Silver Spring, Maryland is located in Montgomery County. It was once a sleepy suburb of Washington, D.C. but has grown rapidly into a thriving city on its own. The current population is close to 100,000 people. It has northern weather: Cold in the winter, occasionally snowy, and warm to hot in the summer with humidity and rain. The name comes from a spring that seemed flecked with silver. It was founded in 1840.
The city is created by many neighborhoods and the city’s Downtown now has a skyline. Numerous developments surround the city proper and are considered Silver Spring neighborhoods, such as Kemp Mill and Rock Creek Forest, while Downtown, Seven Oaks, Montgomery Hills and others are actual parts of the city. Real estate companies listed in Maryland's yellow pages show new home construction and resale houses.
Many of the people working in the Federal government in Washington live in Silver Spring because of its proximity and convenience. Sligo Creek and Rock Creek Parks run around and through the city, offering jogging, hiking, biking and riding paths, not to mention alternative routes into the District. Acorn Park is said to be the site of the Silver Spring that gave the city its name.
Discovery Communications has made its world headquarters in the city. There is a film festival that is held annually, hosted by Discovery and the American Film Institute at the American Film Institute Silver Theatre and Culture Center. The Jazz Festival draws some of the top performers of the genre. Numerous restaurants of multi-national traditions are in abundance, including Latin, Lebanese, African, Vietnamese and of course American cuisine. The restaurants listed in the local business directory are a veritable trip around the globe.
If American history is your forte, Washington, D.C. is a short drive.