LAYTONSVILLE, MD - Unique & Still Beautifully Rural!
Laytonsville has provided a route to the major metropolitan areas of the state of Maryland from the northern portion of the town through Frederick County and Damascus, east of Baltimore to the south towards Washington DC. Although Laytonsville is still a snug and cozy town, its 614 acres and smaller population contradict its somewhat long and interesting history.
Laytonsville was originally known as Cracklintown. This name originates from the popular 'cracklin bread', a sort of bacon corn bread, which was baked in the locale and gave rise to the entire area being named the 'Cracklin District'.
The original town reached beyond Laytonsville's current boundaries, along Sundown Road toward the Hawlings River which housed the first church, school and store. The first major road, Brink-Sundown Road, through Cracklintown was built in the early 1800's and had been referred to in documents from the early 1800's as the "road from the mouth of the Monocacy to Ellicotts Mills." Route 108 appears to have also been added around this same time. This Route 108-Brink/Sundown crossroads provided a major artery for cattle and pigs headed for the markets of Baltimore. Such a stopover established the town as a comfortable haven for the drivers of this stock.
Substantial brick buildings were being constructed by the early nineteenth-century, such as Layton House and a tavern across the road. By 1850, the southeast corner of the main crossroads was developed; however, most of the town along Route 108 wasn't developed until the late 1800s. Laytonsville was then incorporated in 1892.
Laytonsville farmers were blessed by quality soil, a Manor or Chester loam, rich and well drained with a subsoil of red clay to avoid drying out too quickly - great farming soil. This successful farming was a major reason for developing the small town.
Laytonsville was incorporated in 1892.
In 1883, William and Della Warfield Bell started construction on their new home. By a stroke of luck, all the bills 
and receipts for construction of the house were stored away in a wall and discovered in 1983 when the Seek family, descendants of the Bells, was adding a new room for their third son.
At the time the home was built, it was a major investment - $2,000.00. The lumber, purchased at Willet & Libbey in Washington, D.C. , cost $6.18 for 618 feet of 4" x 4" timber. The shingles cost $13.00 at J.W. Seay of Gaithersburg. Ten and a half pounds of nails for the cost 84 cents, bricks cost $3.50 and each door was priced at $1.00.
After the town acquired it in late 1999, the Bell House was opened as Laytonsville's new Town Hall in May of 2002. As the Town Hall, it's become the center for the Mayor and Town Council activities. The Bell House has long been part of the center of life and business in the area, located right in the center of town; the house had always remained in the Bell/Seek family until sold in 1999.
Laytonsville has seen a bit of a growth spurt in the last 10 to 15 years; with beautiful estate homes dotting the scenery as well as more affordable homes being developed along the major crossroads and Route 108. Never far away from anything, but still holding captive that old small-town feel, Laytonsville is truly a beautiful and relaxing place to live and to visit.
Should you or someone you know be interested in wanting to purchase or sell a home in Laytonsville, MD, please contact Susie Lemar at 240.447.9207.
You can also email info@homesalesmaryland.com
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