Silver Spring, MD takes its name from an estate with the same name built by Francis Blair (whose family was involved in the Abraham Lincoln’s cabinet, the Senate, and businesses in the area). Francis and his daughter named the estate “Silver Spring” due to a natural spring with silvery mica located somewhere near the current day Acorn Park. In addition to its long history, Silver Spring is the center of many great parks and hiking trails.
Wheaton Regional Park connects to Brookside Gardens and the Northwest Branch Trail along the Anacostia river. Following the river, this trail goes all the way south to Kenilworth Gardens and the National Arboretum in DC, or veers north to Greenbelt Park and beyond.
