Ellicott City Tutors

About Ellicott City

In these modern days, it is rare to find a town that embraces all of its histories. Ellicott City has often been referred to as “Historic Ellicott City” or “Old Ellicott City” separating it from its neighboring suburban areas. Much of their history includes devastating floods, railroads, milling and even being known as one of the most haunted cities on the East Coast. Between the years 1817 and 2016 there have been 15 floods which caused major damage, even killing some. Flood of 1868 was especially damaging to the city. There were 14 houses washed away, 39-43 people were killed. The Granite Manufacturing Cotton Mill was wiped out by the flood along with John Lee Carroll’s mill buildings. A state of emergency was called in 2016 when flash floods hit the city. Most of the damage took place on Main Street. The town’s landmark clock was destroyed during the floods and two people died as a result of the flooding. Ellicott’s citizens would stand strong and rebuild no matter how devastating the floods were.

During colonial America, most of the farming was in tobacco until the Ellicott brothers came to town. John, Andrew, and Joseph Ellicott founded Ellicott’s Mills. They founded the town in 1772 after they became one of the largest milling and manufacturing towns in the east. They constructed sawmills, Smithies, stables, an oil mill, grain distillery and grain mills. Eventually, they convinced the farmers in Ellicott to farm wheat rather than tobacco. The brothers also introduced Plaster of Paris fertilizer to the farmers for their depleted soil. This product was produced until a fire in 1809 burned the facility down. Unfortunately, in 1840 the founders’ families could no longer support any of the Ellicott operations. The family sold off their interests in the Ellicott Mills. Buildings from the Ellicott mills era are still standing.

During the Ellicott’s Mills era, it became the first end of the line of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad outside for Baltimore. This railroad was the first commercially operated cargo and passenger rail in the country in 1830. On July 4th of 1828, several large ceremonies took place in celebration of the railroad construction. Large blocks of the locally quarried gray granite used for the rail still stands as a National Historic Landmark as the “Oldest surviving railroad station in America”. In August 1830 a famous race took place between the Tom Thumb iron steam engine and a horse drawn carriage. The race trail ran between Relay Junction on the return trip from Ellicott’s Mills towards Baltimore. If you struggle with your grades a tutor in your area can help you get the grades you want. It wasn’t expected but the horse won the race. The steam engines owner replied that their engines will only improve. And he was right. With the success of the railroad, Ellicott City and others in the Baltimore area had an expanding economy. Luckily, Ellicott City has frozen in time much of their, and the country’s, history.