From its founding nearly three centuries ago on the frontier of colonial Maryland to today's thriving suburban developments on the edge of the nation's capital, Prince George's County has often played a pivotal role in American history. Among the visible records of that history is the county's rich architectural legacy, including more than 250 sites designated as county landmarks and 60 listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Landmarks of Prince George's County brings together 125 photographs byjack Boucher, chief photographer for the Interior Department's Historic American Buildings Survey, the nation's oldest federal preservation program and one long regarded as setting the national standard for architectural documentation. This book is an outgrowth of a unique cooperative project between the Historic American Buildings Survey and Prince George's County to document the county's historic resources. Featured are a wide range of buildings, from historic houses to churches, schools, and commercial and agricultural structures. The residences include the ruins of early 18th-century Want Water, the beautifully restored Federal-style Montpelier, and the exuberant Queen Anne suburban dwellings of the turn of this century. Here also are John Coffren's store in rural Croom, built in 1853 and virtually intact both inside and out, and Hyattsville Hardware, a typical late 19th century urban business. Among the many churches shown is the oldest surviving in the county, St Paul's Episcopal in Baden, completed in 1735. A pair of barns near Mitchellville - one antebellum, the other late Victorian - reflect the region's post-Civil War shift from tobacco to livestock and fodder crops. The Victorian B&O railroad station in Laurel, built in 1884, is the county's only surviving historic railroad station. And Greenbelt Center Elementary School, a striking 1937 Art Deco structure featuring bas reliefs by WPA artist Lenore Thomas, recalls an era when the federal government played an active role in urban planning, education, and the arts. Arranged chronologically, the photographs and captions offer a panoramic overview of the county's architectural and historical development. Following the photographs is a list of all the designated historic sites in Prince George's County, with information about their location, date of construction, and ownership (if publicly owned). Also included are brief essays by Susan G. Pearl, on the history of Prince George's County; Catherine C. Lavoie, on its architecture; Gail C. Rothrock, on historic preservation in the county; and Robert J. Kapsch, on the work of the Historic American Buildings Survey.