Prince George s County and the Civil War:: Life on the Border

Bordered by the Federal capital but separated from Virginia and the Confederacy only by the Potomac River, the citizens of Prince George's County found themselves on the front lines of the Civil War. As Maryland's largest slave-owning county, some--including members of the Bowie and Surratt families--joined the Confederacy. Many remained loyal to the Union, losing sons and property for the cause. Three forts in the county were dedicated to the capital's defense: Fort Foote, Fort Washington and Fort Lincoln. This did not prevent Confederate general Jubal Early's troops from invading in July 1864. The Rebel forces blew up rail lines in Beltsville and took the Rossborough Inn near the Maryland Agricultural College--now the University of Maryland, College Park--as their headquarters. Prince George's County and the Civil War: Life on the Border charts the course of a community caught in the midst of the bloodiest conflict in American history.

Nathania A. Branch Miles is a graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park with a BA in Urban & Regional Planning. She is the coauthor of three books on Prince George's County history and a board member of the Prince George's County Historical Society. She lives in Hyattsville, Maryland. Monday M. Miles is an advertising consultant in Greenbelt, Maryland and a member of the Prince George's County Historical Society. She received her BA in History from the University of Maryland, College Park and is working towards a MSA at Trinity University. Ryan J. Quick is the senior technical editor at General Dynamics Information Technology, an aerospace and defense company located in Maryland. He has worked in production editing and as a reporter for The Gazette Newspapers and The Sentinel Newspapers in Maryland. Ryan received his BA in journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park.