Hancock, Maryland, United States

🇺🇸 Hancock is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The Western Maryland community is notable for being located at the narrowest part of the state. The north–south distance from the Pennsylvania state line to the West Virginia state line is only 1.8 miles (2.9 km) at Hancock.

History The name Hancock comes from Edward Joseph Hancock, Jr., who fought alongside George Washington during the American Revolutionary War. Individuals began settling in the area of modern-day Hancock during the 1730s. During the Civil War, on January 5, 1862, General Stonewall Jackson began the siege of the town, but did not succeed due to weather conditions.

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.75 square miles (7.12 km²), of which 2.73 square miles (7.07 km²) is land and 0.02 square miles (0.05 km²) is water.

The state of Maryland narrows to a width of less than two miles (3 km) in the Hancock area—the smallest non-vertex border-to-border distance of any U.S. state.

The Chesapeake & Ohio Canal passes through the town, and the Western Maryland Rail Trail connects Hancock with Fort Frederick State Park.

Government The town government consists of five elected officials: a Mayor and four members of the Town Council. Council members are elected to four-year terms, while the Mayor is elected to a two-year term. Hancock is one of the smallest municipalities in the state of Maryland.

Transport The primary means of travel to and from Hancock is by road. Interstate 70 is the main highway serving the town. I-70 continues east to Baltimore and west to the southern suburbs of Pittsburgh. U.S. Route 40 runs concurrently with I-70 through the town, but just to the north-west, splits with I-70 to follow Interstate 68 westward towards Cumberland. U.S. Route 522 also traverses Hancock, heading north-west with I-70 into Pennsylvania and southward into eastern West Virginia towards Winchester, Virginia. Within the town, Maryland Route 144 serves as a local service route, following Main Street.