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In 1632, King Charles I granted the Maryland territory to Cecil Calvert, the Second Lord of Baltimore. Except for a period of 1689 to 1715, the five successive Lord Baltimore attempted to rule their Maryland Providence as a feudal estate. At first, land was granted to allies and friend of the Calverts. Then, in 1683, the proprietor began to sell land for 200 pounds of tobacco per 100 acres. By 1776, land cost 5 pounds sterling per 100 acre

The first European immigrants came to the Crofton area in the 1660's and 1670's. They found abundant wildlife, such as wolves, bobcats, deer, elk, bear, beaver, mink, squirrels, raccoons, a large variety of birds and fish and other sea life. They also found themselves amidst a "great forest unlike anything seen in the British Isles." The first settlers cleared much of the forest land and depended almost entirely on the export of tobacco to England for their livelihood.

What is now Route 424 is considered the first true road in the Crofton area. It was originally known as Ridge Road and followed the ridge that separated the South River and the Patuxent River, linking up with the Londontown route in the south. For access to a newly developed road, the Jesuits at Whitemarsh Chapel built a bridge across the Patuxent. Their bridge. known as Priest's Bridge, connected connected the land they owned on both sides of the Patuxent River. This bridge was for their own use. With the introduction of automobiles and with Crofton's strategic position between Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis, the Crofton area became an important automobile junction. On July 16, 1927, Defense Highway Route 450), named because it linked the Naval Academy in Annapolis with Washington, D.C., was dedicated in a ceremony with officials from the District of Columbia, Maryland and the Navy.

Source From Wikipedia