Williamsport is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,868 at the 2000 census. The town has a total area of 2.8 km² and lies on one of the early Native American trails between New York and the Carolinas. In the mid-1700s, tens of thousands of European settlers and pioneer families with their wagons followed the same route on the Great Wagon Road from Pennsylvania to Virginia and points south and west. In 1744, a ferry was established at the present site of Williamsport to carry the traffic across the Potomac River.
Williamsport has been a careful steward of its historical heritage, and the National Park Service contributes with maintenance of the local section of the C&O Canal National Park. Preservation and restoration projects are always in evidence. The manufacture of handmade and "antique" bricks under the 120-year-old Cushwa name is an integral part of Williamsport’s economy.
With the opening of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal in the area of 1834, Williamsport became a very popular waterfront town which benefited the economy.
The community was named after Revolutionary War Gen. Otho Holland Williams.
