THE FREE STATE

Scuto bonae voluntatis tuae coronasti nos (With the shield of thy goodwill thou hast covered us)

The state of Maryland was established as part of the United States on April 28, 1788, making it the 7th to join the union. Maryland ranks 42nd in size⁸ with 9,775 sq. miles of land, and Baltimore is the largest city. Maryland also ranks 19th in population⁸ with 5,296,486 residents (2000 est.), and Annapolis is the state capital. The official bird of Maryland is the Baltimore Oriole, and the official flower is the Black-Eyed Susan.