Maryland Route 161
State highway in Harford County, Maryland, US
Maryland Route 161 (MD 161) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs 5.38 miles (8.66 km) from MD 155 in Hopewell Village north to U.S. Route 1 (US 1) in Darlington. MD 161, in conjunction with MD 155, connects Havre de Grace with Susquehanna State Park and northeastern Harford County. The state highway was mostly constructed in the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Route description
MD 161 begins at an intersection with MD 155 (Level Road) in Hopewell Village, which is also known as Level. The state highway heads north as two-lane undivided Darlington Road through farmland. A short distance north of MD 155, MD 161 intersects Rock Run Road, which heads northeast toward Susquehanna State Park. After passing through the Silver Houses Historic District, the state highway crosses Deer Creek. At Trappe Church Road, MD 161's name changes to Main Street and the highway passes through the village of Darlington, which is contained within its own historic district. At the north end of the village, the state highway meets the southern end of MD 623 (Castleton Road) and passes northeast of the Deer Creek Friends Meetinghouse before reaching its northern terminus at US 1 (Conowingo Road).
The public source identifies “Maryland Route 161” as state highway in Harford County, Maryland, US. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Maryland, Route and State.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Maryland Route 161”, the useful work is to connect “state highway in Harford County, Maryland, US” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 4, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q2449665. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Maryland Route 161”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Maryland Route 161 primary sources, Maryland Route 161 archive and Maryland research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Maryland Route 161”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Maryland Route 161” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.