Annapolis is the state capital of Maryland, and the county seat of Anne Arundel County. Located on the
shores of the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, Annapolis has a long history.
Voted the #5 Place to Live in Anne Arundel County by Niche.com in 2020.
A Taste of History
Annapolis is home to St. John's College which was founded is 1969, and the U.S. Naval Academy that was
founded in 1845. Annapolis was the temporary capital of the United States after the signing of
the Treaty of Paris in 1783. Congress was in session in the state house from November 26, 1783, to June 3,
1784, and it was in Annapolis on December 23, 1783, that General George Washington resigned his commission as
commander-in-chief of the Continental Army.
The Maryland State House is the oldest in continuous legislative use in the United States. Construction started in 1772, and the Maryland State legislature first met there in 1779. It is topped by the largest wooden dome built without nails in the country. The Maryland State
House was home to the United States government from November 26, 1783, to August 13, 1784,
and the Treaty of Paris was ratified there on January 14, 1784, making Annapolis the first peacetime
capital of the U.S.
Just a few of the Local Attractions
Annapolis has a thriving community theater scene, with two venues in historic downtown Annapolis. The Banneker-
Douglass Museum, formerly known as Mt. Moriah African Methodist Episcopal Church, is a historic church
at Annapolis. The church was constructed in 1875 and remodeled in 1896. It is a 2 1/2-story, gable-front brick church
designed in the Gothic Revival style. It served as the meeting hall for the First African Methodist Episcopal
Church, originally formed in the 1790s, for nearly 100 years. It was leased to the Maryland Commission on
African-American History and Culture, becoming the state's official museum for African-American history
and culture. The Kunta Kinte-Alex Haley Memorial, located in a park at the head of Annapolis City Dock,
commemorates the arrival point of Alex Haley's African ancestor, Kunta Kinte, whose story is related in
Haley's book Roots. A sculpture group at the memorial site portrays Alex Haley seated, reading from a book
to three children. The final phase of the memorial's construction was completed in 2002. It is a very popular spot for locals and visitors.
Geography
Located 25 miles south of Baltimore and 30 miles east of Washington, D.C.
Parks and Recreation
The city boasts over 200 acres of parkland, with the largest being the 70-acre Truxtun Heights Park. Quiet
Waters Park, a 340-acre regional park run by Anne Arundel County, offers water access, a playground area,
over six miles of paved trails, and ice skating rink, and a dog beach.
Community Parks
Bayhead Park
Bestgate Park
Broad Creek Park
Broadneck Park
Browns Wood Park
Generals Highway Corridor Park
Jonas and Anne Catharine Park
Peninsula Park
Truxton Park
Whitmore Park
Wiley H. Bates Heritage Park
Distances
US Naval Academy - 1.5 miles
Fort Meade - 19.8 miles
BWI International Airport - 23 miles
NSA - 23.6 miles
Baltimore - 30.9 miles
Washington DC - 31.7 miles
Joint Base Andrews - 32.3 miles
Pentagon - 35.4 miles
Schools
Annapolis High
Annapolis Middle
Bates Middle
Annapolis Elementary
Eastport Elementary
Georgetown East Elementary
Germantown Elementary
Hillsmere Elementary
MillsāParole Elementary
Rolling Knolls Elementary
Tyler Heights Elementary
West Annapolis Elementary