Silver Spring

Silver Spring, located inside the Capital Beltway in Montgomery County, Maryland, is a bustling and thriving community that has undergone a significant transformation in recent years. With a population of 76,716, it is the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown. The community is divided into several neighborhoods, including Downtown Silver Spring, East Silver Spring, and Woodside Park.

The southernmost part of Silver Spring is an urbanized business hub that lies at the north apex of Washington, D.C. The community takes its name from a mica-flecked spring discovered in 1840 by Francis Preston Blair, who subsequently bought much of the surrounding land. Acorn Park, believed to be the site of the original spring, is a hidden gem tucked away in an area of south Silver Spring away from the main downtown area.

Beginning in 2004, the downtown area underwent a major redevelopment, resulting in the creation of a new outdoor shopping plaza called "Downtown Silver Spring". This redevelopment was marketed with the "silver sprung" advertising campaign, which declared that Silver Spring had "sprung" and was ready for business. Today, the downtown area has become a hub for entertainment, musical, and ethnic festivals. The most notable of these are the Silverdocs documentary film festival held each June, hosted by Discovery Communications and the American Film Institute, and the annual Thanksgiving Day Parade for Montgomery County. The Silver Spring Jazz Festival, drawing 20,000 people to the free festival held on the second Saturday in September, has become the biggest event of the year.

In addition to its vibrant downtown area, Silver Spring is also a major transportation hub, serviced by the Brunswick Line of the MARC Train, Metrorail Red Line, Metrobus, Ride On, and the free VanGo. The bus terminal at the Silver Spring Rail Station is the busiest in the entire Washington Metro Area, providing connections between several transit services and serving nearly 60,000 passengers daily.