Maryland in the American Civil War a majority of the legislature, wished to remain in the Union, but did not want to be involved in a war against their southern neighbors, and sought to prevent a military response by Lincoln to the South's secession. After John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859, many citizens began forming local militias, determined to prevent a future slave uprising. The first bloodshed of the Civil War occurred in Maryland. Anxious about the risk of secessionists capturing Washington, D.C., given that the capital was bordered by Virginia, and preparing for war with the South, the federal government requested armed volunteers
Maryland City, Maryland the westernmost corner of Anne Arundel County. It is bordered by Laurel in Prince George's County to the west, by the CDP of Scaggsville in Howard County to the north, by the CDP of Jessup to the northeast, and by Fort Meade to the east. Uninhabited portions of Fort Meade are to the south. The Baltimore–Washington Parkway (Maryland Route 295) runs through the CDP, leading southwest to downtown Washington, D.C. and northeast to downtown Baltimore. Access from the parkway to Maryland City is via Maryland Route 198 (Fort Meade Road). Maryland Route 32 (the Patuxent Freeway) forms the northeast edge