Scottish Place Names
- Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Plaque on Wallace Statue, Baltimore

For comparability with other large cities around the world, Greater Baltimore has been defined as the entire urban area including and surrounding the City of Baltimore. This area extends from Reisterstown, Cockeysville and Aberdeen in the north to the Howard Duckett Reservoir, Crofton and Annapolis in the south. This is a vast metropolitan area, typical of the urban sprawl that characterises American cities as a consequence of the steady population influx from rural areas, the post-WWII baby boom and the 1960s 'flight to the suburbs'.

A total of 2,316 communities and neighbourhoods have been identified to date in the Baltimore-Annapolis area. Of the names of these localities, 410 (17.7%) are based wholly or in part on Scottish family names, on place names that can be found in Scotland, or on Scottish words. Of course, many of the names are used in other parts of the British Isles as well but 148 (6.4%) of these appear to be exclusive to Scotland.

Communities, neighbourhoods and suburbs with names that occur only in Scotland and not elsewhere in the British Isles, and/or are definitely, or most probably, of Scottish origin are:

Aberdeen and Aberdeen Hills - Aberdeen (illustrated here) is Scotland's third largest city. According to Kenny (1984), the authority on Maryland place names, the name of this community is attributed to a Mr. Winston, of Aberdeen, Scotland, who settled alongside the Pennsylvania, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad when the line was built in 1892 and who became the first postmaster.

Alloway (South Ayrshire - the birthplace of Robert Burns, Scotland's national poet).

Atholton (Atholl in Perth & Kinross). Kenny (1984, p. 33) provides the following explanation: "Nearby Atholton Manor is the site of 'Athol,' built by Rev. James McGill, who was born in Scotland in 1701. Atholl, Perthshire, was perhaps his birthplace." (See also Macgills Common below).

• Barclay (South Ayrshire; also Barclayhill and Barclayfield in Perth & Kinross) there is a Barclay in Wales as well. The origin of the name of this district of Baltimore is more likely to be Scottish given that Barclay is a Scottish surname - that's the "Hunting" Barclay tartan shown here.
• Bayhead (Western Isles; also a place in Highland, spelt Bay Head).
• Belhaven Beach and Belhaven Woods - there is a Belhaven in East Lothian, the only occurrence of Belhaven as a place name in the British Isles.
  
• Bell Forest, Belltown and Bellview - there are many places in Scotland with Bell as part of the name. The list includes Bell Bay in North Ayrshire, Bell Craig in the Scottish Borders and in Dumfries & Galloway, Bell Hill in Borders, Bell Rock in Fife and South Ayrshire, Bell Stane in North Ayrshire, Bell Wood in Aberdeenshire, Bellfield in Aberdeen City and South Ayrshire and numerous others. Place names starting with this Scottish family name are also found all over England, but many of these would no doubt refer to bell-shaped geographical features. Sir Alexander Graham Bell, the first to patent the telephone, is illustrated here (from a Scottish commemorative banknote).
• Bonnie Acres and Bonnie Brae - although no places by these names are actually found in Scotland, 'bonnie' (pleasant looking) and 'brae' (a hillside) are both Scottish words. There are two Greater Baltimore localities called Bonnie Acres, one in Anne Arundel and the other in Howard County.
• Braebrooke - there is no place in Scotland by this name, but the element 'brae' (see Braeburn below) suggests a made-up combination of typically Scots and English place name elements.
• Braeburn - an inversion of Burnbrae. 'Brae' (pronounced bray) is a Scots word meaning a hill or hillside and 'burn' is a Scots word for a stream or creek.
• Braemar (Aberdeenshire and the Shetland Islands). Braemar in Aberdeenshire is world famous as the venue for the annual Highland Gathering. Patronised by royalty, this Gathering is always held on the first Saturday in September and features a spectacle of highland dancing, pipe bands and highland sporting competitions (tossing the caber, stone putt etc).
• Brice Manor - Black (1996), the authority on Scottish family names, states that Brice (more usually Bryce) is derived from 'Bricius', the name of a Gaulish saint in the 5th century. It was a common personal/first name in Scottish records at the end of the 12th and beginning of the 13th century. As a surname, it is later found in various locations across Scotland.
• Brigadoon - there is a place called Auld Brig o' Doon (illustrated here) just south of Tam O'Shanter Experience and Burns Cottage tourist attractions in South Ayrshire. Brigadoon is of course the name of a musical by Alan J. Lerner and Frederick Loewe about two Americans who stumble across a mythical Scottish village that comes to life once a century for one day only.
• Burnbrae (Dumfries & Galloway, Fife, Perth & Kinross, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire and West Lothian).
• Burns Corner - since this neighbourhood is in Aberdeen, Maryland, a Scottish connection is very probable, for example, honouring a pioneer or even Robert Burns, the Scots poet.
• Cameron Village - there are places called Cameron in Fife, North Lanarkshire and West Dunbartonshire. Cameron is an ancient Scottish family name, the origin of which has been speculated to mean either 'curved hill-brow' (Old Welsh) or, more probably, 'crooked (or wry) nose' (Gaelic).
• Campbell - a Scottish family name. The Campbells were once the most powerful of all the Highland clans. The origin of the name is Gaelic - caimbeul - meaning 'wry- or crooked-mouth'.
• Cape McKinsey - According to the House of Names Heraldic website, McKinsey and Kinsey are Scottish family names from Bute. These names are not listed in Black (1996), however. The Ancestry.com website suggests that McKinsey is perhaps a respelling of McKinzie, a variant of Mackenzie.
• Carriage Hill Village - a suburb of Paisley in Renfrewshire is called and spelled Carriagehill.
• Cochran Hills - Cochran is a variant of the Scottish family name of Cochrane. The only place in the British Isles with this name is Cochrane Pike, over the border in Northumberland.
• Coldstream-Homestead-Montebello - Coldstream is a small town in the Scottish Borders. Homestead and Montebello, on the other hand, are not Scottish names. According to the 'Live in Baltimore' website, the name of this neighbourhood is derived from three early nineteenth century estates. Of these, the estate 'Cold Stream' was the most significant. William Patterson, a prominent Scots-Irish businessman (see Patterson Park below) was the owner of this estate for many years. 'Cold Stream' appears, however, to be have been named by a previous owner, Mrs Rebecca Dulaney, wife of Daniel Dulaney. The Dulaney family lost their vast land-holdings after the Revolutionary War because of their loyalty to Great Britain. Montebello is an Italian name. Baltimore's Montebello takes its name from the country house of Major General Samuel Smith, a Revolutionary War veteran and Republican senator, who was Scots-Irish. An admirer of the French, Major General Smith named his mansion Montebello after the place in Italy where Marshal Lannes achieved a victory in 1800 (information supplied by Christopher George, local historian).
• Collisons Corner - Black (1996) states that Collison is an old surname in Aberdeenshire, which was described in 1732 as "one of the chief surnames here of old". Records of the name go back to 1449.
• Cunninghill Cove - the closest reference to this name that can be found in the British Isles is in South Ayrshire, Scotland where a suburb of Ayr is called Cunning Park. Ayrshire is very much Cunninghame territory, which further strengthens the probable connection between the name of this Greater Baltimore neighbourhood and Scotland.
• Cylburn - Maryland historians attribute the name of this suburb (pronounced Sill-burn) to a manor or estate in Scotland (precise location in Scotland not specified).
• Denmore Park - Denmore is a suburb of Aberdeen City.
• Dumbarton and Dumbarton Heights - Dumbarton is a large town on the river Clyde in West Dunbartonshire. According to Kenny (1984), these suburbs were definitely named for the Scottish town near Glasgow. 'Dumbarton' is the anglicised form of the Gaelic 'dun Breatuin', meaning 'fort of the Britons'. The fortress was the northernmost outpost of the Ancient Britons (who spoke a form of Celtic known as Old Welsh/Cumbrian), their own name for the fortress being 'Alclut', meaning 'rock of the [river] Clyde' (Room, 2003, p. 144).
• Dunbar (East Lothian). The name is derived from two Gaelic words meaning 'fort of the height' (Room, 2003, p. 145).
  Dundee and Dundee Village - Dundee is Scotland's fourth largest city - see illustration above). The Gaelic meaning of the name is 'Daig's fort' (Room, 2003, p. 145).
• Dun Rovin - there is a strong chance that this name is ultimately Scottish as it has been used in Scotland as a name for private residences.
• Edinboro Estates - presumably an Americanised spelling of Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland.
• Edmondson Ridge and Edmondson Village - Edmondson is a Scottish surname first recorded in the Edinburgh area, where Queen Margaret of Scotland had granted land to the family.
• Farish Farms - the House of Names Heraldic website describes Farish as a Scottish surname originating in Aberdeenshire. The Ancestry.com website cites statistics from the 1890s suggesting that the surname was associated with Dumfriesshire, Galloway and the neighbouring English county of Cumberland. There is no mention of the name in Black (1996), however.
• Ferguson Meadows - Ferguson is a well-known Scottish family name. The Ferguson clan has numerous branches, the name meaning 'first choice' in Gaelic. The clan tartan is shown here.
• Fishtown - there is a place in Angus called 'Fishtown of Usan', the only occurrence of Fishtown as a place name in the British Isles. According to Kenny (1984), the origin of the name of this NW Baltimore suburb is occupational. The various explanations of the origin of the name provided by Kenny are purely conjectural and concern fishmongers and their trade. Kenny makes no mention of Scotland, but an indirect or partial connection with the east coast Scottish village cannot be ruled out completely.
• Frederick Douglass Homes - Douglass is a variant spelling of the ancient Scottish family name Douglas, first found in Lanarkshire, though experts disagree as to the origin of the name, some claiming it to be Pictish while others regard it as Flemish. The name of this community commemorates Frederick Douglass, the famous nineteenth-century African American who lectured within the States and abroad on the evils of slavery. See also Highland Beach below.
• Fulton (Dumfries & Galloway). There are two neighbourhoods called Fulton in Greater Baltimore; one in Baltimore City and the other in Howard County.
• Gilmor Homes - there is a Gilmorton in Aberdeenshire, Gilmourton in South Lanarkshire, Gilmerton in Edinburgh and Gilmorehill in Glasgow, among other references in Scotland to the family name of Gilmore/Gilmor. This Scottish surname is derived from the Gaelic 'Gillie Moire', meaning 'servant of (the Virgin) Mary'. One wonders whether the name of this neighbourhood in Baltimore City has any reference to the Gilmor family who owned the mansion 'Glen Ellen' (see entry below).
• Glen Arm - there is a Glenarm in Angus. The name of this suburb has been attributed to the name of Thomas Armstrong's old home in Scotland (presumably in Angus). Armstrong was a treasurer of the Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad. There is also a place in Northern Ireland called Glenarm but this is less likely to account for the origin of the suburb's name.
• Glen Burnie, Glen Burnie Heights and Glen Burnie Park - there are places in Aberdeenshire and Scottish Borders, both spelled Glenburnie. The names of these communities are actually not as closely connected with Scotland as might at first appear. According to Kenny (1984), the name is derived from a John Glenn who had an estate in the area in the 1880s, though the diminutive 'burnie' is typically Scots.
• Glen Ellen - although a place by this name is not found in Scotland, the name of this neighbourhood in Baltimore County has a link with Scotland through the Gilmor family (Robert Gilmor I, merchant and banker, was the founding president of the St. Andrew's Society of Baltimore). Christopher George (2007) notes that the name is derived from a mansion built during the 1830s in the Gothic style by Robert Gilmor III and which he named 'Glen Ellen' after his wife. The mansion was modelled on Sir Walter Scott's Abbotsford, which Gilmor had visited whilst touring Britain. The grounds of Glen Ellen were flooded to form the Loch Raven reservoir in the early 20th century, and the mansion was abandoned as a residence at that time. The name of the mansion is presumably perpetuated by the name of the community.
• Glen Oban - Oban is a town on the Firth of Lorne in Argyll & Bute. Oban means 'little bay' in Gaelic (Room, 2003).
• Glenangus - presumably a made-up name based either on the Scottish county of Angus, or a personal Scottish name.
• Glenartney - there is a Glenartney Lodge at Auchinner in the valley of Glen Artney, Perth & Kinross.
• Glendale and Glendale Terrace - Glendale is the name of a village in the Scottish Highlands. A remarkably large number of American cities have communities/suburbs called Glendale, a name simply meaning 'valley'. The unusual feature of this name is that it is a tautology - 'valley' features twice, first in Gaelic (gleann) then in Norse (dalr). The "glen" illustrated here is Glen Croe in Argyll.
• Glenshire Towne - possibly derived from Glen Shira, a remote glen near Inverary in Argyll & Bute in which the Duke of Argyll once provided a safe haven for Rob Roy MacGregor. Alternatively, it could simply be a made-up name.
• Glenside Park - there are villages called Glenside in Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and Stirling.
• Glenwood (Aberdeenshire). There are two neighbourhoods with this name in Greater Baltimore; one in Anne Arundel County and the other in Harford County. Glenwood is a popular choice of name for neighbourhoods in many North American cities.
• Govans, Govanstown and Mid-Govans - On the surface, it would appear that these names came from Glasgow where there is a district called 'Govan' (Old Welsh for 'dear rock'), or alternatively from Wales where there is a promontory called St Govan's Head. Like most colonial place names, however, the names of these Baltimore communities are attributed to the name of a landowner. The 'Live in Baltimore' website states that "the community was originally called Govanstowne, named after William Govane. Govane received a tract of land from Frederick Calvert, the 6th Lord Baltimore, in the mid-seventeen hundreds." According to the House of Names Heraldic website, Govane is a Scottish family name, one of the many variants of MacGovan. Captain William Govane, who ordered a survey of the area in 1755, did in fact come from Scotland (George, 2007, p. 231).
• Grand View Park - there is a Grandview in the Shetland Islands. Grandview was a popular name for neighbourhoods as well as streets in all English-speaking countries during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In most instances, the name was applied to localities that literally afforded a wide panorama. In all probability, this was also the reason for the naming of the neighbourhood in Anne Arundel County as well as the locality in Scotland.
• Greentop Manor - there is a Greentop of Margree in Dumfries & Galloway, as well as mountains/hills named Green Top and Green Top of Drumwhirn.
• Hamilton and Hamilton Hills - Hamilton is an important town in South Lanarkshire. The name Hamilton has been associated with Scotland since the thirteenth century, having been taken there by Walter Fitz Gilbert (Sir Walter de Hameldone). Hameldome/Hamelton was the name of Sir Walter's English estate in either Northumberland or Leicestershire. According to the Penguin Dictionary of British Place Names (2003), Hamilton in Old English means 'farmstead in broken country'. Hamilton is one of the most frequently recurring Scottish place names around the English-speaking world, so much so that there are two neighbourhoods in central Baltimore itself, barely three miles apart! The tartan shown here is Hamilton.
• Hermitage Hill (Scottish Borders).
• High View Estates - there is a Highview in Dumfries & Galloway.
• Highland (the northernmost county in mainland Scotland).
• Highland Acres, Highland Beach and Highlandtown - all possibly named for the Highlands of Scotland. Kenny (1984, p. 114) states that the name 'Highland Beach' is somewhat descriptive of the geographical terrain, and notes that Charles Douglass, son of Frederick Douglass the abolitionist (see Douglass above) built the first house in the area in 1894.
  
