Editing Gaithersburg, Maryland (section)

==History==
{{Multiple image
|image1=Summit Avenue, Gaithersburg, Maryland (1900).jpg
|caption1=Summit Avenue in the early 1900s
|image2=Frederick Avenue, Gaithersburg, MD.jpg
|caption2=Gaithersburg's Frederick Avenue in the mid-20th century
}}
{{Multiple image
|image1=1973 Chevrolet Vegas (all new) at Criswell Chevrolet in Gaithersburg, MD.jpg
|image2=TRAIN WRECK next to Route 355 near Gaithersburg, MD in 1973 just past Montgomery College in Rockville.jpg
|caption1=Gaithersburg Chevrolet dealership in 1973
|caption2=Train derailment in Gaithersburg in 1973
}}
Gaithersburg was settled in 1765 as a small [[agricultural]] settlement known as Log Town near the present day Summit Hall on Ralph Crabb's 1725 land grant "Deer Park".<ref name=fairs>{{unbulleted list|{{cite news |title=Md. Offers Two Fairs for Sunday |last=Eddy |first=Kristin |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=September 17, 1987 |page=M09}}|{{cite news |title=Md. Offers Two Fairs for Sunday |last=Eddy |first=Kristin |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=September 17, 1987 |page=M09 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/139343953}}}}</ref> The northern portion of the land grant was purchased by Henry Brookes, and he built his brick home "Montpelier" there, starting first with a log cabin in 1780/3. This 1,000-acre tract became part of the landmark IBM Headquarters complex built on the then-new I-270 Interstate "Industrial", now "Technology", Corridor in the late 1960s to the 1970s. [[Benjamin Gaither]] married Henry's daughter Margaret, and Benjamin and Margaret inherited a portion of Henry's land prior to Henry's death in 1807. Gaither built his home on the land in 1802.<ref>{{cite news |title=20,000 Expected to Wish Gaithersburg Happy Birthday |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=September 4, 1950 |page=3 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/152229303}}{{closed access}}</ref> By the 1850s the area had ceased to be called Log Town and was known to inhabitants as Gaithersburg.<ref name="Offutt">{{cite book |last=Offutt |first=William |author2=Sween, Jane |title=Montgomery County: Centuries of Change |publisher=American Historical Press |year=1999 |pages=166–167}}</ref>

===19th century===
The Forest Oak Post Office, named for a large tree in the town, was located in Gaither's store in 1851.

On July 10, 1864, using the route of present-day 355, over 10,000 Confederate troops camped overnight in the area, including the present Bohrer Park, after a one-day march from [[Frederick, Maryland|Frederick]] after the [[Battle of Monocacy]]. The next day the troops continued towards Washington in an unsuccessful attempt to take the city.

When the railroad was built through town in 1873, the new station was called Gaithersburg, an officially recognized name for the community for the first time. Also in 1873 the [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad]] constructed a station at Gaithersburg,<ref name="fairs" /> designed by [[Ephraim Francis Baldwin]] as part of his well-known series of [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] stations in Maryland.<ref>{{cite news |title=Gaithersburg Station |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=October 17, 1985 |page=MDA4 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/138469281 |location=Washington, D.C. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018211556/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost_historical/doc/138469281.html |archive-date=Oct 18, 2016 }}{{closed access}}</ref> Rapid growth occurred shortly thereafter, and on April 5, 1878, the town was officially incorporated as the Town of Gaithersburg.

Gaithersburg boomed during the late 19th century and churches, schools, a mill, [[grain elevator]]s, stores, and hotels were built. Much of this development focused around the railroad station.<ref name="Offutt" />

In 1899, Gaithersburg was selected as one of six global locations for the construction of an [[International Latitude Observatory]] as part of a project to measure the Earth's wobble on its polar axis. The [[Gaithersburg Latitude Observatory]] is (as of 2007) the only [[National Historic Landmark]] in the City of Gaithersburg. The observatory and five others in [[Japan]], [[Italy]], [[Russia]], and the [[United States]] gathered information that is still used by scientists today, along with information from [[satellites]], to determine [[polar motion]]; the size, shape, and physical properties of the earth; and to aid the space program through the precise navigational patterns of orbiting satellites. The Gaithersburg station operated until 1982 when computerization rendered the manual observation obsolete.

===Late 20th century===
In 1968, Gaithersburg was upgraded from a town to a city.

Gaithersburg remained a predominantly rural farm town until the 1970s when more construction began. As the population grew, with homes spreading throughout the area, Gaithersburg began taking on a suburban and semi-urban feel, leaving its farming roots behind. During the late 1990s and 2000s, it had become one of the most economically and ethnically diverse areas in the [[Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area|Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area]] as well as the [[Maryland|State of Maryland]], with people from all walks of life calling Gaithersburg home. This can be seen in the local schools, with [[Gaithersburg High School]] and [[Watkins Mill High School]] having two of the most diverse student bodies in the region.

During a 1997 rainstorm, the 295-year-old forest oak tree that gave its name to the Forest Oak Post Office crashed down.<ref name=goesdown>{{cite news |title=Gaithersburg Tree Goes Down in History: Storm Fells City's Famed Forest Oak |last=Vogel |first=Steve |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=June 28, 1997 |page=B1 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/408326857 |location=Washington, D.C. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161018215155/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/doc/408326857.html |archive-date=Oct 18, 2016 }}{{closed access}}</ref> The tree served as the inspiration for the city's logo,<ref name= goesdown/> which is also featured prominently on the city's flag.<ref name= goesdown/>

===21st century===
In 2007, parts of the film ''[[Body of Lies (film)|Body of Lies]]'' were filmed in the city, at a building on 100 Edison Park Drive. The film was released in 2008 and the building is now the [[Montgomery County Police Department]]'s headquarters.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ww2.gazette.net/stories/091207/potonew200048_32356.shtml|title=Spy thriller brings a touch of Hollywood to the county|date=17 March 2015|url-status=dead |first1=Chris |last1=Robinson |website=Gazette.Net |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150317165446/http://ww2.gazette.net/stories/091207/potonew200048_32356.shtml|archive-date=17 March 2015}}</ref>

On July 16, 2010, Gaithersburg was part of the area where a 3.6 magnitude earthquake was felt, one of the strongest to occur in Maryland.

After years of decline and loss of tenants, including three of its four [[anchor store]]s in 2019, Lakeforest Mall closed on March 31, 2023,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.axios.com/2023/01/05/macys-store-closing-list-2023|title=Macy's stores closing 2023: Liquidation sales to start in January|last=Tyko|first=Kelly|work=[[Axios (website)|Axios]]|language=en|date=2023-01-05|access-date=2023-01-05}}</ref> with plans to demolish it and redevelop the area.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://mocoshow.com/blog/demo-construction-at-lakeforest-has-2024-target-date-dining-area-with-boardwalk-in-the-early-plans/|title=Demo/Construction at Lakeforest has 2024 Target Date; Dining Area With Boardwalk in the Early Plans - The MoCo Show|work=The MoCo Show|date=2022-10-20|access-date=2022-11-05}}</ref>

Gaithersburg is also the location of the [[United States Army Reserve Legal Command]].