The Disconnect Between Colleges and their CommunitiesAbout Prince George’s County Prince George’s County, Md., located in the heart of the Baltimore/Washington corridor, borders Washington and lies just 37 miles south of the city of Baltimore.
Founded in 1696, the county has undergone a number of changes in population and economy over the centuries. During the 19th century it was home to a number of tobacco plantations that depended heavily on slave labor. For instance, in 1860 Prince George’s County’s Black community — 90 percent of which was slave — comprised almost 60 percent of the total population, helping to guarantee the county’s economic prosperity until the Civil War.
In the beginning of the 20th century as Washington, D.C., grew in stature and prominence as the nation’s capital, Prince George’s County became home to many government workers. Yet, when the federal government opened its doors to Black workers, most avoided the majority White county, preferring to live in Washington. But during the 1960s and ’70s, the Black population of the county rapidly rose, fueled in part by middle-class African Americans heading for the suburbs. As a result, the county recently has gained the distinction of being the wealthiest Black suburb in America. Source: www.prge.lib.md.us/pg/history.html
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