Somerset County Profile
Quick Facts:
Somerset County is Maryland’s southernmost county, and one of its most remote. The second least populous county in the state (after Kent), Somerset has a population density of 83 people per square mile.
- Land area is 319 square miles
- Water area is 290 square miles (48% of total area)
A higher percentage (37%) of agricultural, forested, and important natural and water resource lands is preserved than in any other county on the Shore. On the other hand, 12% of agricultural and resource lands are under threat of development inconsistent with state goals for land and resource conservation.
The town of Crisfield, second largest in the county, was targeted for development in the early years of the 21st Century. Several high-rise waterfront condo buildings were built on land previously occupied by watermen and the seafood industry. No longer does Crisfield look like a quaint waterfront community. Like much of the Eastern Shore, however, the land is subsiding and the water rising, making for an uncertain future for new and existing waterfront development.
Somerset County has the lowest proportion of White population, and the highest proportion of Black population of Shore counties.
Population breakdown by race and ethnicity:
- 52% White, non-Hispanic
- 38% Black, non-Hispanic
- 5% Hispanic
- 5% Other, non-Hispanic
Despite the University of Maryland Eastern Shore making its county seat, Princess Anne, a college town, Somerset County has the lowest educational attainment on the Eastern Shore. One-fifth of the population has less than a high school diploma or GED. Two-fifths has a high school diploma or GED. One-fifth has attended some college, and one-fifth has earned a college-level degree.
Somerset County is also the poorest county on the Eastern Shore.
Somerset County’s median household income is $35,900 — the lowest in the state — compared with $76,100 for the state as a whole.
In 2015, 31% of Somerset homeowners paid more than 35% of their income on housing costs; 56% of renters paid more than 35% of their income for rent (highest percentage on the Shore). A full 8.5% of county residents don’t have health insurance (tied for highest with Talbot), compared with 6.9% statewide.
In June 2022, Somerset County’s unemployment rate (not seasonally adjusted) was 6.7%, the highest in the state. Maryland’s was 4.7%.
In Somerset, 23.4% of the population is at or below the poverty level — highest level in the state (higher even than Baltimore City) — compared with 9% statewide.
Voter registrations are split evenly between Democrats and Republicans at 42% for each party. For the 2020 election, there were 9 fewer Democrats registered than Republicans. In 2016 the county went for Trump, and in 2020 the county increased its support for Trump, alone among Maryland counties.
After crabs, the county is probably most famous for Smith Island Cake, the official Maryland state dessert. With eight to 12 layers, the traditional flavors are yellow cake with a fudgy, cooked chocolate icing.
Sources:
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Decennial Census, Hispanic and Not Hispanic by Race
Statistical Atlas, Maryland
https://statisticalatlas.com/state/Maryland
Maryland Department of Planning Data Center, Sustainability Indicators
https://planning.maryland.gov/MSDC/Pages/sustainability_indicator/sustainabilityindicator.aspx
Maryland State Board of Elections, Eligible Active Voters, 2020 Presidential Election
Maryland Department of Labor, Local Area Unemployment Statistics
https://www.dllr.state.md.us/lmi/laus/
Wikipedia, Somerset County, Md.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somerset_County,_Maryland
Somerset County Economic Development Commission
https://somersetcountyedc.org/somerset-county-about-us.php
Jan Plotczyk spent 25 years as a survey and education statistician with the federal government, at the Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. She retired to Rock Hall.
Common Sense for the Eastern Shore
