Garrett County () is the westernmost county of the U.S. state of Maryland, completely within the Appalachian Mountains. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 28,806, making it the third-least populous county in Maryland. Its county seat is Oakland. The county was named for John Work Garrett (1820–1884), president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Created from Allegany County in 1872, it was the last county to be formed in the state. The county is part of the Western Maryland region of the state. Garrett County is bordered by four West Virginia counties and to the north the Maryland–Pennsylvania boundary known as the Mason–Dixon line. The eastern border with Allegany County was defined by the Bauer Report, submitted to Governor Lloyd Lowndes, Jr. on November 9, 1898. The Potomac River and State of West Virginia lie to the south and west.
Garrett County lies in the Allegheny Mountains, which here form the western flank of the Appalachian Mountain Range. Hoye-Crest, a summit along Backbone Mountain, is the highest point in Maryland at an elevation of .
The Eastern Continental Divide runs along portions of Backbone Mountain. The western part of the county, drained by the Youghiogheny River, is the only part of Maryland within the Mississippi River drainage basin. All other parts of the county are in the Chesapeake Bay basin.
The National Register of Historic Places listings in Garrett County, Maryland has 20 National Register of Historic Places properties and districts, including Casselman Bridge, National Road a National Historic Landmark. Garrett County is part of Maryland's 6th congressional district. The extreme south of the county lies within the United States National Radio Quiet Zone.
History
In the early 20th century, the railroad and tourism started to decline. Coal mining and timber production continued at a much slower pace. Today, tourism has made a dramatic rebound in the county with logging and farming making up the greatest part of the economic base. Due to a cool climate and lack of any large city, Garrett County has remained a sparsely populated rural area.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.3%) is water. It is the second-largest county in Maryland by land area.
Garrett County is located entirely within the highland zone of the Appalachian Mountains known variously as the Allegheny Mountains, the Allegheny Plateau, and the Appalachian Plateau. The county's highest elevations are located along four flat-topped ridges and range to a height of at Hoye-Crest along Backbone Mountain, the highest point in the state of Maryland. As is typical in the Allegheny region, broad flats generally lie below the ridge crests at elevations of approximately . River valleys are generally narrow and deep, with ravines typically 1,000 to below surrounding peaks.
The county contains over of parks, lakes, and publicly accessible forestland. It is drained by two river systems, the Potomac and the Youghiogheny. The Savage River, a tributary of the Potomac, drains about a third of the county. The Casselman River, a tributary of the Youghiogheny, flows north from the county's central section into Pennsylvania. The Youghiogheny itself drains the westernmost area of the county and flows north into Pennsylvania, where it empties into the Monongahela River at McKeesport, just south of Pittsburgh.
Geologic points of interest
The Glades The Glades' is of great scientific interest because it is an ombrotrophic system (fed solely by rainwater) with peat layers up to thick, and is one of the oldest examples of mountain peatland in the Appalachians.
On the western edge of the Savage River State Forest along Maryland Route 495 lies Bittinger, Maryland, which is named after Henry Bittinger, who first settled in the area and who was joined by other German settlers moving in and taking up the fertile farmland. On the eastern edge of Bittinger is one of the largest glades area of Garrett County. Geographically, this is an area that seems to have been affected by the last great ice sheet of North America. Two miles southeast of Bittinger, there is a large deposit of peat moss.
Loess Dunes In the Casselman River valley, south of Grantsville, Maryland and beside Maryland Route 495, one can see remains of geological evidence about the last great ice sheet over North America. A series of low mounds can be seen in the fields on the west side of Maryland Route 495 that are "loess" (wind-blown) material. Apparently, these are the only ones still visible in the northern part of Garrett County.
The mounds were formed when a glacier lake existed in the Casselman valley, and the ice around the edges of the frozen lake melted. Wind blew fine grains of earth into the water around the edges where it sank to the bottom, and the mounds were the result of the deposit of this wind-blown material.