• Inverness (Highland - regarded as the "Capital" of the Highlands of Scotland). That's Inverness Castle illustrated above.
• Johnston Square - there are several places in Scotland called Johnston (Johnston in Aberdeenshire and Fife; also Johnston Mains and Lodge in Aberdeenshire, Johnston's Point in Argyll & Bute, Johnstonlee in Dumfries & Galloway and Johnston Loch in North Lanarkshire). There is also a town called Johnston in Pembrokeshire, Wales. As a family name, Johnston is considered to be essentially Scottish though the surname is frequently found today in England and Ireland as well as in Scotland.
• Kilmarnock (a large town in East Ayrshire).
• Lennox Park - there is a Lennox Tower in Edinburgh, Lennox Plunton in Dumfries & Galloway, Lennox Forest and Lennoxtown in East Dunbartonshire, and Lennoxlove in East Lothian, all based on this Scottish surname.
• Loch Haven Beach and Cape Loch Haven - places in Scotland with these names do not exist, but the element 'Loch' is famously Scottish, meaning a freshwater lake or an arm of the sea in Gaelic. Perhaps the most famous loch is Loch Lomond, seen here.
  
• Loch Hill (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, East Renfrewshire and South Ayrshire).
• Loch Raven, Loch Raven Heights, Loch Raven Park and Loch Raven Village - as with Loch Haven (see above) places with these names do not exist in Scotland but nevertheless sound distinctly Scottish. Kenny (1984) traces the name to a corruption of "Luke Raven", who owned land in the area in the early 18th century. George (2007, pp. 228-229) disputes Kenny's conclusion. He states that the Loch Raven Reservoir appears to have received its current name from William Gilmor, a member of the influential Gilmor family (see Glen Ellen above), "Luke" being transformed to the Scottish "Loch".
• Lochearn (Loch Earn is a lake on the River Earn in Stirling). Glen Artney (the name of another Baltimore community - see above) joins the river Earn a few miles below Loch Earn in Scotland.
• Long Beach Estates - there is a Longbeach in Dumfries & Galloway west of the town of Dumfries. The probability that this eastern suburbs neighbourhood has a Scottish connection is greatly increased considering its proximity to Galloway Creek.
• Lowell and Lowell Ridge - The House of Names website lists Lowell as a variant of Lovel, a name that originated in Somerset, England. Black (1996) confirms the southern English origin of the name, stating that a family named Lovel were barons in Somerset and held lands in Roxburgh but moved to Angus in the 13th century and were important in Dundee. The male line died out in 1607.
• Luce Creek - there is a Luce Bay and Glenluce in Dumfries & Galloway as well as Dunluce Castle across the North Channel in County Antrim, Northern Ireland.
• Lyndale - there is a promontory on Loch Snizort, Isle of Skye, called Lyndale Point.
• Macgills Common - although there is no place in Scotland by this name, MacGill is definitely a Scottish name. It is derived from the Gaelic 'Mac an ghoill' or 'son of the Lowlander or stranger'. The earliest record of the family name is 1231. According to an article in Wikipedia, this Columbia neighbourhood was named for the Rev. James Macgill, who was granted the land in 1830 (see also Atholton above). In a personal communication received from Pete Huey on 10 February 2008, it was stated that the Rev. Macgill was the first pastor of the Christ Episcopal Church, known locally as 'The Old Brick'.
• McAlpine - the MacAlpines are a group of clans all claiming descent from Kenneth MacAlpin, the king under whom the Picts and Scots were first united in 843. The MacAlpine family crest is seen here.
• McComas - a sept of the Gunn clan. The name of this suburb in Harford County most probably commemorates Louis E. McComas, a U.S. Senator from Maryland in 1898.
• McCulloh Homes - The 'Live in Baltimore' website provides the following account of the various possibilities behind the name of this neighbourhood: "It is designated by the north-west street once spelled McCulloch Street and named either for an actor, a prominent banker, or a collector of the port of Baltimore. John McCullough was a popular nineteenth century stage performer; James W. McCulloh, a Baltimore Bank-of-the-United-States cashier who figured in the monumental Supreme Court decision of McCulloh v. Maryland; James H. McCulloch, a one-time port officer and veteran of the Revolution and the War of 1812 battle of North Point."
• McKenzies Discovery - there is a Mackenzie's Cairn in Highland. The MacKenzie clan can trace its ancestry back to at least the fifteenth century, the name meaning 'son of the fair' in Gaelic.
• McPherson - The McPhersons are an ancient Scottish clan descended from a twelfth century cleric of the Celtic Church (which did not enforce celibacy). The name means 'son of the parson' in Gaelic. It is tempting to speculate that the Anne Arundel community of McPherson was named for Ohio-born Union general, James Birdseye McPherson (born 1828), who was killed by Confederate sharpshooters in the Battle of Atlanta, July 22, 1864.
  

