Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1916-01-28


than Anne Arundel, Calvert snd
Prime Georges and slightly higher
than ST. Mary'- county
The approximate land ares Of
Charles county is 269,9 acres, aad
the and in farm, 232,337. OF .he
land ia farms, I2l,62l acres are i'm
proved, and something more than
100000 acres Of the farms are in
woodland
The value OF TIE farm property IL
Charles county is set down by the
census as S4,709,000, which shows a
slight decrease under the value for
The census year Of 1900. This value
compares with sl3,001,000 for Prince
Georges, s4,777,000 for St Mary,
sl6,600,000 Tor Anne Arundel aud
S2,6O0,00O for Calvert The aver
age value per acre in Chsd ,un-
tv was placed by the last census al
1919, the lowest IN the State OF
Maryland. Some curious figures in
land values are to be found in th@
census supplement for Maryland. -
W bile the average value of land per
acre in Charles county was set down
il 1900 as $40 81, the average value
declined in 1910 to S9.79, while in
St Mary's county, where tAe average
value Of Prince Georges farmland
rose from S2l TO sS2 per acre aud
Anne Arundel land lose from $1769
e. S54 per acre.
These figures Of the census year
1910 are b sed mainly OH statistics
gathered IN 1909, aud there has been
a pereeI tible improvement in eondi-
lions since thsn. In travelling
through the county aud talking with
the more intelligent men pns cannot
help noting a feeling thita material
upiift is working in Soathern Mary
land. they viii tell you that one of
the encouraging signs is that the
common people are giving more tine
10 The psow aud the hoe.
The census estimate Of 50 10 pei
acre is apt to nlslead man not ac-
quaintsd With The couHty. The
average is that low, not because there
is 80 much p ,or land, as because
there is 50 mu,h waste land, tor in
this e-'unty m y be seen some traces
Of farming land about as fertile and
highly farmed as in Frederick air
Washington counties. There is not
esongh Of IT, however, 10 make the
average high for the whole county.
The total value Of all TIE iarm
property in Charles county was az
praised under the last census at 81
.T09,396, and this amount was divid
cd ~ follow. Ltnd, S2,274,028;
buildings, l,464,527; implements
ard Inachite,y, S2l4,s39, ami do.
nestle animals aud noulIy, S755,902.
During the period l900-1910 there
was an increase IN the value of build
ings, indictments and machinery and
domestic animals, but decrease il
the value of land, which made the
total for 1910 lower than the total
for 1900.
La Plata, The county seat, is new
tDwr, having superseded historic and
romantic Port Tobacco. La Plata
lacks the charm Of age, and is with
out The centuines of memories and
traditions that graeed and endeared
Old Port Tobacco, but like very
new aud up to-date town it pieens
itself on the volume of its business,
and It's business Is considerable. A.
rouad the raj ,ad station ar cluster
Ell score of torres housed in frame
buildings and between the station
aud The Court house are two banks
in small bri, K buildings, two hotels
aud several frame buildings.
The Court house is the important
structure of the town and is Of red
bril- ! ID the styles Of Court house
Architecture which has become the
fashl5d The Court houses of Mary
land counties and the new Court
houses Of the Virginia counties ia
me region of Washington are very
much aliks. The county jail stands
conveniently ss0se - ~. Couit
houses an Is enrious little brick
structure two stories high with high I
nansard roof and heavily barred
windows. A flock Of sheep, having
5 rayed from a nearby farm, were con
tentedly grazing in the Court House
square-a pleasing rural picture, when
the Star man passed through La Plata.
There are two handsome churches
at La P.ata. Christ Church, Episco-
pal, Of light-colored stone, stands on
plot adjoining the Court House square.
This church stood next to the Court
house at Port Tobacco, but when the
court building burned and the county /
seat, after an exceedingly bitter co.,
test, was transferred to La Plata,
Christ Church at Port Tobacco was
torn down and new church ediliee
built next to the court house at the
new town.
A few hundred yards south Of the
court house, on the road leading to
Spring Hill, stands the Church of thu
Sacred Heart, Catholic. 1t is sub /