Elkridge

About Elkridge

Perched between urban Baltimore and suburban Columbia, Elkridge offers access to the best of both worlds: the hustle and bustle of the big city and the quiet lifestyle of a small town. It's residential neighborhoods include historical communities, modern planned subdivisions and golf course living. You can easily commute into Baltimore for work and play, or choose to stay home and enjoy all that Elkridge has to offer.

The History of Elkridge

Early settlers arrived in the area that's now Elkridge in the late 1700s, founding a community that was based around tobacco farming and the river wharfs. Farmers could utilize their river wharfs to transport their crops, and the area functioned well as a small agricultural community for quite some time. An iron works a mill were established, as well as local places of worship.

The arrival of the B&O Railroad in the mid-19th century allowed the area to flourish and created faster routes to Baltimore and Washington, D.C., for both visitors and locals. Throughout the decades, Elkridge was home to rich and varied industries, including paper, cotton, grist milling, basket weaving and pig-iron forging.

Living and Working in Elkridge

Today, Elkridge thrives as a suburb of Baltimore and a welcoming community in Howard County. Just 10 miles from Baltimore, Elkridge benefits from convenient road and rail links to communities in the surrounding area, as well as countless expansive green spaces like the Patapsco State Park and Rockburn Branch Park.

Elkridge and the surrounding Howard County area welcome businesses in the health care, information technology, professional services and education sectors. Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory and SAIC are the county's largest employers, followed closely by health care facilities Lorien Health Systems and Howard County General Hospital. Information technology provider Verizon and post-secondary institution Howard Community College also provide thousands of jobs in the county.

Elkridge Schools

Elkridge students attend the Howard County Public School System, which covers suburban Howard County, Maryland. You'll also find a few private school options in the area, including faith-based and international schools.

There are several post-secondary institutions nearby, including the University of Maryland Baltimore County and Howard Community College.

Resources for Moving to Elkridge

Here's some helpful information for planning your move to Elkridge:

• Utilities: The city's primary energy provider is Baltimore Gas and Electric. Howard County manages water and sewer services, including set-up and billing.
• Garbage and Recycling: You can expect weekly collection of trash, recyclables and yard waste.
• Transportation: Both the Maryland Transit Administration and the Regional Transportation Agency of Central Maryland serve Elkridge. MARC commuter rail service can be accessed at one Elkridge station and in nearby Baltimore, and the Baltimore Light Rail has a station in the neighboring community of Linthicum.

Elkridge Housing

If you're seeking high-end homes in Elkridge, you should search on the west side of the Patapsco Valley State Park. More affordable housing can generally be found by searching on the far west and east sides of the city. Due largely to its convenient location, Elkridge has a fairly expensive housing market, with a median home price well above the national average.