• Melrose (Scottish Borders). Melrose has proven to be a popular name for neighbourhoods in many cities around the world, possibly because of its association with Sir Walter Scott whose residence, Abbotsford, is in the area. Melrose Abbey is shown in the illustration. According to the Penguin Dictionary of British Place Names (2003), the name means 'bare heath' in Brythonic Celtic - 'mel' being cognate with Modern Welsh 'moel' (bald or bare) and 'rose' with Modern Welsh 'rhos' (heath or moor).
• Monroe Gardens - the name of this community in Anne Arundel County most probably commemorates James Monroe, the 5th President of the United States (1817-1825). Monroe is an alternative spelling of the Scottish surname of Munro, and is derived from the Gaelic 'Rothach' or 'a man of Ro'. According to Black (1996) their ancestors probably came from Ireland, from the foot of the river Roe in County Derry, which produced the place name 'Bunrotha' from which 'Munrotha' was derived.
• Morningside Heights (Morningside in Dumfries & Galloway, City of Edinburgh, North Lanarkshire and Perth & Kinross).
• Murray Hill - there is a small settlement north of Methlick in Aberdeenshire, spelt Murrayhill. Murray, of course, is one of the best-known Scottish family names, though it is also claimed as an Irish name.
• North Deen - since this neighbourhood is in the town of Aberdeen, Maryland, an indirect connection with Scotland is suggested.
• North Point and North Point Village - there is a North Point in both the Orkney and the Shetland Islands, the only occurrences of the name in the British Isles. Since this is a descriptive name, the origins of the names of these Baltimore City neighbourhoods are unlikely to be Scottish but the possibility cannot be ruled out.
• Oliver and Oliver Beach - there is an Oliver in the Scottish Borders. Oliver is also considered to be a Scottish family name. In a communication received from Christopher George, it was stated that "these areas are named for Robert Oliver (1783-1819), a prominent local merchant who…..was more likely Scots-Irish rather than Scottish."
• Orr Acres - there are water features called Orr Shun in the Orkney Islands and Orr Wick in the Shetland Islands, plus several other places in Scotland beginning with Orr such as Orrock (Fife) and Orroland (Dumfries & Galloway). Orr is a common Scots surname and the name of an old Renfrewshire family. According to Black (1996) the name comes from the Gaelic 'odhar' which means 'of sallow complexion'.
• Patterson Park and Patterson Place - Patterson is a variant spelling of the Scottish family name of Paterson ('Patrick's son'). The Paterson clan was originally located on the north side of Loch Fyne in Argyll. Patterson, according to Black (1996), is one of the most common family names in Scotland. William Patterson, one of the wealthiest and most respected citizens of Baltimore, donated Patterson Park to the City of Baltimore in 1827, with additional acreage being purchased from the Patterson heirs in 1860 (Live in Baltimore). William Patterson was born in Ireland, of Protestant stock, which strongly suggests that he was Scots-Irish.
• Phyllis Estates - there is a Phyllis Park in Dumfries & Galloway, south of Dalton on the road to Annan, but this is an unlikely source of the name of the community in Anne Arundel County.
• Pratt Monroe - Like Monroe Gardens (see above), the name of this Baltimore neighbourhood could well honour President James Monroe. The Pratt part of the name is likely to have an English derivation.
• Ralston - a suburb of Paisley, Renfrewshire, on the main road between Glasgow and Paisley, from which the Scottish family name 'Ralston' is derived.
• Richardson Mews - There are no places anywhere in Britain with the name Richardson, apart from an archaeological site in Wiltshire, southern England which was presumably named for someone with the surname Richardson. Richardson is a Lowland Scottish family name meaning, quite literally, 'son of Richard'. In Scotland, the Richardson family is associated with clans Buchanan and Ogilvie.
• Riva and Riva Farms - there is a village called Riva in the Shetland Islands, which raises the possibility of a Scottish connection.
• Rosebank (Angus, Scottish Borders, City of Edinburgh, Dumfries & Galloway, East Dunbartonshire, Fife, Highland, Moray, Orkney Islands, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian). The name also occurs in Devon, England but is far more Scottish than English. Rosebank is one of the smallest neighbourhoods in Baltimore City and seems to have taken its name from Rosebank Avenue. The fact that Rosebank Avenue is adjacent to Orkney Road suggests that the village of Rosebank in the Orkney Islands may have been the inspiration for the name of the avenue and thus the neighbourhood.
• Roslyn and Roslyn Station (an alternative spelling of Roslin/Rosslyn in Midlothian - the name comes from Gaelic and means "point of the waterfall"). Rosslyn was the village made famous in Sir Walter Scott's 'Lay of the Last Minstrel' and Rosslyn Chapel (seen here) has been in the news because of its links to the "Da Vinci Code" novel.
• Satyr Hill Estates - a place called Satyrhills can be found in Aberdeenshire, near Mormond Hill south of Rathen, off the A952 to Fraserburgh. Of course, both the Baltimore neighbourhood and the place in Scotland may refer quite independently to the mythical semi-human deities believed by the ancient Greeks and Romans to inhabit woodlands.
• Scarff (Shetland Islands; there is also a Scarffbanks in Moray).
• Scots Fancy - presumably descriptive of a place that appealed to Scottish settlers, though Scot is also a personal name.
• Seton Hill (East Lothian, spelt Setonhill; also several other places in East Lothian called Seton - Mary, Queen of Scots, lived in Seton Castle, after Rizzio's murder). This Baltimore neighbourood "derives its name from Mother Seton - Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, named a saint by the Catholic church in 1975, and who ran a school for girls in Baltimore and took her vows as a sister in 1808-9." (Chris George, Baltimore, personal communication). Seton is a Lowland Scottish family name, which suggests that Mother Seton would have had some Scots ancestry, albeit remote.
• Shetland Hills and Shetland Square - the names of these separate communities (one in Baltimore County and the other in Anne Arundel County) presumably recall the Shetland Islands in the far north of Scotland.
  

• Silver Sands - there is a Silversands Bay in Fife (see picture above) to the east of Aberdour on the Firth of Forth.
• Spaulding Knolls - Originating in Lincolnshire, England, the surname Spaulding first appeared in Scotland in Kincardineshire (now part of Aberdeenshire) in 1225 and became associated with the area around Dundee. Spaldings/Spauldings were among a 1587 roll of clans on which the king could depend (Black, 1996).
• Stab - there is a Stab Hill in Dumfries & Galloway as well as a place called The Stab in the Shetland Islands.
• Steuart Corner and Steuart Level - there is a Steuarthall near Fallin in Stirling. Steuart is a variant spelling of the Scottish family name Stewart or Stuart (see Stewart Corner below). One wonders whether these communities in Anne Arundel County have any connection with Brig. General George H. Steuart, mentioned by George (2007) as one of the Scots who fought on the Confederate side during the American Civil War.
• Stevenson, Stevenson Crossing, Stevenson Park and Fields of Stevenson - there is a place in the Scottish Borders called Stevenson, as well as Stevenson House and Stevenson Mains in East Lothian and Stevenson Station in North Ayrshire. Stevenson is a Scottish as well as an English family name, originating in the border county of Northumberland. Two of the most famous members of the Stevenson family were Scotsmen. These were Robert Stevenson (1772-1850), engineer (not to be confused with the Englishman George Stephenson, inventor of the steam locomotive) and Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894), the author of classics such as 'Treasure Island', 'Kidnapped', 'The Master of Ballantrae' and 'Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'. See Stevenson graphic here. Kenny (1984, p. 251) attributes the name of the suburb of Stevenson, near Pikeville in Baltimore County, to Henry Stevenson, a Baltimore grain merchant in the early 1800s and whose ancestry appears to have been Scots-Irish. One wonders whether the Stevensons, an influential Scottish family in early Baltimore mentioned in George (2007, pp. 25-27) were in any way connected with the other Greater Baltimore communities bearing their family name.
• Stewart Corner - there is a Stewarton in Argyll & Bute, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway and East Ayrshire, plus numerous other place names throughout Scotland and parts of England and Northern Ireland that are based on the Scottish surname of Stewart. The Stewarts are descended from a Breton, Alan Fitzflaald, the crown of Scotland being brought to his descendants by Walter (1293-1326), fifth Steward of Scotland, whose son became King Robert II. The last of the Stewarts was Queen Anne (1665-1714).
• Stonehaven (Aberdeenshire).
• Strathmore (Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll & Bute, Highland and Perth & Kinross). The name means 'great valley' in Gaelic, the best known place being the long, wide valley to the north of Perth and Dundee that separates the Highlands from the central Lowlands of Scotland.
• Tarton Hill - there is a Tartan Hill in the Scottish Borders, but this may be pure coincidence, especially given the different spellings.
• The Highlands - although this place name does not occur in Scotland but can be found in England instead, the fact that this neighbourhood adjoins Shetland Square and Dundee in the Glen Burnie area suggests a probable Scottish connection.
• The Point (Orkney Islands).
• Trimble Fields - Trimble is a variant form of the Scottish surname Turnbull (see Turnbull Estates below). One wonders whether this community in Harford County has any connection with Major General Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, Maryland’s most prominent Confederate soldier during the American Civil War.
• Turnbull Estates - Black (1996) suggests that the name is from Old English "Trumbald" meaning "strongly bold". In Teviotdale it is commonly pronounced 'Trumell' or 'Trummell'. Black cites many documents in which the name can be found including mention of a bishop in Glasgow (1448-54) and a bailie in Edinburgh.
• Vantage Point - there is a Vantage in Fife, north of Inverkeithing, though this place is unlikely to be the source of the name of the community in Howard County.
• Waverly and Waverly Woods - probably an Americanised spelling of Waverley, the railway station in Edinburgh (seen here) and the title of Sir Walter Scott's first novel, the name having been inspired by Waverley Abbey in Surrey, England. Kenny (1984) is strongly inclined to attribute the name of the Baltimore City neighbourhood of Waverly to Sir Walter Scott's novels, largely on the basis that its namesakes in Illinois, New York and Ohio were supposedly named for this reason. The 'Live in Baltimore' website also attributes the origin of the name to Sir Walter. George (2007) speculates that the name of this neighbourhood, like those of Glen Ellen and Loch Raven (see above) may well be attributed to a member of the Gilmor family who held an estate there. William Gilmor attended a jousting tournament at the Scottish estate of Lord Eglinton in 1839 and held a similar joust, the first of its kind in the USA, on returning to Baltimore (George, 2007, p. 91).
• Weems Creek - Weems is a phonetic form of Wemyss, a town in Fife. The first record of the surname Wemyss is in the beginning of the 13th century.
• Wellwood (Aberdeenshire and Fife).
• West Hills (Angus; there are also places in Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway and Renfrewshire spelt Westhills). The name of the Baltimore community might be purely descriptive, however.
• Wilna (Shetland Islands, on the northern tip of Unst near Herma Ness).
• Woodbourne-McCabe - the McCabe part of the name is Scottish. McCabe comes from the Gaelic and means 'son of the abbott'. One wonders whether this neighbourhood in Baltimore City was named for Colonel Lawrence McCabe, a nineteenth century civil engineer.
• Woodlea (Dumfries & Galloway and East Lothian).

