A neighborhood / community in the state of Maryland, USA, which borders on Washington, D.C. Technically, Silver Spring isn't an actual town or city; it's an unincorporated urban district within Montgomery County, Maryland. As such, Silver Spring doesn't have a mayor, a city council, or a police department, but rather is governed by the Montgomery County Council, headed by the County Executive.

Silver Spring, not being an incorporated city and all, doesn't really have an offical boundary. Not really a big deal, but it's possible to live in a house in Wheaton, Maryland, have a Silver Spring, Maryland mailing address, and a Kensington, Maryland phone number.

Confused? Welcome to Maryland.

In 1842, while horseback riding through the area, a newspaper publisher named Francis Preston Blair came upon a sparkling spring (sparkling, because the water contained mica), and decided to build a summer home on that spot. Blair called his house "Silver Spring," and the name stuck.

Silver Spring is also the home of the original Tastee Diner.
Silver Spring (a Washington, D.C. suburb) is an unofficial city with an unofficial mascot.

In the late 80s the Silver Spring Metro station was decorated with the supposed to be temporary, 100 foot mural, "Penguin Rush Hour". It depicts hundreds of penguins rushing about a metro station, reading newspapers featuring penguins, sitting on the train, etc..

The metro authorities eventually purchased the mural and have never removed it. It is a bit worse for the wear of the last 12 years but considering it was painted on plywood still looks pretty good.

Over the intervening years more and more penguins have shown up in Silver Spring locations. There is the inflated penguin in the library and the pedestrian crossing sign penguin. There are the stuffed penguins in store windows and the wooden penguin yard decoration. There is even a penguin wearing shorts featured on the outdoor exercise trail signs.



for some cute pictures, go to:
http://www.homestead.com/silverspringhistory/penguin.html
http://www.xydexx.com/journal/j010303.htm

A station of the D.C. Metro system.

General Information
Line: Red
Address: Colesville Road and Second Avenue, Silver Spring, Maryland
Location: Intersection of Colesville Road and East-West Highway
Parking: Available, price unknown.
Opened: February 6, 1978

Last Trains
Shady Grove, weekdays: 11:46pm
Shady Grove, weekends: 1:46am
Glenmont, weekdays: 12:24am
Glenmont, weekends: 2:24am

Bus Lines
Metrobus: 70, 71, C7, F4, F6, J1, J2, J3, Q2, S2, S4, Y8, Z1, Z2, Z3, Z4, Z5, Z7, Z8, Z9, Z11, Z17, Z19, Z29
Ride-On: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 28
MTA: 929

Details
Located in downtown Silver Spring, surrounded by offices and retail shops. Housing is also close by, and the station is heavily used by commuters from the north whose bus routes bring them as far as this station.

From here you can...
go back to the Metro project,
jump to the red line,
go inbound to Takoma,
or outbound to Forest Glen.

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