MML 2013 - Bel Air District 10 Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

MML Geotrail: The MML and the Maryland Geocaching Society (MGS) would like to thank everyone for participating in the 2013 MML Geotrail. The trail and geocoin promotion ended effective April 2014. Please be sure to visit the MGS website at www.mdgps.org for latest news on geocaching in Maryland.

Thanks,
Calvertcachers

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Hidden : 1/4/2013
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

The Maryland Municipal League Geotrail 2013
Celebrating Maryland’s Cities and Towns.
Bel Air MML District 10

The trail consists of 10 MML participating Districts (regions).
The MML Geocache Trail project will launch January 5, 2013 with 49 participating cities and towns. A trackable geocoin will be awarded to the first 200 geocachers as an incentive for locating at least 2 municipal caches in each of the 10 participating districts. To be eligible for the coin, geocachers must download a MML 2013 passport, find and log at least 20 of the MML 2013 geocaches. Geocachers must record the code word from the cache in their passport, and post a picture at the cache location on the cache page with your found log in order to earn the coin. However, this is not required to log the find.

After finding at least two municipal caches in each of the 10 participating districts, geocachers may return their completed passport to the MML Office in Annapolis for validation to receive their collectable geocoin. Please refer to the passport or MML website for complete details.

For a complete list of participating towns or for updated information, visit the MML web site at MML link or the Maryland Geocaching Society web site at MGS Link

This regular Geocache is located along Main Street in downtown Bel Air, which has just undergone an extensive renovation. There is also a BENCHMARK within 8 feet of the cache location for those cachers who are interested in benchmarks. This particular benchmark acts as the geographical center of Bel Air.

 Bel Air is located 20 miles north of Baltimore, Maryland, and 80 miles south of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Susquehanna River flows across Harford County just north of Bel Air where it empties into the Chesapeake Bay to the east. A center for local and national transportation since colonial times, US Route 1 is still part of Main Street. What was once a prosperous tobacco economy has now evolved into a lively community of financial institutions, retail facilities, governmental activities, and educational centers.

In 1773, the Maryland Assembly in Annapolis responded to a request to divide Baltimore County to establish a new county. This new county was named Harford in honor of Henry Harford, recently named Lord Proprietor of the Province of Maryland. Henry Harford was born in London on April 15th, 1758, the illegitimate son of Frederick Calvert, sixth Lord Baltimore, and Hester Rhelan of the Kingdom of Ireland.

As this new county grew, settlement spread from the coast to the central and northern portions of the county. The Maryland General Assembly recognized the need to locate the county seat in an area accessible to the whole population. Thus, in 1782, Scotts Old Fields or Belle Air became the county seat. The original town was laid out with the center at the highest elevation and sloping in all directions from the courthouse lot. In addition to the courthouse and the jail, located directly across the street from the courthouse, there were 42 half acre lots, 21 per side, lining Main Street.

In 1786, the current spelling of Bel Air was adopted and by 1830, the town contained four hotels, a large boarding school, 27 dwellings and the Bel Air Academy. Initially court was held in the old stone building at the corner of Baltimore Pike and Main Street. To provide a proper building, in 1788 county citizens were taxed two shillings, six pence per hundred pounds of property. The assessment paid for a brick courthouse located at its present site. Unfortunately, this building was destroyed by fire in 1858. It was immediately replaced with the main part of the present structure and additions were made in 1904 and 1982.


The town developed slowly, incorporating in 1874. The post Civil War building boom combined with the growth of the County's canning industry, the creameries, and the construction of the Ma & Pa Railroad in 1884, created a thriving center which provided government, financial, legal, and retail services for much of the surrounding agricultural community.

Bel Air grew as a gathering place. County residents visited hotels, restaurants, shops, and social events, such as the Annual Chautaugua horse races and the County Fair. New housing developments took over the old farms and orchards that once surrounded the town, expanding Bel Air's borders and introducing new residents to the community. Developments, such as Howard Park and later Shamrock, provided much needed housing for new residents after World War II. For the first time, many residents were commuting to jobs outside of town, in occupations outside of agriculture. Along with the changing face of the community, a new phenomenon--the shopping center--was introduced on Baltimore Pike in 1965 with the opening of the Bel Air Plaza, adding retail stores and expanding resident's shopping opportunities.


Today, Main Street is a thriving retail, service, and government hub for the community, complimenting the shopping centers along Baltimore Pike. Additionally, the Upper Chesapeake Medical Center, built in 1998, situated Bel Air as the medical center for the County.

Bel Air continues to offer a wide range of housing and cultural opportunities while maintaining a pleasant, small town atmosphere. The town takes pride in its rich agricultural traditions and its community spirit.
The Town of Bel Air thanks you for visiting!

Thanks to Umpire35 and BasketLadyBee for helping with this hide!
Thanks to the Calvertcachers, Snurt, and the Maryland Geocaching Society for assisting with this project!

Additional Hints (No hints available.)



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