  As in other cities around the world, not all of the above place names are necessarily based directly on their namesakes in Scotland. The connection with Scotland may be more indirect in some instances, for example, based on the name of an early Scottish settler. Examples where this may be the case would be gratefully received from readers in Greater Baltimore, for incorporation in future updates of this web page.

  There are several clusters of neighbourhoods within the Greater Baltimore area that nearly all have definite or probable Scottish names. For instance, ten can be found in the north western suburbs centred on Roslyn (starting with Fishtown in the west and ending with Wellwood in the east) with Dunbar, Denmore Park and Lochearn not too far away. Another cluster is centred on Glen Burnie in the southern suburbs. The frequency of Scottish place names also increases in the Aberdeen area to the far north of metropolitan Baltimore, which is close to Delaware and southern Pennsylvania (areas in which many Scots-Irish from Ulster originally settled during the early eighteenth century).

  Some of the following suburbs and neighbourhoods are likely to have a direct or indirect Scottish connection, but most of these names are also associated with other parts of the British Isles:

  • Anneslie - Kenny (1984, p. 30) states that this northern suburb was named after the estate "Anneslie", which Frederick Harrison, Jr. named for Anne R. Wilson, when they were married in 1837. Wilson is commonly found as a surname in both Scotland and England.
  • Anton North and Anton Woods - there is an Anton Heights in Dumfries & Galloway, Anton's Hill in the Scottish Borders and Antonshill in Falkirk. There are also three places in northern and central England with Anton as part of the name.
  • Ballard Gardens - there is a place called Ballard in Argyll & Bute as well as in County Offaly, Ireland. Ballard is also an English family name originating in Yorkshire.
  • Barre Circle - Black (1996) mentions Barre as a variant of the Scottish family name Barr but notes that it also occurs in Scottish records as a form of Barry. Barre is claimed as an Irish, French or German name as well.
  • Baynesville - Bayne is a Scottish family name from the Inverness area. Like Bain, it is from the Gaelic 'bàn' meaning 'white'. Black (1996) states that the earliest reference to the name is a Duncan Bayne, son of Alexander, burgess of Dingwall, who witnessed a charter in Inverness. Black also states that according to some clan historians the Baynes are a branch of Clan MacKay (Caithness) and apparently have no connection with the English surname Bayne, which is of Norman origin.
  • Belcamp - this appears to be a made-up name, probably meaning 'good camp' or 'good field', from the French. Kenny (1984) points out, however, that the name possibly refers to the family name 'Bell', which is Scottish. This is a distinct possibility since Belcamp is located in a part of Greater Baltimore (near Aberdeen) where many Scots-Irish are known to have settled.
  • Berryhill (Aberdeen City, Angus, Scottish Borders, East Ayrshire, Fife, Highland, North Lanarkshire, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross and Stirling). The name is also found just over the border in Northumberland and further south, but not nearly as commonly as in Scotland.
  • Bonnie Ridge - there is a Bonnyrigg in Midlothian as well as a Bonnyrigg Hall over the border in Northumberland. Although 'bonnie/bonny' is a well-known Scots word, it is also used in some northern English dialects.
  • Browns Pond, Browns Woods, Browns Woods Villa and Owen Brown - there are many places in both Scotland and England that have 'Brown' as an element in their name. The surname Brown is also very common in both countries, with surveys in the 1970s suggesting that it is the second most common family name in Scotland (after Smith) and the third most common in England (after Smith and Jones).
    
  
  
  • Cape Arthur - Arthur occurs in many Scottish place names, including Arthur's Bridge and Arthur's Point (Moray), Arthur's Seat (Edinburgh - see illustration), Arthurbank (Perth & Kinross), Arthurhouse (Aberdeenshire), Arthurshield (South Lanarkshire), Arthurstone (Perth & Kinross) and Arthurville (Highland). It also occurs quite widely throughout England and in south Wales. Many of these places in Britain are probably references to the legendary King Arthur (e.g., Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh), but Arthur is also a Scottish family name from Berwickshire. The name of this community in Anne Arundel County would have a definite link with Scotland if it refers to Chester Alan Arthur, President of the USA between 1881 and 1885.
  • Chamberlea - there is a Chamberwells in Angus, but Chamber occurs more commonly in English place names. According to the House of Names Heraldic website, Chamber is a Scottish family name related to Chambers and Chalmers, though its origin was ultimately Norman and was first recorded in north Wales near the English border.
  • Charlestown (Aberdeenshire, Fife, Highland, Moray and Perth & Kinross) but is just as common in England and is also found in County Mayo, Ireland.
  • Cowdensville - there is a Cowdens in both Dumfries & Galloway and Perth & Kinross. However, Cowden is an English family name and there is a place in Kent called Cowden.
  • Davis - there is a Davishill in Aberdeenshire. However, there is also a Davis's Town in East Sussex, England as well as a wood called Davis's Belt in Suffolk. Moreover, Davis is a common Welsh family name. Since Davis is considered to be a Scots-Irish name in the USA, a Scottish connection with this community in Howard County cannot be ruled out.
  • Dulls Corner (Dull in Perth & Kinross; also Dull Flag in the Orkney Islands and several other places in Scotland whose names begin with 'Dull'). However, Dull is also a German family name.
  • Eastfield (Aberdeenshire, Angus, Scottish Borders, East Lothian, Falkirk, Fife, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross and South Lanarkshire) also found in eight English cities and counties.
  • Fullerton, Fullerton Farms and Fullerton Heights - Fullerton is a small town in Angus; however, there is also a Fullerton in Hampshire, England. The probability of a Scottish or Scots-Irish link with these Baltimore County communities is very high given that the family name Fullerton is chiefly derived from the place name Fullarton in Ayrshire, Scotland.
    
