Crime Scene & Biohazard Cleanup Near Overbrook Braddock Heights, MD

Braddock Heights is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Frederick County, Maryland, sitting atop Braddock Mountain near the Braddock Springs pass.

The area is named for British General Edward Braddock and Lieutenant Colonel George Washington, who used the mountain pass on April 29, 1755, on their way toward Fort Duquesne during the French and Indian War.

Braddock Heights was founded in 1896 by George William Smith as a summer resort community that grew to include several hotels, a community pool, a wooden-floor skating rink, an amusement park, scenic overlooks, nature trails, and, until 1980, a small ski resort.

It was one of the first modern planned communities in the United States, and custom housing development there has continued since 1901.

The resort hosted many national political figures, including President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Chief Justice Earl Warren, Ethel Kennedy, then-Senator Richard Nixon, and Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.

Braddock Heights was once home to the Stargaze Skateway, billed as the oldest roller rink in the United States; restored in 1987, it burned to the ground in an arson fire on August 18, 1998.

After World War II and the decline of its amusement park, Braddock Heights changed from summer boarding houses to a year-round residential community and, like the Maryland cottage parks of Pen Mar and Glen Echo, evolved into an artisans' community.

According to the 2020 census, Braddock Heights had a population of 3,075, up 17.9 percent from 2,608 in 2010, with 1,259 total housing units.

The community uses ZIP codes 21703 for street addresses and 21714 for post office boxes, covers about 5.35 square miles, and its community association and historical society hold public events at Braddock Heights Park.