Editing Baltimore County, Maryland (section)

===17th century===
The name "Baltimore" derives from [[Cecil Calvert, 2nd Baron Baltimore]] (1605–1675), proprietor of the colonial-era [[Province of Maryland]], and the town of Baltimore in [[County Cork]], [[Ireland]]. The earliest known documentary record of the county is dated January 12, 1659, when a [[writ]] was issued on behalf of the [[Maryland General Assembly|General Assembly of Maryland]] to its sheriff.<ref>Located in the [[Maryland State Archives]] in the Hall of Records of the state capital of [[Annapolis, Maryland|Annapolis]],&nbsp;</ref> 

The county was founded in 1659, and is now one of 23 counties in the state. The initial Baltimore County was larger geographically than it is currently, including most of northeastern Maryland, which was then the northwestern frontier of the [[Province of Maryland|Province]] and included the present-day jurisdictions of [[Baltimore|Baltimore City]], [[Cecil County, Maryland|Cecil]] and [[Harford County, Maryland|Harford Counties]], and parts of [[Carroll County, Maryland|Carroll]], [[Anne Arundel County, Maryland|Anne Arundel]], [[Frederick County, Maryland|Frederick]], [[Howard County, Maryland|Howard]], and [[Kent County, Maryland|Kent Counties]].

In 1674, a proclamation of the Proprietor established the then-extensive boundary lines for old Baltimore County. Over the next century, various segments of the old county were sliced off as population and settlements increased in fringe regions. A portion of northeastern Baltimore County, as well as a portion of northwestern Kent County, was split off to create Cecil County. In 1748, a portion of western Baltimore County, as well as a portion of [[Prince George's County, Maryland|Prince George's County]] to the south, were split off to create Frederick County. In 1773, Harford County to the east was split off, and in 1837 another part of western Baltimore County was combined with a part of eastern Frederick County to create Carroll County. After the adjustment of Baltimore County's southern boundary with Anne Arundel County, stated to be the upper Middle and Western Branches of the [[Patapsco River]] in 1727, a portion of the county's northwestern area was designated in 1838 as the "Western District" or "Howard District" of Arundel and in 1851 was officially separated to form Howard County.

Prior to 1674, Baltimore County court sessions were held in private residences, according to sketchy documentary evidence. In 1674, the General Assembly passed "An Act for erecting a Court-house and Prison in each County within this Province". The site of the courthouse, jail and county seat for Baltimore County was evidently "Old Baltimore" near the [[Bush River (Maryland)|Bush River]] on land that in 1773 became part of Harford County.

The exact location of Old Baltimore is Chilbury Point on the north side of the Bush River owned by the Garrison of the present-day [[Aberdeen Proving Ground]] (APG), a [[United States Army|U.S. Army]] weapons testing facility. It is a popular spot of local boaters. APG's Cultural Resource Management Program attempted to find Old Baltimore, contracting with R. Christopher Goodwin & Associates (Goodwin). Goodwin first performed historical and archival work and coordinated with existing landscape features to locate the site of Old Baltimore. APG's [[Bomb disposal|Explosive Ordnance Disposal]] of Army personnel defused any unexploded ordnance. In 1997–1998. Goodwin dug 420 test pits, uncovering artifacts including a [[Charles II of England|King Charles II]] farthing coin, and French and English gun flints. An unearthed brick foundation proved to be the remains of the tavern owned by colonist James Phillips. Another prominent landholder in Old Baltimore was William Osbourne, who operated the ferry across the Bush River.

In 1683, the Maryland General Assembly passed "An Act for Advancement of Trade" to "establish towns, ports, and places of trade, within the province." One of the towns established by the act was "on Bush River, on Town Land, near the Court-House". The courthouse on the Bush River referenced in the 1683 Act was in all likelihood the one created by the 1674 Act. "Old Baltimore" was in existence as early as 1674, but no documents describe what may have preceded it.

By 1695, the "Old Baltimore" courthouse had evidently been abandoned. County justices put the site up for sale. Apparently a new courthouse at "Simm's Choice" on the Baltimore County side of [[Gunpowder River|Little Gunpowder Falls]] had been under construction since 1692.