  • Georgetown and Georgetown East - there are places in Dumfries & Galloway, Moray and Renfrewshire called Georgetown. The name is also found, less commonly, in Wales. As in the case of some of the other places throughout North America called Georgetown, the name possibly honours one of the Hanoverian kings or princes of Great Britain. The picture above is of Fort George in Moray, built after the Jacobite Uprising of 1745.
  • Gibson Island - Gibson is a Scottish family name from Galloway. However, the name is also commonly encountered in northern England, e.g., Gibson Knott in Cumbria, Gibson's Cave in County Durham and Gibson's farm in Lancashire. As a family name, Gibson is both Scottish and English.
  • Glen (Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire, Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands) also two places in Ireland; and Glen Brook, Glen Cove Estates, Glen Gardens, Glen Hollow, Glen Ridge and West Glen by association. Glen simply means 'valley' in Gaelic.
  • Glenham-Belford - the Belford part of the name of this Baltimore neighbourhood would have a Scottish connection if it refers to the village of Belford in the Scottish Borders. However, villages with this name are also found in two places in northern England. There are no places in the British Isles called Glenham. As family names, Glenham and Belford are English, from Suffolk and Northumberland respectively. According to information supplied in July 2008 by David McLaughlin, 1 July 2008, the Glenham-Belford neighbourhood actually takes its name from the streets that form its borders (Glenmore, Hamilton, Bel Air, and Harford). Of these streets, only Hamilton and possibly Glenmore are likely to have some Scottish connection.
  • Glenmore and Glenmore Park - there are several places called Glenmore in Argyll & Bute and Highland as well as one just across the border in Cumbria. Glenmore is also found in Ireland, the name being derived from the Gaelic, the meaning of which is 'great valley'.
  • Gray, Gray Haven, Gray Manor, Gray Rock, Gray Rock Farms and Grays Level - there is a Dunhead of Gray and Mains of Gray in Dundee City, as well as numerous other references to Gray as part of place names in Scotland and England. Kenny (1984) attributes the name of the community in Howard County that is simply called Gray to Edward Gray (1776-1856), cotton manufacturer, from Bowera, near Londonderry in Northern Ireland. Since Gray is a Scottish surname, this suggests the probability that Edward Gray was Scots-Irish. The reasons for the naming of the other above-listed communities have not been given but most would probably involve the surname Gray.
  • Harpers Choice and Harpers Mill - there are many places in Scotland featuring the family name of Harper (Harpercroft, Harperdean, Harperfield, Harperhall, Harperhill, Harperland, Harperleas, Harperless, Harperrig, Harperstone and Harpertoun) but this is equally the case in England.
  • Harris Heights - Harris is a large island in the Outer Hebrides (see graphic), though the name also occurs as an element in English and Irish place names. The Isle of Harris is famous for its Harris tweed (twilled woollen fabric with unfinished surface). Harris is also a common English surname.
  • Haven, The - there are places called 'The Haven' in both Highland and the Orkney Islands. However this descriptive name is also used in eastern England.
  • Hilton Place (Hilton can be found in Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll & Bute, Scottish Borders, Clackmannanshire, Fife, Highland, Moray, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross and Stirling) but equally common throughout England.
  • Huntington (Scottish Borders and East Lothian) and Huntington Woods by association. Huntington is also found all over England. There appear to be two neighbourhoods called Huntington, one in Anne Arundel County and the other in Howard County.
  • Jenkins - there is a Jenkins Park in Highland but Jenkins can be found as an element in place names in England and Wales as well, being a common Welsh surname, first found in Monmouthshire. In Maryland, Jenkins is regarded as a Scots-Irish name (Kenny, 1984, p. 21) but it could equally be attributed to descendants of the Pennsylvania Welsh.
  • Lake Walker - there are several places in Scotland based on the surname of Walker. The list includes Walkerburn (Scottish Borders), Walkerdales (Moray), Walkerdyke (South Lanarkshire), Walkerhill (Aberdeenshire and Dumfries & Galloway), Walkersknowe (Scottish Borders), Walkerstrough (Moray) and Walkerton (Fife). Walker is even more commonly found in England, including the town of Walker itself in the Tyneside area of northern England.
  • Lynwood Village - there is a Lynnwood in Scottish Borders as well as just over the border in Cumbria, England.
  • Lyonswood - there are several places in Scotland with Lyon as part of the name (Lyoncross in East Renfrewshire, Lyonshield in North Ayrshire, Lyonston in South Ayrshire and the River Lyon in Perth & Kinross). These names refer, no doubt, to the Scottish family of Lyon or Lyons. However, since the name is of Norman origin, it also occurs widely throughout England, including a place actually called Lyons Wood in Shropshire.
  • Mansfield Woods (Mansfield in East Ayrshire, Fife, Inverclyde, Midlothian and Stirling) also in Nottinghamshire, England.
  • Mayfield and Mayfield Manor - there are many places in Scotland called Mayfield (in Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, City of Edinburgh, Fife, Highland, Midlothian, North Ayrshire, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross, Shetland Islands and South Lanarkshire). Mayfield is also found throughout England but less commonly than in Scotland. As a family name, however, Mayfield is more English than Scottish. There are three localities in Greater Baltimore called Mayfield (in Baltimore City, Anne Arundel County and Howard County).
  • Millwood (South Lanarkshire) also in Cumbria, England.
  • Montford Glen - there is a Montford in Argyll & Bute as well as two places in England but the Glen part of the place name suggests a possible Scottish connection.
  • Montgomery Knolls, Montgomery Manor and Montgomery Woods - Montgomery/Montgomerie is a Scottish surname (of Norman origin), and is also the name of a town and former county in mid-Wales (again of Norman origin). It is possible, however, that the names of these communities in Howard County might honour Irish-born General Richard Montgomery, after whom Montgomery County in Maryland was named. The graphic shows the Montgomery family crest.
  • Morgan Park - Morgan is a Scottish family name. However, it is a very common Welsh family name as well (Morganstown is a suburb of Cardiff in the former Welsh county of Glamorgan) and the name has also been taken to England, e.g., Morgan's Hill in Wiltshire. There are two Baltimore neighbourhoods called Morgan Park, one in the City of Baltimore and the other in Harford County.
  • Mount Hope - Hope is an element in numerous Scottish place names, for example Hopetoun House in West Lothian and Hopefield in East Lothian. Hope is also a noble Scottish family name, the family being descended from John de Hope who probably came to Scotland from France in the 16th century with Magdalen de Valois, the wife of King James V. However, Hope is also considered to be an English family name from Derbyshire and many place names in England have Hope as part of their name.
    
  
  • Mount Wilson, Wilson Heights, Wilson Park and Wilson Point - there are several places in Scotland based on the surname of Wilson. The list includes Wilsonhall (Angus), Wilson Burn and Wilson's Pike (Scottish Borders), Wilson's Noup (Shetland Islands) and Wilsontown (South Lanarkshire). Wilson is even more commonly found in England, including the town of Wilson itself in Herefordshire and Leicestershire. The Scots Wilsons are a sept of Clan Gunn and now have their own family tartan (seen here). Mount Wilson was most probably named for Thomas Wilson, benefactor of the local sanatorium and a leading Quaker merchant (Kenny, 1984, p. 166).
  • Perring Loch - loch is the Scottish word for a lake. Perring, however, is an English family name, particularly numerous in Devon.
  • Randallstown - Randall does not occur in place names in Scotland but it can be found in the names of several places in southern England. There is also a Randalstown in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. Kenny (1984, p. 21) states that the origin of the name of this Baltimore suburb is likely to be Scots-Irish. Randall is an English family name first recorded in Devon. Since about ten percent of the Protestants who were planted in Northern Ireland and who later became known as the 'Scots-Irish' were actually English, it would follow that several surnames regarded in the USA as Scots-Irish, like Randall, Jackson and Reynolds, are really English in the final analysis.
  • Ross Cove and Rossville - there are places called Ross in the Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Highland and Perth & Kinross plus many other places throughout Scotland that have Ross as part of the name. The same is true for England and Ireland, though less commonly so than for Scotland. Ross is of course a fairly common Scottish family name originating nearly 900 years ago from two very different sources: Yorkshire in northern England (the Ayrshire Ross's) and that part of the Highlands of Scotland once known as Ross-shire. It is also an English family name.
    
  
  • Rutherford Greens (Rutherford in Scottish Borders) also in Durham, northern England. The 19th President of the United States was Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1877-1881) after whom this neighbourhood may possibly have been named. The Rutherford family crest is shown here.
  • Scott Acres and Scotts Level - there are numerous places both in Scotland and England with Scott as an element in the name. Scotland's most famous Scott is of course the nineteenth century novelist and poet Sir Walter Scott.
  • Shannon Forest, Shannon Square and Woods of Shannon - Shannon is an ancient Scottish family name from Kintyre and is a sept of Clan MacDonald. It is derived from the Gaelic 'seanain' meaning 'old' or 'wise'. Of course, Shannon is also the name of the most important river in Ireland.
  • South Haven (Shetland Islands) also in Pembrokeshire, Wales.
  • Southfield At Whitemarsh - there is a Southfield in Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Falkirk, Fife, Midlothian, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross and Stirling. Southfield is also found in England and Wales, but less frequently than in Scotland.
  • Springwood (Scottish Borders) also in Staffordshire, England.
  • Summer Hill (East Lothian; also Aberdeen City, Angus, Argyll & Bute, Dumfries & Galloway, and North Lanarkshire, spelt Summerhill). Summer Hill/Summerhill is also a popular name in England and is found in Ireland, Wales and the Isle of Man as well.
  • Summerfield and Summerfield Farms - there are places called Summerfield in Dumfries & Galloway and Perth & Kinross but Summerfield is also found in six English counties. As a family name, Summerfield is both Scottish and English.
  • Taylor Heights - Taylor is a very common surname in both Scotland and England. A survey of surnames undertaken in the 1970s suggests, however, that it is the 5th most common surname in England compared with the 14th in Scotland.
  • Wakefield and Wakefield Meadows - there are two places in Scotland called Wakefield (in Aberdeenshire and Scottish Borders) but far more likely to be named for the large town of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, or an Englishman whose surname was Wakefield.
  • Watson Place - there is a Watson House in Stirling, Watsonburn in East Ayrshire and Watsonfoot, Watsonhead and Watsonmids in North Lanarkshire, all based on this Scottish surname. But since the surname derives from 'son of Walter' it can be found very frequently in England too, mainly in the north.
  • Westfield (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, East Lothian, Falkirk, Fife, Highland, Moray, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian) also found just as frequently throughout England.
  • Westport (Aberdeenshire and Argyll & Bute) also in Somerset, England and County Mayo, Ireland.
  • Woodfield (Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Midlothian, Perth & Kinross and South Ayrshire) also in England and Wales.

  A third category of suburban names comprises places that definitely exist in Scotland, but the likelihood that the Greater Baltimore counterpart was named for Scotland is greatly reduced because these names are associated far more commonly with other parts of the British Isles. Most of the names of these neighbourhoods have an 'international' flavour and several may also have been borrowed from other American cities and towns.

