Located along the Patapsco River, about 37 km (23 mi) north northwest of Annapolis.
Laid out in 1729 on the lands of Thomas Carroll and was named to honor Cecil Calvert, the second Lord Baltimore, and proprietor of Maryland. Cecil's father, George Calvert, had become Lord Baltimore, of the Barony of Baltimore in Ireland in 1625. Records indicate that the Irish Lord took the name Baltimore from a seaport in County Cork, as was tradition for titles and baronies to be named after local ports. The Gaelic elements are "bailte" and "mora", which mean "big houses, homesteads, estates." In 1745 the growing community of Baltimore absorbed nearby Jones Town (or Oldtown). A popular nickname for Baltimore is "Charm City." Today Baltimore is ranked 17th largest city by population in the United States. (US-T121)