Elkton is a town in and the county seat of Cecil County, Maryland, United States. The population was 15,776 at the 2020 census, up from 15,443 in 2010. It was formerly called Head of Elk because it sits at the head of navigation on the Elk River, one of the five tributary rivers that flow into the north of the Chesapeake Bay, east of the Susquehanna River and North East River, and north of the Bohemia River, and Sassafras River.

Elkton was once known as the Gretna Green of the East of the US because of its popularity as a place for eloping couples to marry.

History

The town was founded by Swedish mariners and fishermen from Fort Casimir who settled the area in 1694. They called their settlement Head of Elk, as it was the head of navigation of the Elk River..

The town saw several actions during the American Revolutionary War. On August 25, 1777, Sir William Howe's Anglo-German army (13,000 British soldiers and 5,000 Germans) landed on the Elk River and marched 11 miles north to Head of Elk. Howe soon advanced to the short and victorious campaign of the Brandywine, and thence to the capture of Philadelphia. On March 8, 1781, the Marquis de Lafayette embarked his troops there to attempt a capture of Benedict Arnold. Returning on April 9, he began his overland march to Virginia. George Washington and Rochambeau with their combined forces stopped in Elkton on September 6–7, 1781, on their way to Yorktown.

In 1787, the town was incorporated as Elkton. By 1880, the population was 1,752.

The landmark historic home, Holly Hall, was built by James Sewall in the 1810s and quickly became a regional seat for important dignitaries and local politics.

When northern states began to pass more restrictive marriage laws in the early 20th century, Maryland did not. As a result, a number of Maryland towns near borders with other states became known as places to get married quickly and without many restrictions, or "Gretna Greens".State v. Clay, 182 Md. 639, 642, 35 A.2d 821, 822–23 (1944). Elkton, being the northeastern most county seat in Maryland (and thus closer to Philadelphia, New York, and New England), was particularly popular. It was a notorious Gretna Green for years;Greenwald v. State, 221 Md. 235, 237–38, 155 A.2d 894, 896 (1959).See "Siamese Twin Will Fight for a Marriage License", The Minneapolis Tribune, July 6, 1926, p.1 (mentioning a conjoined twin denied a marriage license in New York who retorted, "We'll go to Elkton, Md.") in its heyday, in the 1920s and 1930s, it was "the elopement capital of the East Coast" and thousands of marriages were performed there each year.Lorimer, Graeme and Sarah, Stag Line, Little, Brown, and Company, Boston, 1934, p. 191 ("Elkton is the place where all the people who want to get married in a hurry run off to, because they'll marry anybody there right away.") While some of the marriages obtained in Elkton were of celebrities or celebrities-to-be (Cornel Wilde, Joan Fontaine, Debbie Reynolds, Martha Raye, John and Martha Mitchell, Willie Mays, and Pat Robertson all got married in Elkton), the overall tawdry flavor grew to be too much for the state.

A 48-hour waiting period was imposed in 1938, but Elkton continued to be a place to marry, and especially elope; it simply took longer. The year before the Maryland Legislature enacted a 48-hour waiting period, the marriage bureau in the town of about 3,300 people issued 16,054 licenses. That number slumped to 4,532 in 1939. Still, the marrying ministers found all sorts of loopholes that allowed the business to continue for decades. The waiting period could be lifted, for instance, if the "mother was expecting", or if a young man was preparing to go off to war. In 1942, Elkton had about 14,000 marriages.

In time, Las Vegas became the new "American Gretna Green", although hundreds of people still came to Elkton. But an era faded in the northeastern Maryland county seat when the last commercial wedding chapel closed in 2017.