  • Anchorage - there are places in Scotland called The Anchorage (Highland and Moray) and Anchorage Cottage (Stirling) as well as a similar number of places in England.
  • Arbour Green and Arbour Manor - there is an Arbour in Argyll & Bute but Arbour features in many English place names as well.
  • Barrington, Barrington Manor and Barrington Woods - there is a village in Fife called Barrington, but Barrington is also found in two English counties and is an English family name.
  • Beacon Hill (Dumfries & Galloway) but far more commonly found in England and also found in Wales. There are two Greater Baltimore neighbourhoods called Beacon Hill, one in Anne Arundel County and the other in Baltimore County.
  • Beechwood On The Burley (there is a Beechwood in Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway and Highland) though Beechwood is more common in England and is also found in Ireland and Wales.
  • Belmont (Scottish Borders, Shetland Islands and South Ayrshire) and Belmont Park by association. Belmont is also found all over England and in Ireland and Wales (there are at least 22 places called 'Belmont' in the British Isles, including the three in Scotland). Kenny (1984) notes that the name of this district of central Baltimore may be purely descriptive of its elevation, using the French words for 'beautiful hill'; on the other hand, it may have been named for a nearby mansion.
  • Benton Terrace - there is a Benton in Argyll & Bute as well as several places in England.
  • Blythewood - there is a Blyth, Blythe, Blythe Edge, Blythe Rig and Blythe Water in the Scottish Borders and a Blythe's Tower in Fife; also a Blythswood in Renfrewshire. However, there is a river Blythe in Warwickshire, and many other places in England with Blyth or Blythe as an element in the name.
  • Bolton Hill and North Bolton Hill - there is a Bolton in East Lothian as well as in five English counties, including the well-known industrial town of Bolton in Greater Manchester. The 'Live in Baltimore' website attributes the names of these communities to an estate owned by George Grundy, a Baltimore merchant who had emigrated from England at around the time of the American Revolution. He called his estate "Bolton", itself named for an English property called "Bolton-le-Moors." George (2007), however, states that these neighbourhoods "owe their designations to William Wallace Spence, 6th president [of the St. Andrew's Society of Baltimore], whose estate was called Bolton." (p. 231).
  • Booth-Boyd - both elements of the name of this Baltimore neighbourhood can be found in Scotland. There is a Booth in the Orkney Islands, Booth of Toft and Booths in the Shetland Islands, and a water feature called Booths Burn in Dumfries & Galloway. Boyd occurs in Boydston in South Ayrshire and Boydstone in Renfrewshire. Both Boyd and, more especially Booth, occur even more widely in English place names, however.
  • Bowleys Quarters - there is a Bowleys in Fife but Bowley occurs far more commonly in place names in England.
  • Bradshaw (North Ayrshire) also several northern English counties.
  • Brookfield (Renfrewshire) also all over England and on the Isle of Man.
  • Brookfield-Newington - both Brookfield and Newington are found in Scotland as well as in England.
  • Burleigh Manor - there is a Burleigh in Perth & Kinross as well as in two English counties. The Burleigh family built the oddly-shaped castle near Kinross, shown here.
  • Chapel Hill (Aberdeenshire, Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Perth & Kinross and South Lanarkshire) also commonly encountered in England and Wales.
  • Clarksville, Clarksville Meadows and Clarksville Ridge - there is a Clark Fell in Dumfries & Galloway and other references to Clark in Scotland but Clark is also found as a place name element throughout England. These communities in Howard County were most probably named for William Clark, a local farmer whose father came from Northern Ireland after the American Revolution (Kenny, 1984, p. 64). It is possible, therefore, that these could be Scots-Irish (or Anglo-Irish) place names.
  • Clayton (Fife) though found far more frequently throughout England.
  • Cooperfield and Cooperwood - places based on the family name Cooper are found throughout both Scotland and England. Scottish examples include Cooper Cleuch (Scottish Borders), Cooperhill (Aberdeenshire and East Ayrshire) and Cooper's Knowe (Highland). The English list is longer than the Scottish, however.
  • Deer Park (Dumfries & Galloway and Highland) also three places in England and one in Ireland spelt Deerpark. The name is also found in several other American cities.
    
  • Druid, Druid Heights and Druid Hill - there is a place called Druid in Perth & Kinross. There is also a Druid in Devon, England and in Denbighshire, Wales, while several places in England have Druid as part of the name. Druids were priests and soothsayers in ancient Celtic societies. In 1893, William Wallace Spence, the sixth president of the St. Andrews Society of Baltimore, gave the City of Baltimore the William Wallace statue (seen here), which is located in Druid Hill Park and which is an exact replica of the statue of the Wallace Monument in Stirling. Every August, the St.Andrews Society of Baltimore and Clan Wallace Society hold a memorial service in Druid Hill Park.
  • Evergreen, Evergreen Estates, Evergreen Heights, Evergreen Lawn and Evergreen Park - A village in Moray is called Evergreen but this descriptive term is also found as an element in several English place names. It is highly unlikely that these communities have any connection with the place in Scotland.
  • Fairfield, Colony Fairfield and Fairfield Homes - there are at least three places in Scotland called Fairfield (in Clackmannanshire, Shetland Islands and Stirling). Fairfield is even more commonly used as a place name in England and is also used in Ireland.
  • Foxhall Farm (Foxhall is a district in the City of Edinburgh). Foxhall is also found in Ireland and Wales, and seems to be an extremely popular place name in neighbouring Greater Washington DC as well.
  • Garland and Garland Park - there is a place in Moray called Garland. As a surname, however, Garland is associated far more strongly with the English counties of Gloucestershire and Somerset than with counties in Scotland, according to 1891 census returns.
  • Garth (Angus, Falkirk, Highland, Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands) but is even more commonly found throughout Wales and is also found in England and the Isle of Man but far less frequently than in Scotland and Wales.
  • Glebe Heights - there is a Glebe in Highland, Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands, but Glebe is found just as commonly in both England and Ireland. Glebe is an Old English word for land put aside for church use.
  • Glen Morris - there is a Morrispark in Dumfries & Galloway, a Morriston in South Ayrshire and Morriston Cott in the Scottish Borders, but Morris occurs far more frequently in place names in England and Wales. Morris is also a common Welsh surname as well as a personal name.
  • Glenn Heights - this name has a certain Scottish ring to it. According to the House of Names Heraldic website, however, Glenn is considered to be an English family name, though its origin is said to have been in Peebleshire, a former Scottish county near the English border.
  • Grange (Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, Fife, Highland, Midlothian, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross, South Lanarkshire and West Lothian). There are also many other places in Scotland with Grange as an element in the name, but Grange is even more popular in England than it is in Scotland and is also fairly commonly used in parts of Ireland and Wales.
  • Greengate (Aberdeenshire) also three places in England.
  • Greenwood, Greenwood Acres, Greenwood Farms and Greenwood Manor - Greenwood is the name of at least three places in Scotland (in the Scottish Borders, Moray and South Lanarkshire) but is also found in England and in County Mayo, Ireland. The name occurs quite commonly throughout the English-speaking world and was possibly popularised by Robin Hood's forest abode, 'The Greenwood'.
  • Hallfield Manor - there is a Hallfield in South Lanarkshire as well as in five northern English counties.
  • Harold Heights - there is a Harold's Tower in Highland, Haroldsgarth in the Orkney Islands and Haroldswick in the Shetland Islands. Harold occurs even more commonly in English place names, however, and is also found in two Welsh counties. The House of Names Heraldic website considers Harold to be a Scottish family name from Argyllshire.
  • Hawthorn (Scottish Borders) and Hawthorn North by association; but Hawthorn is found far more frequently in England and is also found in Wales.
  • Haywood Heights - there is a Haywood in South Lanarkshire as well as in five English counties. Haywood is an English family name.
  • Hillside (Aberdeenshire, Angus, City of Edinburgh, Dumfries & Galloway, Fife, Inverclyde, Moray, Orkney Islands, Perth & Kinross, Shetland Islands and South Lanarkshire) and Hillside Hunt and Hillside Park by association. Hillside is just as commonly found in England (sometimes spelt Hill Side) and is also found in Wales.
  • Hilltop and Hilltop Estates - there is a Hilltop in Dumfries & Galloway, but Hilltop is far more common throughout England and is often spelt Hill Top.
  • Holland Hills - there is a Holland in the Orkney Islands as well as in three English counties. Holland is an Old English name meaning 'land of hill spurs', though it may also refer to the Dutch province of Holland.
