Maryland and surrounding states

Frederick has a very good gun show that's held periodically at the Fair Grounds. It's good enough that I often drive up from Virginia.

Click to expand...

Oh sure...but if he's up around Gettysburg then he's an easy drive to either the York or Harrisburg shows which are pretty much awesome! I liked the Frederick show, but any more ... just, not much reason to go.

As well as within a pretty easy drive of an insanely cool gun shops like Trop's over in E-town.

There's a show in Gettysburg this weekend BTW.

http://www.eaglearmsgunshows.com/gettysburg-gun-show.html

Virginia is slowly but surely going blue. DC incredible growth rate is making more and more of NoVa a suburb of DC.

Pennsylvania's strong hunting culture, and the fact that phili is such a stark eh11hole of crime making it hard for phili to wag a finger at the rest of the sate, means that gun culture has more stickiness there in my opinion.

BTW with its strong gun laws and "may issue" = de facto "no issue," Maryland has 50% higher murder rate and the comparison are a perfect example of how more guns and more carry licenses equal less crime.

NoVa is blue - has been for a while, but much of the rest of the state still trends red.

PA has a similar issue - trends blue in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Scranton - went that direction in the last 4 presidential elections. And Pittsburgh as undergone enough of a Renaissance to be able to wag a finger or two.

Both states have very strong and deeply rooted pro-2a traditions.

For the OP's commuting purposes, I lean towards living PA, with frequent day-trips to WV...

I might add that the physical topography of the area is an important consideration. The western Maryland/Pennsylvania/West Virginia area is divided by a series of ridges/mountains that run roughly from SW to NE. For example, if you were to travel west from Frederick to Hagerstown, you would have to cross the massive South Mountain (famous for the Civil War battle that was part of the Antietam campaign). Traveling east to west in that part of Pennsylvania means encountering a seemingly endless series of ridges. South to north is not so much of a problem. Martinsburg, WV, to Hagerstown, MD, to Chambersburg, PA is an easy commute (via I-81). Likewise, Harpers Ferry to Frederick to Gettysburg is easy. But I wouldn't try to commute regularly from Frederick to, say, Chambersburg. (It gets worse in winter.)

...with frequent day-trips to WV

Click to expand...

I sent him a link to Peacemaker.

I grew up in Frederick. Still have family from my wife's side in Maryland, but about half have left and followed me up into Pennsylvania. The other half want to leave and are trapped by jobs and homes that are hard to sell.


Over 15 years ago I made the same decision you're making now. Virginia is nice, but there are only so many roads that cross the Potomac river, and if there's an accident on any one of them the traffic snarls heavily and can double, or even triple a commute time.

I chose PA. Yeah, we have some high property taxes. But not high compared to Maryland, and they hit you with higher income taxes and a crushing cost of living. I do not know how young people can afford to raise families there.


Follow route 15 north and you'll find some nice communities just across the PA border.

No, it's not.

3 br, 2 bath, 2 car garage on an acre of property in the woods up on a small little mountain. Just a bit over $2,000 a year for property taxes in my part of York County is typical. That's what mine are. Other people pay higher, some lower. All depends on the school district.

We're a bit closer to the area you're looking at. 2.34 acres, 2,300 sq. ft. house with some outbuildings. We pay just about $2,500 per year in taxes, $1,800 of which is the school district.

Other weird PA taxes: occupational assessment tax, per capita tax, and a few others which get paid to both the local tax authority and to the school district. Those work out to ~$200 per year for us.

Yeah, but I'll happily pay those for what I have here.


The cost of living in Maryland is a real killer. Go hop on a real estate website and you see home after home in Frederick County selling for $300k on like 1/10th of an acre. Like I said, I don't know how young people do it. We could never afford to buy the house and property we have here down there.

I am stuck in md and would NOT do it if you have the option.

It's $$, pinko, and with horrible gun laws.

In Frederick, I think I would go to PA or WV. Yes, VA is an option and I like it there but the part that you are within easy reach of is $$ compared to the options.