Mountains
Mountain Elevation (ft.) Backbone Mountain 3,360 Big Savage Mountain 2,991 Blossom Hill 2,620 Contrary Knob 2,680 Conway Hill 2,760 Dung Hill 2,732 Elbow Mountain 2,694 Elder Hill 2,826 Fort Hill 2,600 George Mountain 3,004 Lewis Knob 2,960 Little Mountain 2,920 Little Savage Mountain 2,817 Marsh Hill 3,073 Meadow Mountain 2,959 Mount Nebo 2,604 Negro Mountain 3,075 Pine Hill 2,500 Rich Hill 2,842 Ridgley Hill 2,617 River Hill 2,700 Roman Nose Mountain 3,140 Roth Rock Mountain 2,860 Salt Block Mountain 2,707 Snaggy Hill 3,040 Walnut Hill 2,629 Winding Ridge 2,775 Whites Knob 2,940 Zehner Hill 3,000 Creeks
Bear Creek Beaver Creek Cherry Creek Church Creek Crabtree Creek Deep Creek (formerly Green Glades Creek) Fork Creek Georges Creek Herrington Creek Middle Fork Creek Muddy Creek North Fork Creek Rhine Creek Snowy Creek South Fork Crabtree Creek South Fork Creek
Lakes
Deep Creek Lake (largest freshwater body of water in Maryland, in length)
Waterfalls
Gap Falls Muddy Creek Falls (highest free-falling waterfall in State at 54 feet) Swallow Falls Tolliver Falls
Forests, rivers, caves See these articles for information on the forests, rivers, and caves of Garrett County: List of Maryland state forests List of rivers of Maryland Caves of Maryland (Crabtree - largest cave in Maryland)
Parks and recreation
Garrett County contains over of parks, lakes, and publicly accessible forestland. Popular activities in the county include camping, hiking, backpacking, rock climbing, alpine and cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, hunting, ice fishing, fly fishing, whitewater canoeing, kayaking, rafting, boating, swimming, sailing, horseback riding, and water skiing.
State parks There are seven state parks in Garrett County. All offer picnic and fishing areas; all but Casselman River State Park have hiking paths. Mountain bike paths, swimming areas, and boat launches and rentals are available at Deep Creek, Herrington Manor, and New Germany state parks. Rental cabins are available at Herrington Manor and New Germany state parks. Big Run, Deep Creek, Herrington Manor, and New Germany state parks all offer canoeing, while campsites may be found at Big Run, Deep Creek, New Germany, and Swallow Falls state parks. Big Run State Park Casselman River Bridge State Park (Grantsville) Deep Creek Lake State Park (Swanton) Herrington Manor State Park (Oakland) New Germany State Park (Grantsville) Sang Run State Park Swallow Falls State Park
County parks Garrett County owns four park sites and fifteen recreation facilities. The parks are maintained in cooperation with local associations and civic groups. The recreation areas are attached to public schools and colleges and maintained by the Garrett County Board of Education.
Municipal parks The municipal parks of Garrett County provide sport facilities, hiking, bike and walk paths, playgrounds, picnic areas, boat ramps, and fishing. Kitzmiller Parks & Recreation Dept. Oakland Broadford Park includes swimming, picnic tables, fishing, boat ramp, playgrounds, sports fields.
Libraries and museums
The Ruth Enlow Library was founded in 1915 as the Oakland Free Public Library. Since then, an additional four branches have been added to the library system in Accident, Friendsville, Grantsville, and Kitzmiller. The present director of the library is Thomas Vose.
The Garrett County Historical Society and Museums include a Historical Museum, a Transportation Museum, the Grantsville Museum and the Leo Beachley Photographic Archives.Garrett County Historical Society and Museums American Heritage.
Adjacent counties Fayette County, Pennsylvania (northwest) Somerset County, Pennsylvania (north) Allegany County, Maryland, (east) Grant County, West Virginia (south) Mineral County, West Virginia (southeast) Preston County, West Virginia (west)
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Garrett County, Maryland – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)26,25327,86229,37829,27827,40299.08%99.02%98.43%97.28%95.13%Black or African American alone (NH)591021272992390.22%0.36%0.43%0.99%0.83%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)22222237330.08%0.08%0.07%0.12%0.11%Asian alone (NH)52405776820.20%0.14%0.19%0.25%0.28%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census702xx0.02%0.00%0.01%Other race alone (NH)112202540.04%0.01%0.07%0.01%0.19%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census104185673xx0.35%0.61%2.34%Hispanic or Latino (any race)1011101312203210.38%0.39%0.44%0.73%1.11%Total26,49828,13829,84630,09728,806 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 28,806. The median age was 46.8 years. 19.0% of residents were under the age of 18 and 23.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 97.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.9 males age 18 and over. 15.8% of residents lived in urban areas, while 84.2% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 95.5% White, 0.9% Black or African American, 0.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.5% from some other race, and 2.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.1% of the population.
There were 11,954 households in the county, of which 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 23.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 28.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 18,407 housing units, of which 35.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.3% were owner-occupied and 22.7% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate was 10.3%.
2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 30,097 people, 12,057 households, and 8,437 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 18,854 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.8% white, 1.0% black or African American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 0.1% from other races, and 0.7% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.7% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 35.4% were German, 13.6% identified as American, 11.3% were Irish, and 11.3% were English.
Of the 12,057 households, 30.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.4% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, 30.0% were non-families, and 25.5% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.92. The median age was 42.7 years.