FY 24 APPROVED OPERATING BUDGET

AN OVERVIEW OF HARFORD COUNTY, MARYLAND

1658 Havre de Grace was settled. It was originally called Susquehanna Lower Ferry and was a stop on the Old Post Road.

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Baltimore County was established by the colonial assembly as the sixth county in Maryland, and included parts of present-day Baltimore, Harford, Cecil, Carroll, Howard and Kent counties.

1 6 6 1 The town of Old Baltimore was established on the east bank of the Bush River (now Aberdeen Proving Ground).

1 6 Settlements were established along the Gunpowder and Bush Rivers. 1 6 Old Baltimore was authorized as the first Baltimore County Seat. 1 7 The County Seat was relocated to the fork of the Gunpowder River at Joppa.

1 7 6 With Joppa’s harbor silting up and other numerous difficulties, including a smallpox epidemic, the County Seat was moved to Baltimore. 1 7 7 Henry Harford, son of Frederick Calvert the Sixth Lord of Baltimore, inherited the Province of Maryland. Henry Harford was the last Proprietor of Maryland. 1773 Harford County was separated from Baltimore County, and named for Henry Harford. The Act of the General Assembly of 1773, Chapter 6, called for the division of Baltimore County and for the erecting of a new one by the name of Harford. The boundaries of the County were established. Bush was established as the County Seat. Four acres of land were purchased for the purpose of building a courthouse and a prison in the new county. The actual formation of government in Harford County occurred on March 22, 1774, when Henry Harford, Lord Proprietor of the Province, sent his commission to the new County seat at Harford Town, or Bush. Thomas Miller was commissioned as the first Sheriff. 1 7 7 5 The Bush declaration, the County’s first proclamation of independence from Britain, was signed by an organized body of men. 1 7 7 4

1776 Harford County’s population measured at 12,765, roads had been laid out, bridges had been erected, and churches were built.

1777 Havre de Grace was burned by the British in the War of Independence.

1780 The Town of Bel Air was laid out by Aquilla Scott on land he inherited called Scott’s Improvement Enlarged, also known as Scott’s Old Fields.

1782 The County Seat was moved to Bel Air, and plans were made for the Bel Air Courthouse.

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