Buddy just bought a house near Harpers Ferry, nice area, much cheaper than md and you're actually a citizen rather than a host to be fed upon like md.

Where the job is in Frederick matters some also. Getting across town can be rough at times so that may tip the scale one way or another.

Join www.mdshooters.com

Lots of good people and info.

klcmschlesinger said:

Ok, everyone. I am restarting this tired old thread because I have offically moved to Boonsboro Maryland. I know I know. Terrible gun state but lots of time and lots of considerations went into this and this is where I am. So no need to chastise me for not picking PA, WV, or VA. What's done is done. Now I need pointed to some activities. I like to shoot IDPA. Did probably 30 local matches last year. I would also like to belong to a club so I can take my kids and wife to shoot. Outdoor or indoor. I shoot mostly pistols but my kids like their 22lr rifles. Also, any email lists or anything I can get on to be notified of upcoming events, IDPA, USPSA, etc. would be great.
Thanks everyone.

Click to expand...

I shoot IDPA at Peacemaker National Training Center in Gerrardstown, WV. It should be about an hours drive from you. They hold club level matches there almost every month, $25 for non-members. Wonderful facility, and reasonable membership rates if it's not too far for you to drive. They also hold USPSA, Bianchi, Steel Challenge, 2-gun, 3-gun, and other matches monthly.

I believe IDPA matches are held somewhere in Frederick as well, but I refuse to attend solely because it is in MD.

http://peacemakernational.com/

Be very careful when comparing "property taxes" in PA to those such as in WV. Being a Commonwealth form of government, PA's tax structure is very different from many other states. They basically nickel-and-dime you with lots of little taxes that have to be separately paid.

I live in Jefferson County, WV. I have a rural 1.5-acre wooded lot and a 1600-square-foot log home I built about four years ago. My 2014 property taxes were just over $900 for the year. WV does have a personal property tax on vehicles, but it's not much. When I still worked, my commute to Frederick was about 40 minutes.

Oh sure...but if he's up around Gettysburg then he's an easy drive to either the York or Harrisburg shows which are pretty much awesome! I liked the Frederick show, but any more ... just, not much reason to go

Click to expand...

I live in Damascus, MD, and Sam1911 is correct. The US 15 corridor from Gettysburg area down to Frederick is a fine commute. In Frederick, following US 15, you can divert over to Harper's Ferry on 340...good swap meet there, OR keep going down into VA. Go West from US 15 on I-70 for more Outlet Stores if the ones in Gettysburg don't suit you. (Hint: IF you are married having access to shopping and saving money are a good thing) Good hunting, good shooting, good skiing, Hershey Park, Dutch Wonderland, Lancaster....

If I could, I'd move up to PA today. I find it laughable that Former Governor O'Malley thinks he has any business running for President...the author of the "rain tax", and the man in charge at the time of the worst roll-out of O'Bamacare in the nation....

Governor Hogan wants to reverse the state's direction, but with the loafers on the dole in Baltimore forming a Socialist (imho) voting block (not to mention the dead voting) I don't think he'll get much of anything done.

LD

I participated in a number of high power rifle and even cowboy shooting events at the Isaac Walton League in Frederick. I've always liked the Boonsboro area - I'm sure you will enjoy it.

klcmschlesinger said:

.... Now I need pointed to some activities. I like to shoot IDPA. Did probably 30 local matches last year. .... Also, any email lists or anything I can get on to be notified of upcoming events, IDPA, USPSA, etc. would be great.
Thanks everyone.

Click to expand...

Mason Dixion Rifle Club in Morgantown, WV has an awesome IDPA match every 1st Saturday of the Month starting this April. Typically, we have 7 stages every match and a 5 stage BUG match every other month. The guys in charge have done an excellent job balancing the stages to prevent bottlenecks that back the squads up while keeping each stage challenging. We have several folks driving very long (4+ hours) distances to participate. Note that Morgantown is 2.5 hours from Fredricks.

http://mdrc-inc.com/