  • Hunters Glen, Hunters Glen South, Hunters Hill and Hunters Run - Hunter occurs in many place names throughout Scotland. The list includes Aberdeenshire (Hunter's Hill and Lodge), Angus (Hunter's Path and Hunters Hill), Argyll & Bute (Hunter's Quay), Scottish Borders (Hunter Hill and Huntershall), Dumfries & Galloway (Hunter House, Hunter's Gate, Hunterheck), East Ayrshire (Hunter's Meadow, Hunterston), North Ayrshire (Hunterston, Hunterston House, Hunterston Sands), Perth & Kinross (Hunterhall) and South Lanarkshire (Hunterlees). Hunter is found even more commonly throughout England. The clan crest is illustrated here.
  • Kings Park (City of Glasgow and Stirling) also in Bournemouth, England and Carmarthenshire, Wales.
  • Kingston Heights (Kingston in Angus, City of Glasgow, East Lothian, Moray and Renfrewshire). Kingston is also found all over southern England and in Ireland and Wales.
  • Kingswood (Perth & Kinross) but found throughout England and is also found in Ireland and Wales. Kingswood Common (another Greater Baltimore community) is found only in England. There are two neighbourhoods called Kingswood, one in Anne Arundel County and the other in Harford County.
  • Linwood (Renfrewshire) also in two English counties.
  • Long Green Manor - there is a Long Green in Edinburgh and East Ayrshire as well as six places in England.
  • Long Hill (Aberdeenshire, Fife, Highland, North Ayrshire and Shetland Islands) but is even more popular in England and is also found in Wales.
  • Lynn Acres - there is a Lynn in the Orkney Islands as well as in two English counties.
  • Masonville - there is a Mason Lodge in Aberdeenshire and Masonhill in South Ayrshire; also five places in northern and central England with Mason as an element in the name. As a family name, Mason could be English, Scottish or French.
  • Mill Hill (Aberdeenshire, as well as other places in Scotland spelt Millhill) but far more commonly found throughout England, including the well-known north London suburb.
  • Millersville and Millersville Forest - Miller occurs frequently in place names in Scotland (for example, Millerhill in Midlothian and Millerston in Glasgow) but it occurs even more frequently in English place names. These communities in Anne Arundel County were named for George Miller, owner of a store and residence in the area in the mid-nineteenth century (Kenny, 1984). Miller's ancestry has not been reported.
  • Mount Pleasant and Mount Pleasant Beach - one of the most popular of place names throughout the English-speaking world, there are numerous places across Scotland called Mount Pleasant (in Aberdeenshire, Argyll & Bute, Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, East Ayrshire, Fife, Highland, Moray and Orkney Islands). Mount Pleasant is also found all over England, Ireland and Wales as well as Australia, Canada and the USA it would seem.
  • Norwood Heights - there is a Norwood in Dumfries & Galloway, though the Baltimore neighbourhood is much more likely to have been named for the suburb in south London or other places in England. Norwood Park, the name of another Baltimore neighbourhood, is found only in England.
  • Oakwood (Scottish Borders, Moray and Perth & Kinross) also six places in England; and Oakwood Manor, Oakwood Park and Oakwood Village by association.
  • Ogleton - there are water features called Ogle Burn in East Lothian and Ogle Linn in Dumfries & Galloway but places with Ogle as part of the name are found more typically across the border in Northumberland and other parts of northern England.
  • Old Mill and Old Mill Bottom Estates - there is a place called Old Mill in Highland as well as in four English counties. 'Old Mill Bottom' sounds distinctly English.
  • Park Hill Edgegreen - there is a Park Hill in the Scottish Borders, Dumfries & Galloway and South Ayrshire as well as a Parkhill in Aberdeenshire, Angus, Fife, Inverclyde and Perth & Kinross. Park Hill/Parkhill is also found in many English counties. Edgegreen, on the other hand, is not found anywhere in the British Isles.
  • Parkside Heights - there is a Parkside in Aberdeenshire, Angus, North Lanarkshire and Perth & Kinross. Parkside is also a common place name in England and Wales.
  • Porters Park - there is a Porterstown in both Aberdeenshire and Dumfries & Galloway, Porterfield in Renfrewshire, Porterhall in South Lanarkshire and Porterside in West Lothian. Places with Porter as part of their name are even more commonly found throughout England.
  • Primrose Acres - there is a Primrose in Fife, but Primrose occurs far more frequently in place names throughout England.
  • Riding Woods - there is a Ridinghill in Aberdeenshire, and a Riding Hill and Riding Stack in the Shetland Islands. Places with Riding as part of the name are more numerous in England. The word 'riding' could refer either to a division of an administrative county or to horse riding.
  • Riverside and Riverside Estates - this descriptive name can be found in Stirling but is also used in England and Wales. Riverside Park, a district of Baltimore City, is found only in England. There are three localities in Greater Baltimore called Riverside (in Baltimore City, Harford County and Howard County). Most, if not all, of these names are probably purely descriptive, with no intended reference to any particular place in Britain.
  • Sanders Beach and Sanders Park - there is a Sanders Loch in Highland and Sandersdean in East Lothian. Sanders is also commonly found in English place names. As a family name, Sanders is both Scottish and English.
  • Silver Hill (Dumfries & Galloway and Highland) and Silver Hill Farm by association; Silver Hill is also found in five English counties.
  • Slacks Corner - there are places called Slacks in Dumfries & Galloway and East Ayrshire, Slackshaw Burn in East Ayrshire, Slacks of Cairnbanno, Slacks of Glencarvie and Slacks of Pitreadie in Aberdeenshire and a hill called The Slacks in West Dunbartonshire. Places with 'Slack' in their name are also numerous elsewhere in Scotland and to a lesser extent in northern England. However, Slack is also an English family name from Yorkshire.
  • Southview (Shetland Islands, spelt South View) though far more commonly found in England.
  • Spencer Gardens - there is a Spencerfield in Fife, but Spencer is encountered far more frequently as an element in place names in England.
  • St Agnes (Scottish Borders) also in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in England.
  • St Johns Green, St Johns Manor, St Johns Village and St Johns Woods - numerous places in both Scotland and England are dedicated to St John. Scottish examples include St Johns (Scottish Borders), St John's Head (Orkney Islands), St John's Hill (Aberdeenshire), St John's Loch and Point (Highland), St John's Wells (Aberdeenshire) and St John's Kirk (South Lanarkshire). John Knox, who led the Reformation of the church in Scotland, preached in St John's Kirk in Perth (seen here) in May 1559. English examples are even more numerous including the well-known inner London suburb of St John's Wood.
  • The Dales (Fife) also in four English counties.
  • The Hill Farm (The Hill in Dumfries & Galloway and East Ayrshire) but The Hill is commonly found throughout England and is also found in Wales.
  • Todds Lakes - there is a Todd's Hole in Angus. Todd occurs even more frequently in place names in England, particularly in the north.
  • Warren (Angus) also in England and Wales. Place names beginning with Warren are found very commonly throughout Britain and in Ireland. Those in Scotland include Warren Wood (Aberdeenshire), Warrenhall (Orkney Islands) and Warrenhill (South Lanarkshire).
  • Wellington, Wellington Valley and Wellington Woods - Wellington is a village in Aberdeenshire; there is also Wellington House in Midlothian. As is to be expected, Wellington is far more commonly found as place names in England. The names of these Greater Baltimore neighbourhoods possibly recall the Duke of Wellington, of Battle of Waterloo fame though this seems unlikely given the British bombardment of Baltimore in 1814, only a year before the Battle of Waterloo.
  • Wilton Farm Acres and Wiltondale - there is a Wilton, Wilton Burn, Wiltonburn Hill and Wilton Dean in the Scottish Borders, but Wilton occurs far more frequently in English place names and is also an English family name.
  • Woodcroft (Aberdeenshire; also Woodcraft farm in Dumfries & Galloway) but found more commonly in southern England.
  • Woodland Beach, Woodland Run and Woodland Village - there is a Woodland in South Ayrshire as well as in five English counties.
  • Woodlands (Aberdeenshire, Argyll & Bute, Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Fife, Highland, Perth & Kinross, South Lanarkshire) also all over England and is found in Ireland and Wales as well.
  • Woodside and Woodside Square - this descriptive name can be found in various parts of Scotland (in Aberdeen City, Dumfries & Galloway, City of Glasgow, Fife, Moray, North Ayrshire, Perth & Kinross) but is also found all over England.
  • Woodstock (Orkney Islands, and the title of one of Sir Walter Scott's novels) but the name is found more frequently in England and is also found in Wales. Woodstock is also a very popular name in the USA itself. Kenny (1984) supposes that the name of this community in Howard County is from Oxfordshire, England since this was the origin of the name Woodstock in both Connecticut and Vermont. However, it is interesting to note that Kelley (cited in Kenny) mentions a Dr William Murray of "Woodstock", while Kenny himself notes that Governor George Howard's estate "Waverly" was near Woodstock, Howard County. Both Waverley and Woodstock are works by Sir Walter Scott, which raises the possibility that Greater Baltimore's Woodstock may have been named for the novel rather than the place in Oxfordshire, in which event a definite Scottish connection could be claimed.

