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SANDY SPRING MARYLAND.
A study of its Past and Present.
A plan for its Future.
Rural Social Organization 1. Term Report by William T. Brown.
May 23, 1924.
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INDEX.
Introduction:
Location of the community
Occupation of the community.
page 1.
Factors which bind the community together:
Way in which settled
The religion
page 3.
Attitude toward physical improvements
page 5.
Attitude toward schools
page 6.
The club spirit
page 8.
The unity of the community
page 10.
The Lyceum
page 11.
A year from the Annals
page 15.
The commercial enterprises
page 27.
The broad mindedness of the community
page 29.
Factors which tend to disrupt the community
New families
page 31.
New religions
page 31.
The attraction of Washington
page 32.
" 32.
The failure of the Annals
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SANDY SPRING.
Introduction.
Sandy Spring is not a town or a village or civil division of any sort. It is ten miles from any town or railroad. It is nothing more or less than a section of opeh farming country settled by a group of people who are united by the bonds of religion and blood kinship, and contasted more or less sharply with the people of the adjoining terriorty by differences of thought, and feeling, and custom. (Morse, 1913:18).
Sandy Spring lies on the road running from Washington to Baltimore via Ellicott City. It is twenty miles from Washington, about ten miles from Rockville, its nearest railroad station, and about thirty miles from Baltimore. The roads thru the community are very good, and are being steadily improved. There is a very good bus line running from Washington to Ashton, which gives those members of the community not having autos quick and easy access to the city.
There is very marked rivalry between the' community and Rockville, which is the nearest town. There is practically no social intercourse between the town and the community; the only commerical intercourse is that that is necessary for the use of the railroad. Practically all of the shopping is done in either Washington or Baltimore.
Sandy Spring is and always has been primarily an agricultural community. Its agricultural history is simular to that of many farming communities in eastern states. It is a history of rich farm lands and abundant crops, exausting cultivation, ultimate soil depletion, and a long period of slowly and painfully winning the
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landbback to fertility. More than a centuary of unremitting culture of the staple crops of corn and tobacco sapped the strength of the soil until it became practically useless for farming purposes. In consequence, during the early years of the nineteenth century, a tide of emigration flowed steadily from the community. The population showed a decided decrease and land values dropped very low. About 1835 several of the farmers in the community made experiments with various forms of chemical fertilizers - lime, Peruvian guano, and bone dust. The improvement in yield was immediate and pronounced, and the use of these and other fertilizers soon becam geneal. Under the influence of fertilization, aided by a general change to rotation of crops, the fertility of the soil was restored, and the population increased. (Morse, 1913:23.)
Nearly all of the farms in the community are operated by their owners. There is a strong tendency to cooperate, as a result the following organizations have been formed which are county wide: - The Tobacco Growers' Association, The Milk Producers' Association, The Sandy Spring Fruit Growers Association, and the Grange, which has undertaken considerable amount of cooperative buying.