Mechanicsville, Maryland

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Mechanicsville, Maryland
Census-designated place
Amish parking lot Mechanicsville Maryland.jpg
Amish horse and buggy parking space, July 2016.
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Mechanicsville
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Mechanicsville
Coordinates: 38°26′34″N76°44′38″W / 38.44278°N 76.74389°W / 38.44278; -76.74389
Country Flag of the United States.svg United States
State Flag of Maryland.svg  Maryland
County St. Mary's
Area
[1]
 • Total5.20 sq mi (13.46 km2)
 • Land5.19 sq mi (13.44 km2)
 • Water0.01 sq mi (0.01 km2)
Elevation
157 ft (48 m)
Population
 (2020)
 • Total1,673
 • Density322.35/sq mi (124.46/km2)
Time zone UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST) UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP code
20659
Area code(s) 301, 240
GNIS feature ID594822 [2]

Mechanicsville is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in St. Mary's County, Maryland, United States. [2] It is adjacent to the community of Charlotte Hall, which is known for its agriculture, Amish population, and the Maryland Veterans Home. Mechanicsville has many small businesses and restaurants along Maryland Route 5 and Maryland Route 235, as well as an enclosed Amish produce market. The community is served by the St. Mary's County Public Schools, including Chopticon High School. At the 2010 census, Mechanicsville had a population of 1,528. [3]

Contents

The Amish community in the Mechanicsville area consists of eight church districts and approximately 1,000 people. The Amish first came to the area in 1940. There is also an Old Order Mennonite community in the Mechanisville area. In recent years, increasing development has threatened the Amish community. [4]

History

Part of the area was first settled in the 1660s by early Maryland colonists who were tobacco planters. They established some farms not far from the Patuxent river. In 1819, Cremona Farm, a 750-acre estate and plantation was built in the same location. In about 1850, "Mechanicsville Village" was established on the historic Three Notch Trail. The name "Mechanicsville" is believed to have come from the word "Mechanic" because the area became a center for blacksmiths and other craftsmen. [5] In those days "Mechanic" meant a skilled tradesperson who worked by hands.

There was an old railway that passed through Mechanicsville and local residents joined other St. Mary's County residents in purchasing it and saving it from being scrapped in 1918. Farm goods moved along the railroad on train cars and passenger service continued until about 1928. By that time county roads had improved and the railway began to fall out of use. [5]

The Amish community was established in Mechanicsville in 1940. [6] It is a Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, daughter settlement. [5] The Amish left Lancaster County because of a dispute with the state of Pennsylvania over education practices. The Amish people had their own system of one room schoolhouses there and a school year that better accommodated the farm season. But Pennsylvania tried to force them into the state school system. [6] Maryland provided a place for the Lancaster Amish to escape these pressures and, as historian Karen Johnson-Weiner described, avoid “what they saw as a threat to their religious identity”. [5] Many Amish left at the time and one large group moved to Mechanicsville, Maryland. [5] Today, the Amish settlement in Mechanicsville is one of the largest Lancaster daughter communities. [6]

Demographics

Traditional local food, crabcake sandwich and garlic mash potatoes at the Foxy Fish restaurant in Mechanicsville 2014 02.FoxyFish.Mechanicsville.MD.17February2014 - Flickr - Elvert Barnes.jpg
Traditional local food, crabcake sandwich and garlic mash potatoes at the Foxy Fish restaurant in Mechanicsville 2014
Tobacco farm in Mechanicsville in 1942 Mechanicsville (vicinity), St. Mary's County, Maryland 8c36442v.jpg
Tobacco farm in Mechanicsville in 1942
Engine 5, of the Washington, Brandywine and Point Lookout Railroad, picture taken in Mechanicsville in 1934 WB&PL Engine 5.jpg
Engine 5, of the Washington, Brandywine and Point Lookout Railroad, picture taken in Mechanicsville in 1934
Cremona Farm in Mechanicsville, built in 1819. Cremona, main house, front (21441768149).jpg
Cremona Farm in Mechanicsville, built in 1819.

