Chillum

History

Chillum takes its name from "Chillum Castle Manor," the land patent established in 1763, by William Dudley Digges. It included lands in the present-day District of Columbia and in Prince George's County, and was composed of previously established land patents such as Henrietta Maria, Widows Purchase, Yarrow and Yarrow Head. Chillum Castle Manor was named after Chilham Castle, the old home of Sir Dudley Digges, an ancestor of William Dudley Digges, in Kent, England. The manor house for the Henrietta Maria parcel was named Green Hill. It was home to William Dudley Digges and was the place where Pierre L'Enfant, designer of nearby Washington, D.C., died in destitution in 1825. The Green Hill plantation was subsequently purchased by George Washington Riggs, who built the present Green Hill historic home in 1868.

Geography

Chillum is located at (38.968210, −76.979046). According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which is land and , or 0.94%, is water. Chillum is unincorporated and does not have its own zipcode; therefore it relies on its neighboring city of Hyattsville for its postal addresses/ zipcodes. While a vast majority of the residents living in/ businesses located in Chillum, MD are assigned the Hyattsville postal zipcodes of either 20782, or 20783, there are a few residents living on the far west side of Chillum/ businesses located very close to New Hampshire Avenue (MD 650) and the Prince George's/ Montgomery County Line, bordering the city of Takoma Park, MD, are assigned the Takoma Park, MD zipcode of 20912. Residents of Chillum that are assigned Takoma Park's 20912 zipcode have Takoma Park addresses though they are not even located within Takoma Park's boundaries. All of the other residents living in / businesses located in Chillum, have Hyattsville addresses.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  172,161
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  156,855
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  132,891
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  132,508
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  126,466
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  117,302
• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  115,186
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  112,873

Largest nearby schools

• High Point High
  High · Beltsville · 3,003 students · 18.4:1 ratio
• Charles Herbert Flowers High
  High · Springdale · 2,569 students · 21.1:1 ratio
• Parkdale High
  High · Riverdale · 2,561 students · 16.3:1 ratio
• Eleanor Roosevelt High
  High · Greenbelt · 2,526 students · 20.7:1 ratio
• Duval High
  High · Lanham · 2,503 students · 19.7:1 ratio
• Northwestern High
  High · Hyattsville · 2,346 students · 16.5:1 ratio
• Bladensburg High
  High · Bladensburg · 2,164 students · 16.5:1 ratio
• Suitland High
  High · Suitland · 1,834 students · 14.4:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.5 — 2025-10-27
  4 km E of Riverside, Maryland
• M 2.6 — 2021-06-25
  2 km SE of Woodlawn, Maryland
• M 3.03 — 2016-01-17
  3 km NE of Ranson, West Virginia
• M 3.6 — 2010-07-16
  5 km NNW of Barnesville, Maryland