Allegany County is a county located in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 68,106. Its county seat is Cumberland. The name Allegany may come from a local Lenape word, welhik hane"Heckewelder here does not give the strict meaning of hanne. The word in common use among Algonkin [i.e., Algonquian] tribes for river is sipu, and this includes the idea of 'a stream of flowing water'. But in the mountainous parts of Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia sipu did not sufficiently convey the idea of a rapid stream, roaring down mountain gorges, and hanne takes its place to designate not a mere sipu, or flowing river, but a rapid mountain stream." or oolikhanna, which means 'best flowing river of the hills' or 'beautiful stream'.Alleghany, or as some prefer to write it, Allegheny,—the Algonkin name of the Ohio River, but now restricted to one of its branches,—is probably (Delaware) welhik-hanné or [oo]lik-hanné, 'the best (or, the fairest) river.' Welhik (as Zeisberger wrote it) is the inanimate form of the adjectival, meaning 'best,' 'most beautiful.' In his Vocabulary, Zeisberger gave this synthesis, with slight change of orthography, as "Wulach'neü" [or [oo]lakhanne[oo], as Eliot would have written it,] with the free translation, "a fine River, without Falls." The name was indeed more likely to belong to rivers 'without falls' or other obstruction to the passage of canoes, but its literal meaning is, as its composition shows, "best rapid-stream," or "finest rapid-stream;" "La Belle Riviere" of the French, and the Oue-yo´ or O hee´ yo Gä-hun´-dä, "good river" or "the beautiful river," of the Senecas. For this translation of the name we have very respectable authority,—that of Christian Frederick Post, a Moravian of Pennsylvania, who lived seventeen years with the Muhhekan Indians and was twice married among them, and whose knowledge of the Indian languages enabled him to render important services to the colony, as a negotiator with the Delawares and Shawanese of the Ohio, in the French war. In his "Journal from Philadelphia to the Ohio" in 1758, after mention of the 'Alleghenny' river, he says: "The Ohio, as it is called by the Sennecas. Alleghenny is the name of the same river in the Delaware language. Both words signify the fine or fair river." La Metairie, the notary of La Salle's expedition, "calls the Ohio, the Olighinsipou, or Aleghin; evidently an Algonkin name,"—as Dr. Shea remarks. Heckewelder says that the Delawares "still call the Allegany (Ohio) river, Alligéwi Sipu,"—"the river of the Alligewi" as he chooses to translate it. In one form, we have wulik-hannésipu, 'best rapid-stream long-river;' in the other, wuliké-sipu, 'best long-river.' Heckewelder's derivation of the name, on the authority of a Delaware legend, from the mythic 'Alligewi' or 'Talligewi,'—"a race of Indians said to have once inhabited that country," who, after great battles fought in pre-historic times, were driven from it by the all-conquering Delawares,—is of no value, unless supported by other testimony. A number of counties and a river in the Appalachian region of the U.S. are named Allegany, Allegheny, or Alleghany. Allegany County is part of the Western Maryland region of the state, and is part of the Cumberland metropolitan area.
History The western part of Maryland (including the present Allegany County) was originally part of Prince George's County when that county was formed in 1696.Thomas, James W., and Williams, Thomas J. C. History of Allegany County, Maryland. Baltimore, Md.: Regional Publishing Co., 1969, p. 289. This county included six current counties, and by repeated splitting, new ones were generated: Frederick from Prince George's in 1748;Bentley, Elizabeth Petty. County Courthouse Book. Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2009, p. 128. and Montgomery and Washington from Frederick in 1776.Bentley, Elizabeth Petty. County Courthouse Book. Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2009, p. 129.
Allegany County was formed in 1789 by the splitting of Washington County.Bentley, Elizabeth Petty. County Courthouse Book. Baltimore, Md.: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2009, p. 126. At the time it was the westernmost county in Maryland, but a split in 1872 created Garrett County, the current westernmost county.
Prior to 1789, the Virginia Commonwealth claimed the area of present-day Garrett and Allegany Counties, of Maryland. A 1771–1780 map of Virginias counties, shows Hampshire County, but the Virginia State boundary has Hampshire outside that boundary line. When conducting genealogical research, it is possible to find tax records for Hampshire County, Virginia included in Maryland records, and Maryland records in Hampshire County... Hampshire County was formed in 1758 by the Virginia Commonwealth and at its founding, included the present day counties of Garrett and Allegany Counties in Maryland, and Hardy, Grant, Mineral, and part of Morgan Counties in what is now West Virginia.Virginia Counties Map of 1771–1780; Henry Howe's 1845 History of Virginia.
