Rockville, city in central Maryland, seat of Montgomery County, near Washington, D.C.. Computer and aerospace research facilities and government services are important to the city's economy. A branch of a community college is here. Of interest are the Beall-Dawson House (1815) and a local cemetery containing the graves of the author F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife, Zelda. The Great Falls of the Potomac River are nearby. Located on the site was Hungerford's Tavern, a meeting place for radicals of the American Revolution (1775-1783). The village of Williamsburg, platted here in 1787, was superseded in 1801 with the establishment of the town of Rockville. The city was incorporated in 1860. According to the 1990 census, whites constitute 79.2 percent of the city's population; people of Asian background, 9.8 percent; blacks, 8.3 percent; and Native Americans, 0.3 percent. Hispanics, who may also be counted among other groups, make up 8.6 percent of the population. Population 43,811 (1980); 44,835 (1990); 46,788 (1998 estimate).
