Silver Spring, Maryland
Silver Spring is a census-designated place (CDP) in southeastern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, near Washington, D.C. Although officially unincorporated, it is an edge city with a population of 81,015 at the 2020 census, making it the fifth-most populous place in Maryland after Baltimore, Columbia, Germantown, and Waldorf.
Silver Spring, Maryland | |
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Clockwise from top: AFI Silver, Veteran's Plaza and the civic building, Downtown Silver Spring from the Metro station, Acorn Park, Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Station | |
Location of Silver Spring in Montgomery County, Maryland (left) and of Montgomery County in Maryland (right) | |
Silver Spring Silver Spring | |
| Coordinates: 39°00′09″N 77°01′15″W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Maryland |
| County | Montgomery |
| Area | |
| • Total | 7.91 sq mi (20.49 km2) |
| • Land | 7.88 sq mi (20.42 km2) |
| • Water | 0.03 sq mi (0.08 km2) |
| Elevation | 341 ft (104 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
| • Total | 81,015 |
| • Density | 10,277.18/sq mi (3,968.02/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (EDT) |
| ZIP Codes |
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| Area codes | 301, 240 |
| FIPS code | 24-72450 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0591290 |
| Highways | |
Downtown Silver Spring, located next to the northern tip of Washington, D.C., is the oldest and most urbanized area of Silver Spring, surrounded by several inner suburban residential neighborhoods inside the Capital Beltway. Many mixed-use developments combining retail, residential, and office space have been built since 2004.
Silver Spring takes its name from a mica-flecked spring discovered there in 1840 by Francis Preston Blair, who subsequently bought much of the area's surrounding land. Acorn Park, south of downtown, is believed to be the site of the original spring.