Introduction to Bowie, Maryland
The Maryland city of Bowie is located in Prince George's County, only 15 miles east of Washington, D.C. and 30 miles south of Baltimore. Major highways in or near the city include U.S. Routes 50 and 301, and Maryland State Highways 3, 193, 197, 214, and 450.
The origins of Bowie trace back to 1870, when a community formed around a local railroad stop where the B&O Railroad tracks to Washington branched off from their main line. The railroad station was called Bowie in honor of local resident Governor Oden Bowie; however, the name of its surrounding town was Huntington City. Huntington City was incorporated as a town in 1874, but its charter was later amended to change the town's name to Bowie. In 1916, Bowie was incorporated and then re-incorporated as a city in 1963 after annexing the adjacent residential community of "Belair at Bowie," which had been developed by the firm of Levitt and Sons on the former Belair Estate, once a colonial plantation of Governor Samuel Ogle. Also part of the Estate was Belair Stable, once the oldest continually operated thoroughbred horse farm in the country. Over the years, Bowie has grown from a small agricultural and railroad town to become what it is today: one of Maryland's largest and fastest growing cities.
Points of Interest in Bowie
Bowie enjoys a rich historic and cultural heritage which is reflected in the city's array of historic sites. The Belair Mansion is a beautiful five-part Georgian plantation house which has been restored to reflect is 250-year old legacy. The Belair Stable Museum, former home of Triple Crown winners Gallant Fox and Omaha as well as many other well-known thoroughbreds, has been restored and is now open as a museum. The Bowie Railroad Station and Huntington Museum, relocated from its original site across the railroad tracks and restored in the 1990s, reflects the Bowie's origins as the site around which the city grew. The Radio and Television Museum chronicles the growth of the media from Marconi's earliest wireless telegraph to the primitive crystal and then cathedral-type radios to the post-War transistor radios and finally to the development of television.
Other city attractions include the newly renovated City of Bowie Ice Arena, a year round ice skating facility which also houses an annual Home Show. The Bowie Playhouse is a 150-seat theater which provides quality live theater entertainment to area residents. The Amphitheater at Allen Pond Park is an open air theater which hosts many musical, dance, and other types of performances throughout the summer months. The Bowie Skate Park is a 10,000 square foot concrete skating facility open for skateboard and inline skating.
Bowie residents and visitors are only minutes away from Washington, D.C. and its plethora of attractions. These include the following:
- The Library Of Congress
- George Washington's Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens
- The White House and Capitol Building
- The National Air and Space Museum
- Washington Sailing Marina
- Library Of Congress
- The Washington Monument
- Washington Sailing Marina
- The Lincoln Memorial
- Ford's Theatre
- National Gallery of Art
- Smithsonian Institution
- Capital Children's Museum
- The Folger Theatre
- The National Zoo
- The National Museum of American History
- John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Sports fans in Bowie can cheer for their local pro baseball team, the Bowie Baysox, a minor league Class Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. The Baysox belong to the Eastern League and play their home games at the city's Prince George's Stadium. Major league action can be found in two nearby places: the cities of Baltimore and Washington. Teams which reside in these two cities include the following:
- Baseball (MLB): Baltimore Orioles and Washington Nationals
- Football (NFL): Baltimore Ravens and Washington Redskins
- Hockey (NHL): Washington Capitals
- Basketball: ABA's Baltimore Pearls, NBA's Washington Wizards, and WNBA's Washington Mystics
- Soccer: Major Indoor Soccer League's Baltimore Blast and Major League Soccer's DC United (Washington)
- Lacrosse (MLL): Baltimore Bayhawks
