History of Westwood Park

Westwood Park Homeowners Association, Inc. was officially founded on December 23, 1997. The community was built in several sections over the years. The Wellsley Court area was constructed in the early 2000’s by another builder, as part of the overall community. Hampstead Elementary school was built on the edge of our community in the late 1970’s, While Shiloh Middle was built on land from our community in the early 2000’s. In 2008 The long-awaited Route 30 relocation (The Hampstead Bypass) which had been in the works for over forty years was finally constructed.
Land from our community was used as part of the new road.The path of the road is why Westwood Park is located in two different sections.
The land that Westwood park is built on is the most historic in the Town of Hampstead. The land was granted in 1739 by Lord Baltimore to Edward Richards, an English Quaker whose family founded the town of Hampstead. They were the first settlers in this area. The family called the area Rattlesnake Ridge, and along with Spring Garden (later named Hampstead ) were the first tracts of land to be patented that year.
Capt. Richard Richards, one of Edwards 12 children, laid out the nearby town of Manchester in 1765. His son-in-law Christopher Vaughn laid out Hampstead in 1786. Another son-in-law William Winchester laid out the City of Westminster in 1764. Edward Richards went on to acquire more land around our community, and the family built its second home where the new Hampstead Elementary School was later built in the late 1970’s.
Located in the heart of Westwood Park on Willow Street near Shiloh Middle School lies the Richards Family Cemetery (Circa 1750-1870) it is in a grove of trees marked by a historic sign. Over the decades the area had become overgrown and the Cemetery had become inaccessible. During the development of Westwood Park, the Cemetery was able to also be restored and a fence was placed around it. While visiting the Cemetery one can only wonder what Rattlesnake Ridge (now Westwood Park) must have looked like back in the 1700s before our community, the schools, and the Hampstead Bypass were built on this Historic area of Carroll County that we now call home.