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Cumberland. 1 City (1990 pop. 23,706), seat of Allegany co., NW Md., on the North Branch of the Potomac; settled 1750, inc. 1815. It is an important railroad and shipping center for a coal-mining area. Its manufactures include textiles, rubber, glass, paper products, and plastics. Cumberland grew around the site of a trading post established (1750) by the Ohio Company at a natural gateway through the Appalachians to the Ohio valley. Fort Cumberland (built 1754) was the base of operations for the ill-fated Braddock expedition (1755) against the French and Native American forces and the site of Washington's first military headquarters (1757). The city became the eastern terminus of the Cumberland Road, or National Road; a division point for the Baltimore & Ohio RR; and the western terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (completed 1850), which runs through Green Ridge State Forest. Other local attractions include the old toll gate house (1833) and the Narrows, a magnificent gorge through the Appalachians to the Ohio valley. Frostburg State Univ. is to the west. 2 Town (1990 pop. 29,038), Providence co., NE R.I., on the Blackstone River and the Mass. line; included in Massachusetts until 1746, inc. as a R.I. town 1747. Its manufactures include textiles and metal and fiberglass products. The Ballou Meetinghouse dates from c.1740.
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