CHARLES COUNTY, Md. — Charles County has a birthday with a twist: The name existed on Maryland’s map before the county residents know today.
The first Charles County was established in 1650. It was abolished a few years later, and in 1658, the name returned. This time for a different stretch of land along the Potomac River.
It is an unusual beginning for a place now recognized by its familiar towns, roads and communities. But the county’s early history was shaped by changing boundaries and colonial government, long before the modern map took shape…