Darnestown

History

The first European (mostly Scottish and English) settlements in what would become Montgomery County, Maryland, were established in 1688, near Rock Creek and what was to become Rockville. The next stage of settlements was further west along the Potomac River near what is now Darnestown and Poolesville. The land had been occupied by Native Americans of the Piscataway Confederation. Ninian Beall was the first European landowner in the Darnestown area, settling around 1749. His daughter Ruth Beall married Charles Gassaway, who built a brick home named Pleasant Hills around 1765. This was one of the first brick homes in what is now Montgomery County, and still stands today. Gassaway purchased land from his father-in-law during the late 1700s—including land that would eventually become the Darnestown village. In the last half of the 18th century, a small village grew at the intersection of what is now Darnestown Road (Maryland Route 28) and Seneca Road (Maryland Route 112). At that time, Darnestown Road was called "the road from Georgetown to the mouth of the Monocacy River". It was a Seneca Indian trail and is one of the oldest roads in Montgomery County. Seneca Road led from Darnestown to the Seneca Mill and a landing on the Potomac River—a trip of less than . Gassaway's daughter Elizabeth married William Darne in 1798. Darne was a civic leader who served in the Maryland House of Delegates, as a judge, and as director of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal. He also became one of the area's biggest landowners. The community was called Mount Pleasant until the establishment of a post office around 1803, when it gradually began being called "Darnes" in honor of its leading citizen. The Darnes name lasted until the mid-1820s, when the village became known as Darnestown.…

Geography

As an unincorporated area, Darnestown's boundaries are not officially defined. However, in 1878 the U.S. Census Bureau created a new Minor Civil Division (MCD) named Darnestown District (No. 6), that was used to aggregate portions of the county. The new district was created from the eastern portion of the Medley District and the western portion of the Rockville District. The Darnestown/District 6 MCD was still used in the 1970 Census, and for Maryland it was shown as a county subdivision. Little Seneca Creek and Great Seneca Creek formed the western border of this district. The Piney Branch and Dufief's Mill Road formed the District 6 eastern border. The Clarksburgh District (No. 2), which included Germantown, was on the north side of District 6, with Rockville Road forming the border. The Potomac River from Great Seneca Creek to the Piney Branch formed the southern border. Multiple C&O Canal Locks were included in District 6, and the communities of Seneca, Hunting Hill, and Travilah were part of District 6 in addition to Darnestown. In the 2000 census, the Census Bureau created a new Census-designated place (CDP) called Darnestown. A Darnestown CDP was also used in the 2010 census. The Darnestown CDP has of land, which is smaller than the old Darnestown MCD. The CDP uses the Muddy Branch, Turkey Foot Road, and Jones Lane for most of its eastern border instead of rivers further east. The MCD territory between Little Seneca Creek and the north side of Great Seneca Creek is also not part of the Darnestown CDP. Great Seneca Creek remains as the western border. Washington, D.C. is roughly away. The Travilah and North Potomac CDPs are along the Darnestown CDP's eastern border. The United States Geological Survey lists ten Darnestown-related features, including the…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  108,879
• Carolina Wren

  Thryothorus ludovicianus (Latham, 1790) · Aves
  93,097
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  78,935
• Carolina Chickadee

  Poecile carolinensis (Audubon, 1834) · Aves
  74,132
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  73,398
• Tufted Titmouse

  Baeolophus bicolor (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  70,782
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  68,672
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  67,814