On December 8, 1963, Pan Am Flight 214 was struck by lightning and crashed near Elkton, taking 81 lives. The crash was listed in the 2005 Guinness World Records as the "Worst Lightning Strike Death Toll."archive.org copy of Guinness Book of World Records entry for Pan Am flight 214In 1971, LANSA Flight 508 was also brought down by a lightning strike. Flight 508's crash would have more total casualties (91 fatalities), as up to fourteen passengers survived the crash but died afterwards in the Peruvian jungle while waiting for help. A small memorial marks the site of the crash, the worst loss of life accident in Maryland. The Boeing 707 had gone down in a cornfield on the eastern edge of the town, and in 1994 a granite memorial was placed at Delancy Road and Wheelhouse Drive. Today the area is a housing development.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Climate The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Elkton has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, Elkton had a population of 15,807. The median age was 35.5 years. 24.7% of residents were under the age of 18 and 12.6% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 89.4 males age 18 and over.

99.1% of residents lived in urban areas, while 0.9% lived in rural areas.

There were 5,945 households in Elkton, of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 36.3% were married-couple households, 19.8% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 34.6% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 29.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 6,386 housing units, of which 6.9% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.6% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.3%.

+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census Race Number Percent White 10,096 63.9% Black or African American 3,208 20.3% American Indian and Alaska Native 40 0.3% Asian 402 2.5% Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 4 0.0% Some other race 580 3.7% Two or more races 1,477 9.3% Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 1,349 8.5%

2010 census As of the census of 2010, there were 15,443 people, 5,580 households, and 3,673 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 5,944 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 76.0% White, 15.1% African American, 0.3% Native American, 2.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 2.0% from other races, and 3.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.9% of the population.

There were 5,580 households, of which 40.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.0% were married couples living together, 19.6% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.2% had a male householder with no wife present, and 34.2% were non-families. 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.65 and the average family size was 3.21.

The median age in the town was 32.8 years. 28% of residents were under the age of 18; 9.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 31% were from 25 to 44; 22.2% were from 45 to 64; and 9.3% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 48.2% male and 51.8% female.

2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 11,893 people, 4,446 households, and 2,898 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 4,743 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 85.85% White, 9.64% African American, 0.32% Native American, 1.17% Asian, 0.04% Pacific Islander, 0.78% from other races, and 2.20% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.97% of the population.

There were 4,446 households, out of which 37.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.7% were married couples living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.8% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.13.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.4% under the age of 18, 9.8% from 18 to 24, 33.5% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 10.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 91.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $38,171, and the median income for a family was $44,348. Males had a median income of $36,495 versus $25,543 for females. The per capita income for the town was $17,789. About 9.4% of families and 11.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.0% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over. Education Students in Elkton are served by Cecil County Public Schools. Elkton High School is a public school located in the town. Cecil College operates the Elkton Station campus in Elkton. Three elementary, one middle school, and one high school serves Elkton and the surrounding areas.

Government The town is managed with a Mayor–council government, in which it has an elected Mayor who serves 4-year terms and an elected Town Commissioner who also serves a 4-year term. Currently, there are only 4 seated Commissioners. There have been a total of 41 Mayors in Elkton ever since the town was incorporated. The current mayor of Elkton is Robert J. Alt, who has been Mayor since 2014. Alt previously served as Mayor from 1998 until 2002.

Sports and recreation

There are several parks located in the town limits, such as Marina Park, which is on Bridge Street (Maryland Route 213). Marina Park contains one tennis court and one small basketball court. Also to mention, there is Meadow Park (Officially called the John P. Stanley Memorial Park) located on Delaware Avenue (Maryland Route 7) which is the largest park in Elkton. Meadow Park is known for hosting kids football and soccer. There is also Eder Park, located near Meadow Park. Eder Park is located on Howard Street and is accessible to Meadow Park via a foot bridge. Eder Park is known for hosting little league baseball events in the spring and summer. Across the street from the former mentioned Meadow Park, there is a dog park.

For fishing, there are many options. For instance, Howard's Pond on Red Hill Road (Maryland State Route 281), is known for hosting fishing tournaments and many people are often seen at Howard's Pond fishing for fish that have been stocked by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

Elkton is the site of the Fair Hill Scottish Games.

Transportation Roads and highways