  A final category of neighbourhood and suburban names comprises places that can be found in Scotland, but which, in Baltimore's case, definitely or most probably have no connection with Scotland.

  • Ashland (Dumfries & Galloway) also in two English counties. According to Kenny (1984), this community was named for the Ashland Iron Furnace, which, in turn, most probably derived its name from ash trees in the area.
  • Baltimore (Aberdeenshire) and Baltimore Highlands, East Baltimore, South Baltimore and West Baltimore by association. Baltimore is also found in County Cork, Ireland. The City of Baltimore is of course named for the Calvert family. George Calvert (circa 1580-1632), the English-born 1st Baron Baltimore, was obliged to resign as Secretary of State on declaring himself a Catholic, but was created a Baron in the Irish peerage. Thus, although Baltimore can be found in Scotland, the name of the city actually came from the Calvert estates in Ireland.
  • Belvedere and Belvedere Heights - there is a Belvedere in West Lothian as well as in London and Norfolk; also the famous Belvedere Palace in Vienna, Austria. Belvedere was a popular choice of name for localities during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines a belvedere as a "raised turret to view scenery from" (a word formed from the Italian words for 'beautiful' and 'see'). The names of these neighbourhoods probably came from the mansion of John Eager Howard, a Revolutionary War hero whose parents came from the Manchester area in northern England (Christopher George, personal communication).
  • Benfield (Dumfries & Galloway) also two places in northern England. According to Kenny (1984, p. 40), the name of this community in Anne Arundel County is from the family name Benfield, which is English.
  • Bush (Aberdeenshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Moray and Perth & Kinross) also found in England and Wales. According to Kenny (1984), the community in Harford County takes its name from the Bush River, which in turn probably described the bushy terrain through which the river flowed.
  • Chesterfield (Scottish Borders) and Chesterfield Gardens and Chesterfield Plaza by association; there are also two places in England called Chesterfield. Kenny (1984) states that the origin of these names is probably Chesterfield in Derbyshire, England.
  • Fairhaven Beach - there is a Fairhaven in North Ayrshire; also in East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Kenny (1984) attributes a purely descriptive reason for the name of this community in Anne Arundel County.
  • Furnace Branch - there is a Furnace in Argyll & Bute and Highland, as well as in two Welsh counties. There are also several places in England with Furnace as part of the name. Since this neighbourhood in the southern suburbs was the site of an early furnace and ironworks, the name is purely descriptive of that fact (Kenny, 1984).
  • Garrison, Garrison Farms, Garrison Forest, Garrison Ridge and Fort Garrison - there is a 'Garrison' in Stirling as well as in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, while 'Garrison' also forms part of the name of several places in England. In the case of the communities in the northern metropolitan area of Baltimore, the names refer most probably to a nearby army garrison built at the close of the seventeenth century "to keep the Indians away" (Kenny, 1984, p. 96).
  • Hampden - there is a Hampden Park in the City of Glasgow (illustrated here), but places with Hampden as an element in the name are very common throughout England. The 'Live in Baltimore' website attributes an English origin to the name of this Baltimore neighbourhood. Henry Mankin, a property developer, apparently named the community after John Hampden (1594-1643). Hampden was a Member of the English Parliament and one of the prime instigators of the English Civil War of the 17th century. He was viewed as a champion of the people because of his stand against taxation without parliamentary representation.
  • Harwood and Harwood Park - there are places in the Scottish Borders and West Lothian called Harwood; also Harwood Burn in the Scottish Borders and East Ayrshire, Harwood Moss, Harwood-on-Teviot, Harwood Rig and Harwoodmill in the Scottish Borders, and Harwood Water in West Lothian. Places with Harwood as an element in the name are even more numerous throughout England, especially in the north. Kenny (1984) attributes these names to descendants of either Robert Harwood or Thomas Harwood. Thomas Harwood came from Middlesex, England (now part of London).
  • Irvington - although there is a village in Dumfries & Galloway called Irvington, the name of this Baltimore neighbourhood has no real connection with Scotland. The 'Live in Baltimore' website provides the following account of the origin of the name of the neighbourhood. "In 1874, C. Irving Ditty, an attorney and Collector of the Port of Baltimore bought a large section of land in the area that would later take his name. Ditty laid out and named the local streets, both of which, streets and names, are still used today." Ditty is an English family name from Yorkshire. The name of this Baltimore neighbourhood is therefore only coincidentally Scottish since it has nothing to do with the village in Scotland, nor the surname Irving.
  • Joppa (a district of Edinburgh and a village in South Ayrshire) and Joppa Heights, Joppa Hills, Joppa Landing, Joppa Manor, Joppa Vale, Joppa View and Joppatowne by association. This Biblical name is also found in Wales and Cornwall. Kenny (1984) states that the names of these communities have a biblical origin, especially since there are other communities in this part of Greater Baltimore with Biblical names, e.g. Jerusalem. It is therefore highly unlikely that any of the places in Scotland or the rest of Britain were responsible for the name Joppa.
  • Lake Roland, Roland Heights, Roland Park, North Roland Park, Roland Place, Roland Springs and Roland Terrace - although Roland is a Scottish family name from Ayrshire, there appears to be no connection with Scotland in the case of these neighbourhoods and suburbs. According to the 'Live in Baltimore' website, the neighbourhood of Roland Park "indirectly derives its name from Lake Roland, located to the north, which in turn is named for a Baltimore County landowner, Roland Thornberry." 'Roland' therefore appears to be a reference to a personal rather than a family name, with Thornberry sounding very English. It is possible, of course, that the names of some of the neighbourhoods listed above that are located in Howard or Anne Arundel Counties might be attributable to someone whose surname was Roland.
  • Mount Vernon (City of Glasgow) also in Lancashire, England. "Mt. Vernon acquired its land and name during the 19th century when John Eager Howard and his heirs donated the highest point in Baltimore to become the site for the first memorial to George Washington. The site of the Washington Monument in Mt. Vernon Square is generally regarded as one of the most beautiful urban sites in the world." (Live in Baltimore). Mount Vernon was the name of George Washington's estate in Virginia.
  • Old Town (Aberdeen City and City of Edinburgh; also Old Town Burn and Old Town Covert in the Scottish Borders) but found far more commonly in England and Ireland. Old Town (earlier known as Jones Town) is the oldest part of Baltimore City, which suggests a purely descriptive reason for the name of this neighbourhood. Edinburgh Old Town is shown in the graphic.
  • Paradise, Paradise Beach, Paradise Heights and Paradise Manor - there are places in Aberdeenshire and Fife called 'Paradise' as well as many places in English cities and counties. The names of these Baltimore communities are very likely to be purely descriptive of idyllic locations rather than having been borrowed from places in Scotland or England.
  • Pumphrey - this is a Scottish surname, according to the House of Names Heraldic website. Black (1996), the authority on Scottish family names, notes that the name is found in Lanark by 1488 and later in Glasgow, its origin being Welsh ('ap Hwfre', meaning 'son of Humphrey). The origin of the name of this suburb in Anne Arundel County is neither Scottish nor Welsh, however. According to the article on Pumphrey retrieved from Wikipedia in February 2009, the community was named for Charles Pumphrey, a landowner in the 1870s. Charles was a direct descendent of Walter Pumphrey, a Quaker who had emigrated from England and arrived in Burlington, New Jersey, on a "boat load of Quakers" in 1678 and who subsequently moved to the Baltimore area in 1708 to provide carpentry services to the many Quakers in the city.
  • Swansfield (Scottish Borders). Although the name occurs only in Scotland and not elsewhere in the British Isles, the origin of the name of this neighbourhood in Columbia, Howard County, is unlikely to have any connection with Scotland. According to an article in Wikipedia, the name was inspired by the paintings of James McNeill Whistler, a 19th century American artist who was based mainly in Britain.
  • Turner (Stirling). There is also a Turner Cleuch Law in Scottish Borders, Turner's Monument in Dumfries & Galloway, Turnerhall in Aberdeenshire and Turnerhill in East Ayrshire) but Turner as part of a place name is very common throughout England as well as Scotland. Kenny (1984) is inclined to attribute the name of this Baltimore County community (which is also known as Turner's Station) to William Turner or his brother, who came to Baltimore from England in 1795, or a descendant of this family, Lewis Turner, who was a prominent butcher.
  • Waterloo (Aberdeenshire, Highland, North Lanarkshire, Perth & Kinross and Shetland Islands) also fifteen places in England, Ireland and Wales. Kenny (1984) states that "doubtless the name commemorates the famous battle (1815)" in which Napoleon was defeated. Waterloo is a village south of Brussels in Belgium.

  Other place names in Greater Baltimore that have a "Scottish ring" to them, but that have not yet been connected with places or names that are actually found in Scotland include:

  Bar Kess Heights, Gaman Orchards, Glenbauer, Glenmar, Glenmar Manor, Glenmont, Melvale, Padonia Park and Thistle.

  Thistle sounds Scottish mainly because it is one of Scotland's national symbols (King James VII of Scotland - James II of England - founded the Order of the Thistle in 1687) but there are in fact many more places in England than in Scotland which have 'thistle' in their name. Concerning Bar Kess Heights, Kess is said to be a Scottish family name from Lanarkshire, one of the many variants of Cassie or Caisey, but this has not been confirmed by Black (1996), the authority on Scottish family names. Similarly, Gaman and Melvale are said to be Scottish family names but are not mentioned by Black. Padonia Park, on the other hand, may have a Scottish link if it is based on the family name of Padon, which Black suggests is a variant of the Scottish name Paton. Glenbauer is particularly interesting since it may represent a Scottish-German combination of place name elements. Similarly, Glenmont could well represent a Scots-French combination. Glenmar and Glenmar Manor might possibly be named for one of the Earls of Mar. John Erskine, 6th or 11th Earl of Mar (1675-1732) headed the Jacobite rebellion of 1715, aimed at restoring the Stewarts to the throne, but was defeated by the Duke of Argyll's government forces at Sheriffmuir. On the other hand, 'mar' may simply be a contraction of 'Maryland'.
  

  Acknowledgements:

  • webite.
  • Baltimore City Map (Rand McNally, 1999).
  • Black, George F. (1996). The Surnames of Scotland. (Edinburgh: Birlinn Ltd).
  • George, C.T. (2007). Scots in Maryland & a History of the St. Andrew's Society of Baltimore, 1806-2006. (Timonium, Maryland: St. Andrew's Society of Baltimore). Christopher George reviewed an earlier draft of this article and supplied valuable information on the origins of the names of several Baltimore communities and neighbourhoods.
  • House of Names Heraldic website.
  • Kenny, Hamill (1984). The Place Names of Maryland: Their Origin and Meaning. (Baltimore: Maryland Historical Society).
  • Live in Baltimore Neighborhood Profiles.
  • Mapquest.com and Maps.yahoo.com, for the location of outlying suburbs.
  • Tony Orndoff, Library Director, Historical Society of Baltimore County.
  • Room, Adrian (2003). The Penguin Dictionary of British Place Names. (London: Penguin Books).
  • Scarlett, James D. (1975). The Tartans of the Scottish Clans. (Glasgow and London: Collins).
  • Geordie Shaw, Genealogist, Clan Shaw Society, Felton, PA.
  • Thorne, J.O. and Collocott, T.C. (Editors) (1974). Chambers Biographical Dictionary (Revised Edition). (Edinburgh: W & R Chambers).
  • James L. Wallace, Clan Wallace Society, USA for photographs of the William Wallace plaque and statue in Druid Park, Baltimore.
  • Visitor's Map of Annapolis, Maryland (ADC The Map People, 3rd Edition).
  • Wikipedia - article on Baltimore neighborhoods.
  • Websites, place name gazetteers and published Ordnance Survey maps of British and Irish cities, towns, villages and counties.

  © Ian Kendall
  Melbourne, Australia, October 2004
  Revised January 2008

  If you wish to contact Ian about his research, his e-mail address is ian.kendall1@bigpond.com.

Where else would you like to go in Scotland?

Links Pages  Accommodation  Archaeology  Architecture  Arts      Art     Festivals     Music/Dance     Theatre     Cinema     TV/Radio  Bagpipes  Businesses  Castles     Castle Collections     Alphabetic List  Celts  Clans     Clan Societies     Tartans     Regiments     Scots Abroad  Education  Employment  Environment     Animals     Wildlife  Events  Famous Scots  Food/Drink  Gaelic/Scots  Genealogy

Links Pages  Government  History  Humour  Information  Literature     Online texts  Magazines  Museums  Music/Dance  Newspapers  Poetry  Politics  Religion  Scots/Gaelic  Shopping  Sport  Tartans  Tourism     Across Scotland     Edinburgh     Glasgow     Aberdeen     Highlands     Central     Borders     Accommodation     Airline Services     Castles     Info Sources     Tours/Guides

Feature Pages Recent Additions   Scottie's Diary    Scottish Newsletter   News & Views   Memory Lane Feature Pages  All Features Index  Search This Site  Bookstore  Butterflies of Scotland  Castle Photo Library  Clan/Family Histories  Castles To Stay In  Desktop Graphics  Did You Know?  Edinburgh Photos  Family Tree Research  Famous Scots  Famous Scots Quiz  Feedback/Contact  Flowers of Scotland  Glasgow Photo Library  Great Places to Stay  Great Places to Eat  Haunted Castles  History Quiz  History Timeline  Humour/Humor  Inventions & Discoveries  Limericks  Monarchs of Scotland  Parliamo Scots

Feature Pages    Scottish Pictorial Calendar   Scotland in Colour - Week By Week  Places to Visit  Poetry from Scotland  Quotable Scots  Romantic Scotland  Recipes  Scottish Banknotes  Scottish Battles  Scottish Festivals  Scottish Forenames  Scottish Myths & Legends  Scottish Parliament  Scottish Place Names  Scottish Proverbs  Scottish Tattoo  Screensavers  Slideshow 2006  Slideshow 2007  Slideshow 2008  Slideshow 2009  Songs of Scotland  St Andrew Societies  Symbols of Scotland  Tartan Day  Traditional Festivals  Where Am I? Quiz  Webcams in Scotland