2020 US federal census

In 2020, the population of Mechanicsville was 1,673 in 628 households. [7]

Population by race [7]

Ethnic heritage
Irish 33.3%, German 32.4%, French (except Basque) 16.6%, English 13.9%, Polish 9.5%, African-American 5.9%, Italian 5.4%, Scottish 1.5%, Norwegian 0.8%, American Indian 0.5%. [7]

Income and education [7]

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
1930 1,734—
1940 1,696−2.2%
2010 1,528—
2020 1,6739.5%
US Federal 2020 Census
(Includes 2010 Census) [7]
St. Mary's County 1940 Census
(includes 1930 Census data) [8]

Notable people

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally cool to cold winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Mechanicsville has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps. [9] In the spring and summer the area gets frequent thunderstorms, many severe, [10] and on rare occasion, tornadoes. [11] From June 2021 to June 2022 Mechanicsville had 41 severe thunderstorm warnings. [10]

2022 Tornado

On June 8, 2022, a severe thunderstorm developed a tornado that touched down in Mechanicsville, damaging farm buildings and a residential home, uprooting some trees and snapping other tree trunks. [12]

Monthly weather averages

Climate data for Mechanicsville, Maryland (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1974-present)
MonthJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecYear
Record high °F (°C)81
(27)		81
(27)		91
(33)		94
(34)		94
(34)		99
(37)		103
(39)		101
(38)		100
(38)		90
(32)		82
(28)		80
(27)		103
(39)
Mean maximum °F (°C)67
(19)		69
(21)		78
(26)		87
(31)		88
(31)		92
(33)		94
(34)		92
(33)		88
(31)		81
(27)		75
(24)		67
(19)		95
(35)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)44.2
(6.8)		47.6
(8.7)		55.9
(13.3)		67.3
(19.6)		73.7
(23.2)		81.5
(27.5)		85.3
(29.6)		83.3
(28.5)		76.7
(24.8)		66.1
(18.9)		57.3
(14.1)		48.1
(8.9)		65.6
(18.7)
Daily mean °F (°C)34.5
(1.4)		36.9
(2.7)		44.2
(6.8)		54.9
(12.7)		62.9
(17.2)		71.2
(21.8)		75.6
(24.2)		73.8
(23.2)		67.2
(19.6)		55.9
(13.3)		46.4
(8.0)		38.3
(3.5)		55.2
(12.9)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)24.8
(−4.0)		26.2
(−3.2)		32.6
(0.3)		42.5
(5.8)		52.0
(11.1)		60.9
(16.1)		65.9
(18.8)		64.2
(17.9)		57.7
(14.3)		45.7
(7.6)		35.5
(1.9)		28.6
(−1.9)		44.7
(7.1)
Mean minimum °F (°C)9
(−13)		13
(−11)		18
(−8)		29
(−2)		38
(3)		49
(9)		57
(14)		56
(13)		45
(7)		32
(0)		23
(−5)		15
(−9)		6
(−14)
Record low °F (°C)−7
(−22)		−9
(−23)		5
(−15)		21
(−6)		30
(−1)		40
(4)		45
(7)		41
(5)		35
(2)		20
(−7)		14
(−10)		0
(−18)		−9
(−23)
Average precipitation inches (mm)3.29
(84)		2.97
(75)		4.24
(108)		3.31
(84)		4.32
(110)		4.19
(106)		4.57
(116)		4.84
(123)		4.87
(124)		4.18
(106)		3.34
(85)		3.99
(101)		48.11
(1,222)
Average snowfall inches (cm)5.0
(13)		6.2
(16)		1.8
(4.6)		0.1
(0.25)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		2.0
(5.1)		15.1
(38)
Average extreme snow depth inches (cm)4
(10)		4
(10)		2
(5.1)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		0
(0)		2
(5.1)		6
(15)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in)109101011101099889115
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in)2210000000015
Source: NOAA [13]

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References

  1. ↑ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "Mechanicsville". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  3. ↑ https://www.census.gov [ not specific enough to verify ]
  4. ↑ "Maryland Amish". Amish America. March 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Fisher, Bernard (June 16, 2019). "THE HISTORICAL MARKER DATABASE". HMdb.org. J. J. Prats. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  6. 1 2 3 Wesner, Erik (October 7, 2010). "The Amish of Mechanicsville, Maryland". Amish America. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "Mechanicsville CDP, Maryland, 2020 Census". US Census Bureau. 2020. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Enumeration Districts - 1940 Census: Maryland, St. Mary's County". Wikimedia Commons: Photo of St. Mary's County 1940 Census records. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. July 24, 2019. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  9. ↑ Climate Summary for Mechanicsville, Maryland
  10. 1 2 "Hail Map for Mechanicsville, MD". Interactive Hail Maps. June 12, 2022. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  11. ↑ "Tornado Touchdown Confirmed In Mechanicsville". National Weather Service. June 10, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Tornado Touchdown Confirmed In Mechanicsville". National Weather Service. June 10, 2022. Retrieved June 6, 2022.
  13. ↑ "NowData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Retrieved May 28, 2022.
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