Editing Cecil County, Maryland (section)

=== 20th and 21st centuries ===
From the start, Cecil County's future was shaped by its strategic location between the growing cities of Baltimore, Philadelphia, [[Washington, D.C.]], and [[New York City]]. In the 20th century, as modern highways arrived its placement along the heavily traveled northeast corridor brought new opportunities and change to the county. By June 1941, the final segment of the Philadelphia Road, the new dual highway designated as Route 40 was completed across the center of Cecil County.   In 1943, the dual highway was dedicated as the Pulaski Highway, to honor the Polish patriot and friend of Revolutionary American, according to ''[[The Baltimore Sun]]''. Soon new motels, restaurants, and gas stations started sprouting up along what was once rural fields and woods.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cecilcountyhistory.com/route-40-crosses-cecil-county/|title=Route 40 Opens in Cecil County|date=December 1, 2018|website=Window on Cecil County's Past|language=en-US|access-date=August 2, 2019}}</ref>

On November 14, 1963, President [[John F. Kennedy]] visited Cecil County to formally open and dedicate the Northeastern Expressway ([[Interstate 95|I-95]]). Motorists were relieved to be "on the clear new road" one editor noted in ''The Baltimore Sun''. After President Kennedy was [[assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassinated]] in [[Dallas]], I-95 was rededicated as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Highway. As traffic started zipping along the superhighway, without one light halting the fast trip, a corridor that would yield major dividends to the county had opened. It spurred business growth along the route, as commercial, industrial, and residential development clustered near the interchanges in the decades ahead.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://cecilcountyhistory.com/kennedy-highway-changed-cecil-county/|title=Kennedy Highway Changed Cecil County -|date=November 20, 2013|website=Window on Cecil County's Past|language=en-US|access-date=August 2, 2019}}</ref>

In 2013, the county became a [[Second Amendment sanctuary]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sunnysidesun.com/news/2016/sep/30/second-amendment-sanctuary/#h230778-p14|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306112927/https://www.sunnysidesun.com/news/2016/sep/30/second-amendment-sanctuary/#h230778-p14|url-status=dead|archive-date=March 6, 2019|title=Second Amendment sanctuary? {{!}} Sunnyside Sun|date=March 6, 2019|access-date=January 14, 2020}}</ref>

Cecil County has a number of properties on the [[National Register of Historic Places listings in Cecil County, Maryland|National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|2008a}}</ref>