Editing Charles County, Maryland (section)

==History==
Charles County was created in 1658 by an [[Order in Council]]. There was also an earlier Charles County from 1650 to 1654, sometimes referred to in historic documents as [[Old Charles County, Maryland|Old Charles County]],<ref>{{Cite journal
|url=http://www.msa.md.gov/megafile/msa/speccol/sc2900/sc2908/000001/000630/html/am630--122.html
|title=The Counties of Maryland
|publisher=The Archives of Maryland Online
|volume=630
|pages=122–124
|access-date=November 16, 2007
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal
|url=https://archive.org/details/princegeorgescou00mary
|title=Prince George's County
|author=Maryland Geological Survey
|year=1911
|pages=[https://archive.org/details/princegeorgescou00mary/page/21 21]–22
|publisher=The Johns Hopkins Press
|access-date=November 16, 2007
}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal
|url=https://archive.org/details/marylandgeologi01survgoog
|title=Maryland Geological Survey: General Reports
|author=Maryland Geological Survey
|year=1906
|pages=[https://archive.org/details/marylandgeologi01survgoog/page/n564 474]–477
|publisher=The Johns Hopkins Press
|access-date=April 5, 2008
}}</ref> which consisted largely of lands within today's borders but "included parts of St. Mary’s, Calvert, present-day Charles, and Prince George’s County".<ref name=Klapthor>{{cite book |last1=Klapthor |first1=Margaret Brown |last2=Brown |first2=Paul Dennis |date=2013 |title=History of Charles County, Maryland, Written In Its Tercentenary Year of 1958 |edition=Heritage Classic paperback |publisher=Heritage Books, Inc. |page=back cover |isbn=978-0788401602}}</ref> [[John Tayloe I]] purchased land around [[Nanjemoy Creek]] after 1710 from which to mine iron and ship to his furnaces at [[Bristol Iron Works]], [[Neabsco Iron Works]] and later Occoquan Ironworks.

In April 1865, [[John Wilkes Booth]] made his escape through Charles County after shooting President [[Abraham Lincoln]]. He was on his way to [[Virginia in the American Civil War|Virginia]]. He stopped briefly in [[Waldorf, Maryland|Waldorf]] (then called Beantown) and had his broken leg set by local Doctor [[Samuel Mudd]], who was later sent to prison for helping him.<ref name="NPS">{{cite web |title=The Assassin's Escape: Following John Wilkes Booth |url=https://www.nps.gov/foth/learn/historyculture/the-assassin-s-escape.htm |website=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=11 May 2024}}</ref> Booth then proceeded to hide in the [[Zekiah Swamp]] in Charles County, avoiding search parties for over a week until he and his accomplice were able to successfully cross the [[Potomac River]].<ref name="NPS" />

The 1911 [[Digges Amendment]], which attempted to disenfranchise African Americans in Maryland, was drafted by Democratic state delegate (lower house) [[Walter M. Digges|Walter Digges]] and co-sponsored by state senator (upper house) [[William J. Frere]], both from Charles County, Maryland. In Maryland's unrestricted general election of 1911, the Digges Amendment was defeated with 46,220 votes for and 83,920 votes against the proposal. Nationally Maryland citizens achieved the most notable rejection of a black-disfranchising amendment.<ref name="tuck">[http://www.brandonkendhammer.com/democratization_Spring2013/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Tuck-2007.pdf STEPHEN TUCK, "Democratization and the Disfranchisement of African Americans in the US South during the Late 19th Century" (pdf)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140223124800/http://www.brandonkendhammer.com/democratization_Spring2013/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Tuck-2007.pdf |date=February 23, 2014 }}, Spring 2013, reading for "Challenges of Democratization", by Brandon Kendhammer, Ohio University</ref>

In 1926, a [[tornado]] ripped through the county leaving 17 dead (including 13 schoolchildren). On [[2002 La Plata tornado|April 28, 2002]], another tornado (rated an F-4) destroyed much of downtown [[La Plata, Maryland|La Plata]] killing 3 and injuring over 100 people.<ref>{{Cite web|date=November 19, 2009|title=An account of deadly 1926 La Plata tornado|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/bs-mtblog-2009-11-an_account_of_deadly_1926_la_p-story.html|website=Baltimore Sun}}</ref>

The county has numerous properties on the [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Charles County, Maryland|National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2008a}}</ref> Among them are [[Green's Inheritance|Green Park]] and [[Pleasant Hill (Pomfret, Maryland)|Pleasant Hill]], home of the Green and Spalding Families.

On December 4, 2004, an arson took place in the development of Hunters Brooke, a few miles southeast of [[Indian Head, Maryland|Indian Head]]. The [[Hunters Brooke arson|Hunters Brooke Arson]] was the largest residential arson<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/usao/md/Exile/files/Annual%20Report%202005%20Violent%20Crime%20Program.pdf|title=Violent Crime Program 2005 Annual Report|author=United States Attorney for the District of Maryland|publisher=[[United States Department of Justice]]|date=March 1, 2006|access-date=August 2, 2010|author-link=United States Attorney for the District of Maryland|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100829155157/http://www.justice.gov/usao/md/Exile/files/Annual%20Report%202005%20Violent%20Crime%20Program.pdf|archive-date=August 29, 2010}}</ref> in Maryland history.<ref name="Courson">{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2004/LAW/12/21/maryland.fires/index.html|title=Two more arrested in Maryland fires|last=Courson|first=Paul|author2=Joanthan Wild|publisher=CNN|page=1|access-date=August 2, 2010|location=Washington, Dc | date=December 21, 2004}}</ref><ref name="Witte">{{cite news|url=http://www.insurancejournal.com/magazines/east/2005/01/03/features/50855.htm|title=Maryland Hunts for Motives Behind State's Largest Residential Arson |last=Witte|first=Brian|date=January 3, 2005|publisher=Insurance Journal|access-date=August 2, 2010}}</ref><ref name="Hancock">{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/3-more-charged-in-maryland-arson/|title=3 More Charged In Maryland Arson|last=Hancock|first=David|date=December 18, 2004|work=CBS NEWS|page=1|access-date=August 2, 2010|location=LA PLATA, Md}}</ref>