| Official Name: | La Plata, Maryland |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Mapsize: | 250x200px |
| Pushpin Map: | Maryland#USA |
| Pushpin Label: | La Plata |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | Maryland |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Charles |
| Established Title: | Incorporated |
| Established Date: | 1888[1] |
| Founder: | Colonel Samuel Chapman |
| Named For: | Río de la Plata |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [2] |
| Area Total Km2: | 19.25 |
| Area Land Km2: | 19.18 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.07 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 7.43 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 7.40 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 0.03 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 10159 |
| Population Density Km2: | 529.79 |
| Population Density Sq Mi: | 1372.10 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation M: | 58 |
| Elevation Ft: | 190 |
| Coordinates: | 38.5342°N -76.9733°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP code |
| Postal Code: | 20646 |
| Area Code: | 301, 240 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 24-45750 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 0585340 |
La Plata [3] is a town in Charles County, Maryland, United States. The population was 10,159 at the 2020 census.[4] It is the county seat of Charles County.[5]
According to an unconfirmed local story, the town was named by one Colonel Samuel Chapman, whose family owned 6000acres of land in Charles County. The Colonel traveled to South America with his son George, who had contracted tuberculosis, in search of a cure. In his travels, the Colonel had apparently encountered the Río de la Plata, which flows through Argentina and Uruguay, thus naming a portion of his property "La Plata".[6]
In the 1870s, a section of the Pennsylvania Railroad had been constructed through the town of La Plata, leading to its 1888 incorporation.[7]
The La Plata courthouse had been built soon after the 1819 Port Tobacco courthouse caught fire in 1895 under suspicious circumstances.[8] In 1904, the historic Christ Episcopal Church in Port Tobacco, which dates to 1683 and was reconstructed in 1884, was dismantled and its stones were then transported by oxen and cart to its current lot in La Plata.[9]
In 1940, the opening of the then Potomac River Bridge (later, the Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge), which carries U.S. Route 301 over the Potomac River, provided a link to King George, Virginia and brought long-distance east coast traffic through the town as an alternative to U.S. 1 and, later, Interstate 95. The bridge was replaced and widened in 2021.
La Plata has been affected by multiple significant tornadoes in its history.
1926
On November 9, 1926, an F4 tornado killed 17 people, 14 of them in the La Plata Elementary School, which was destroyed.[10] [11] [12]
1994
On July 27, 1994, two nonfatal twisters, that came only 11 minutes apart, went through the area. The first of them was rated F2 on the Fujita scale, which is already uncommon for Maryland.[13]
2002
See main article: 2002 La Plata tornado.
On April 28, 2002, another F4 tornado cut a 24adj=midNaNadj=mid swath through Charles County, with areas around La Plata damaged most severely. This tornado caused five deaths. Local officials credited federal- and state-assisted new construction efforts with helping them to remodel the downtown area following the tornado,[14] as several new public buildings replaced some of those damaged there. A new La Plata Town Hall, for example, became Southern Maryland's first LEED-certified building,[15] and an old building considered historic by local residents, which housed a CVS Pharmacy store at the time of the tornado, was rebuilt in a new location after the storm. In the days after the tornado, help was provided by twenty-seven different jurisdictions, as well as the nearby Amish community in St. Mary's County.[16]
La Plata is located at 38.5342°N -76.9733°W (38.534258, -76.973377).[17] On February 24, 2020, The Mayor and Town's Council unanimously adopted the Purple Martin as the official Town bird.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 7.45sqmi, of which 7.4sqmi is land and 0.05sqmi is water.[18]
The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, La Plata has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.[19]
The primary method of travel to and from La Plata is by road, and four state highways serve the town. The most significant of these is U.S. Route 301, which follows Crain Highway through the town. From La Plata, US 301 heads south across the Potomac River into Virginia, eventually reaching Richmond. To the north, US 301 passes through Waldorf before intersecting Interstate 495 and U.S. Route 50 near Bowie. From there, US 301 joins I-495 and US 50 east past Annapolis and crosses the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Maryland Route 6 is the main east-west highway serving La Plata, following Port Tobacco Road and Charles Street through town. From La Plata, MD 6 heads west to Port Tobacco and continues east to Charlotte Hall. Maryland Route 225 follows Hawthorne Road westward from US 301 in La Plata, eventually reaching Maryland Route 210 near Indian Head. Finally, Maryland Route 488 follows La Plata Road northeast from MD 6 to Maryland Route 5 near Bryantown.
The median income for a household in the town was $56,490, and the median income for a family was $66,288. Males had a median income of $42,492 versus $32,125 for females. The per capita income for the town was $24,669. About 8.3% of families and 10.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.0% of those under age 18 and 18.1% of those age 65 or over.
As of the census[20] of 2010, there were 8,753 people, 3,062 households, and 2,091 families residing in the town. The population density was 1182.8PD/sqmi. There were 3,234 housing units at an average density of 437/sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 66.3% White, 26.7% African American, 0.5% Native American, 2.7% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.7% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.2% of the population.
There were 3,062 households, of which 38.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.6% were married couples living together, 15.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 31.7% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.62 and the average family size was 3.17.
The median age in the town was 38.4 years. 24.4% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.9% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 27% were from 25 to 44; 26.4% were from 45 to 64; and 13.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.3% male and 51.7% female.
La Plata is largely a residential community. Some residents work for the Charles County government, while others commute to Waldorf or the Washington, D.C. and Baltimore areas for work, including to Andrews Air Force Base and Naval Air Station Patuxent River. The town is experiencing a transformation into a thriving business and commercial center, thanks to the development of office buildings and the town's recent reconstruction.
Mount Carmel Monastery (1790), a Catholic convent, is just outside La Plata, near the main campus of the College of Southern Maryland.[21]
La Plata has county offices, the University of Maryland Charles Regional Medical Center, the main campus of the College of Southern Maryland, a community theater (Port Tobacco Players), a large outdoor athletic complex, two nursing homes, and a host of stores, churches, and restaurants, in addition to a twice-weekly farmers' market.[22] At the north edge of town are Walmart and Target department stores, three supermarkets, a Lowe's home-improvement store, and many other shops.[23] Rosewick Road is connected with St. Charles Parkway to adjacent Waldorf, providing drivers an alternative to using U.S. Route 301.
Public schools in La Plata include La Plata High School, Milton Somers Middle School, Walter Mitchell Elementary, and Mary Matula Elementary. The portion of town west of Route 301 is zoned for James Craik Elementary and Maurice J. McDonough High School.[24] La Plata is within the Charles County Public Schools school district.
There is also the La Plata Train Station Museum.[25]
1963–1967 Lowell E. Hawthorne
1967–1973 Raymond T. Tighlman
1973–1983 Victor B. Bowling, Jr.
1983–2005 William F. Eckman
2005–2008 Eugene Ambrogio
2008–2017 Roy G. Hale
2017–present Jeannine E. James[26]