loaded guns. I encountered snakes, opossums, raccoons, deer and other wild life, and I fought Maryland''s thorny bushes and Baltimore''s one-way streets. My only defense has been a clip board and notebook. Yet, many wonderful people of the Patapsco River Valley have asked me into their homes for coffee and given me invaluable information. The winter is the best time to explore the sites. Late fall and early spring are almost as good. I tend to do the book type research in the summer because of vegetation and animal presence. Week days are far better for on site inspections than week-ends and holidays. What I found in most cases is that almost all that remains of the mills are walls and foundations.
The majority of what was compiled on Baltimore Harbor came through study of books, maps and material available through the various historical societies. A similar situation exists in the Liberty Reservoir area where water has inundated a lot of what once existed. Looking at water gives little impetus to the imagination of what once existed. In many ways it was easy