In 1899, Theodore Roosevelt, then Governor of New York, passed through Allegany County on a four ½-hour “whistle stop” tour.
Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.3%) is water.
Allegany County lies primarily in the Ridge-and-Valley Country of the Appalachian Mountains. It is bordered to the north by the Mason–Dixon line with Pennsylvania, to the south by the Potomac River and West Virginia, to the east by Sideling Hill Creek and Washington County, Maryland, and to the west by a land border with Garrett County, Maryland. The western part of the county contains a portion of the steep Allegheny Front, which marks the transition to the higher-elevation Appalachian Plateau and Allegheny Mountain region. The town of Frostburg is located west of the Front at an elevation of nearly 2,100 feet above sea level, while the county seat of Cumberland, only eight miles away, has an elevation of only 627 feet.
Mountains
Breakneck Hill (1,872 ft) Collier Mountain (1,460 ft) Dans Mountain (2,898 ft) Evitts Mountain (1,959–2,260 ft.) Green Ridge Mountain Haystack Mountain (1,240+ ft.) Irons Mountain Martin Mountain (1,974 ft) Nicholas Mountain (1,760 ft) Piney Mountain Polish Mountain (1,783 ft) Ragged Mountain (1,740 ft) Town Hill (2,039 ft) Warrior Mountain (2,185 ft) Wills Mountain (1,960+ ft.)
Adjacent counties
Somerset County, Pennsylvania (northwest) Bedford County, Pennsylvania (north) Fulton County, Pennsylvania (northeast) Washington County (east) Morgan County, West Virginia (southeast) Hampshire County, West Virginia (south) Mineral County, West Virginia (southwest) Garrett County (west)
National protected areas Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park (part)
Demographics
Racial and ethnic composition +Allegany County, Maryland – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 1980Pop 1990Pop 2000Pop 2010 Pop 2020% 1980% 1990% 2000% 2010% 2020White alone (NH)78,62972,71569,34066,19557,95397.62%97.02%92.54%88.16%85.09%Black or African American alone (NH)1,2961,5223,9625,9595,2861.61%2.03%5.29%7.94%7.76%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)3157103901150.04%0.08%0.14%0.12%0.17%Asian alone (NH)1753073835667330.22%0.41%0.51%0.75%1.08%Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander alone (NH)x included in the Asian category in the 1980 Censusx included in the Asian category in the 1990 Census192622xx0.03%0.03%0.03%Other race alone (NH)722650591850.09%0.03%0.07%0.08%0.27%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)x not an option in the 1980 Censusx not an option in the 1990 Census5021,1072,663xx0.67%1.47%3.91%Hispanic or Latino (any race)3453195711,0851,1490.43%0.43%0.76%1.44%1.69%Total80,54874,94674,93075,08768,106 100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%100.00%
2020 census As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 68,106. The median age was 43.8 years, 17.7% of residents were under the age of 18, and 21.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 109.1 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 109.5 males age 18 and over. 65.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 35.0% lived in rural areas.
The racial makeup of the county was 85.7% White, 7.8% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.7% from some other race, and 4.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.7% of the population.
There were 27,596 households in the county, of which 24.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 29.6% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 32,911 housing units, of which 16.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 68.9% were owner-occupied and 31.1% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 12.0%.
2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 75,087 people, 29,177 households, and 17,959 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 33,311 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 89.2% white, 8.0% black or African American, 0.8% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 1.4% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 31.8% were German, 14.6% were Irish, 11.9% were English, 11.8% were American, and 5.6% were Italian.
Of the 29,177 households, 26.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.0% were married couples living together, 11.0% had a female householder with no husband present, 38.4% were non-families, and 31.6% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.30 and the average family size was 2.86. The median age was 40.9 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $37,747 and the median income for a family was $52,680. Males had a median income of $42,322 versus $29,594 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,764. About 9.6% of families and 14.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.3% of those under age 18 and 8.8% of those age 65 or over.
2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 74,930 people, 29,322 households, and 18,883 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 32,984 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.02% White, 5.35% Black or African American, 0.15% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.19% from other races, and 0.75% from two or more races. 0.76% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 29.0% were of German, 16.7% US or American, 12.8% Irish, 10.7% English and 5.3% Italian ancestry according to the 2000 census.The last five National Origin figures are taken from the Long Form, which was given to less than 20% of respondents but then extrapolated to the whole. Besides this problem in making a comparison, the long form also limits people to only two stated ancestries, but unlike racial counts, if someone states two ancestries they are counted in both, while in racial counts they are grouped as "some other race."
There were 29,322 households, out of which 26.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.60% were married couples living together, 10.30% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.60% were non-families. 30.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.90.