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is a census-designated place and planned community in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, United States. Established in 1964, Crofton held its 40th birthday celebration in 2004.
In July 2007 Crofton was named by Money magazine as one of "100 Best Places to Live" in the United States. Crofton placed 72nd out of 100 cities on the list. It was selected for its relative anonymity while still boasting many major amenities, excellent schools, and sought after location.
Community life frequently revolves around Crofton Parkway, actually a scenic loop long, tangentially touching the larger "triangle" made up of three nearby roads, which encloses the original Crofton community. Crofton Parkway is the scene of yearly parades, two of its three elementary schools, the Town Hall, Village Green, community events, Crofton Country Club, and walkers, joggers and bikers around the loop. The Crofton area now extends North from the triangle, including Crofton Park. Crofton also has a community pool, the Crofton Swim and Tennis Club but is restricted to those inhabitants of the triangle.
Originally an exclusive gated community, Crofton's gates were opened and they now only serve as a symbol for this community just off Route 3. As of the 2000 census, the total population of the Crofton ZIP code was 20,091. Now the population in Crofton is around 30,000.
In 1963, after the Crawford Corporation accumulated over 1600 acres (6.5 km²) of land, it announced that it would build a new community called Crofton. This new town and planned community was founded at the same time as Reston, Virginia (April 17 1964) and Columbia, Maryland (1967). Crofton would be anchored by a community golfcourse, which later became the Crofton Country Club. Crofton was officially founded in the fall of 1964. The company considered picking an English name for the new town that "sounds well and implies that this is a pleasant place to live." It ended up picking the name "Crofton," named after a small township in Cumberland County, England. The English town was originally called